Shildon is a town and civil parish in County Durham, in England. The population taken at the 2011 Census was 9,976. The town has the Locomotion Museum, due to it having the first , built in 1825, and locomotive works on the Stockton and Darlington Railway.

History

The name Shildon comes from the Old English word sceld, This translates as 'shelf shaped hill' or 'shield/refuge'. Another possibility is the Old English word scylfe meaning 'shelf' and the suffix dun meaning 'hill'. This refers to the town's location on a limestone escarpment.

The earliest inhabitants of the area were most likely present from the Mesolithic period some 6,000 years ago. Although no evidence of settlement has been found in Shildon itself a small flint tool discovered in the nearby Brusselton area may be from this period.

Roman expansion reached County Durham in the first century AD. Possible evidence of Roman infrastructure has been uncovered in the area such as Hagg's Lane which passes through Brusselton Wood. Hagg's Lane formed part of the Roman road known as Dere Street.

The first recorded reference to Shildon came during the Anglo-Saxon period in 821 AD when lands were granted to the church.

Second World War

In March 1940, Leading Stoker C. Anderson of Shildon was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for 'displaying good leadership' while serving in the submarine .

The Minister of Economic Warfare, Hugh Dalton, visited Shildon in 1942. He spoke in the town regarding the need to work harder and consume less.

Railway heritage

19th century

thumb|Shildon town centre: celebrating 150 years of railway history in 1975

At the dawn of the 19th century Shildon was a few houses on a crossroad. The Industrial Revolution and the coming of the railways saw the town grow.

John Dixon, assistant to George Stephenson recalled the town before the railways came.

The volume of coal being produced by coal mining outstripped the capacity of the traditional method of transporting coal, on horse-drawn wagon ways. Steam power was introduced through the use of static steam engines. These were, in turn, were superseded by steam locomotives.

Demand led to a passenger service beginning from the town on 27 September 1825.

The railway ran from its northern terminus at Shildon along 27 miles of track to its terminus at Stockton.

Recruited to the railway by George Stephenson in 1824, Timothy Hackworth went on to become superintendent in 1825. He was charged with building locomotives for the company.

Engine works

Timothy Hackworth moved into Hackworth House (formerly Soho House, now Grade II* listed) with his family in 1831. There he supervised the construction of what became the Soho Engine Works close to the property. In 1833 Hackworth renegotiated his contract with the Stockton and Darlington Railway to take over the works himself. This became the Soho Locomotive Building Company.

The oldest part still surviving is the Soho Shed. The grade II* listed building was built in 1826 as a warehouse for an iron merchant. The North Eastern Railway were the occupant from 1863 before becoming a paint shop for trains in the 1870s. In the 20th century it was used as a boxing gym and rehearsal space for the Shildon Works Silver Band. The shed still has two engine pits and the remnants of a 19th-century heating system. The engine shed along with Hackworth House was refurbished in 1975.

thumb|Locomotion No 1 replica passing the Shildon coal drops, 31 August 1975

Near the Soho Shed, 110 metres to the east, are the grade II* listed coal drops. Constructed circa 1846/47 The system was used for the refuelling of locomotive tenders. Coal wagons would be hauled to the top of the coal drops where their bottom would open and the coal would fall down a chute into the engine waiting below.

In this area also stand the Black Boy Stables and out buildings. The grade II listed stables were built in the early 19th century at the point where the branch lines met from the Black Boy Colliery and Surtees Railway. Restored in the 1970s the stables were damaged by fire in 1985.

The Stockton and Darlington Railway expanded their works on the western side of the Mason's Arms Crossing. This expansion alongside the nearby Soho works led to a surge in population as people came to the town for work. The pace of growth quickened further with the opening of Shildon Colliery to the south of the Soho Works in 1873.

In 1855 the Soho Works were bought by the Stockton and Darlington Railway and made an extension of their works. Now merged with the North Eastern Railway in 1863 and locomotive production was shifted to their North Road Works in Darlington. The Shildon Works continued but focus was shifted to the construction of railway wagons.

20th century

thumb|Timothy Hackworth's House

A strike in 1911 saw violent scenes in the town and British troops deployed to maintain order. A driver of a mineral train was stoned and dragged from his engine. He was pursued by an angry mob and had to be rescued by soldiers. Mineral wagons had their bottom doors undone and the contents allowed to fall out. Wagons in the sidings had their brakes undone and freewheeled for miles, railway signal cables were damaged and the cavalry had to be called. At one stage soldiers had to mount a Bayonet charge to clear a bridge. The New Shildon Strike Committee condemned the government for deploying the army and called for their withdrawal.

Moving further into the 20th Century the Shildon Works became the largest wagon works in the world by 1976, employing 2,600 people. The works built 1,000 wagons a year and repaired more besides. The 27 miles of sidings made Shildon home to what was believed to be the largest sidings in the world. This was until the construction of the Chicago marshalling yards in 1927.

The Soho works laid derelict since the 1940s and were scheduled for demolition in the 1970s when many of the buildings fell into disrepair. However, the buildings were saved when they were restored and opened to the public as part of the Timothy Hackworth Museum. The museum was opened on Thursday 17 July 1975 by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

Railway works closure

The railway works closed on 29 June 1984, with the loss of 1,750 jobs. David Mitchell MP, Transport Under-Secretary, opened the Hackworth Industrial Park on the site of the wagon works in 1985. The Shildon and Sedgefield Development Agency was established with a £1.6 million fund given by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) and also had backing from Shildon and Sedgfield Councils. The agency (as of 1985) spent £1 million in marketing the former workshops, giving loan guarantees as well giving business advice. The agency supported 100 companies with 57 being start ups and also paid £30 a week for a year to companies taking on former BREL staff.

Coach house

Shildon is also home to the grade II listed Daniel Adamson's Coach House (c.1831). In 1827 Daniel Adamson, landlord of the nearby Grey Horse pub, had a horse-drawn railway coach called Perseverance which ran between Shildon and Darlington. When the Surtees Railway opened in 1831, Adamson built the coach house. The building was to act as both station and shed. It is believed to be the earliest surviving railway coach house in the world. His son, also Daniel Adamson, became an engineer.

Brusselton incline

thumb|Brusselton incline

On the edge of Shildon is the hamlet of Brusselton. Two hills barred the way from the south Durham coalfield to the start of the railway at Shildon. George Stephenson overcame this by setting up stationary steam engines on the hilltops to haul the coal wagons over. One engine was at Etherley, this brought the wagons from Witton Park and lowered them down the slope to West Auckland. From there horses took the wagons to the Brusselton incline. At the top of this in an engine house were two 30 horsepower engines (later upgraded to a new 80 horsepower engine) acting in tandem. A large drum hanging above the road holding a rope pulled the wagons over the incline and to the locomotive waiting in Shildon.

A boiler house, chimney and railwaymen's houses sat on the north side of the road but have since been demolished. The engineman's house on the south side of the road still survives. A passenger service began over the incline in 1833 and a record set in 1839 with 2,120 tonnes of coal taken in 67 trips in a day.) was started. It was opened in 1842 and was completed at a cost of £100,000.

The new museum came about as part of a £70 million government funding arrangement for museums across the country. The project received £2 million from the European Regional Development Fund along with grant aid from a number of groups. The museum hoped to attract 60,000 visitors in the first year but had 70,000 visitors in the first two months. The town's bid for the museum was selected ahead of bids from Cardiff and Glasgow.

In January 2018, the site welcomed its 2,500,000th visitor, who was Sean Richards of Sedgefield, visiting with his family.

Politics

Shildon is part of the Bishop Auckland parliamentary constituency, which is represented by Sam Rushworth of the Labour Party. He won the seat at the 2024 General Election with 17,036 votes.

The seat was previously held by Dehenna Davison of the Conservative Party. Davison won the seat at the 2019 UK general election from Helen Goodman of the Labour Party, who had held the seat since 2005.

On Durham County Council, the Shildon and Dene Valley ward has three Labour councillors.

Education

  • St. Johns C of E (Aided) Primary School
  • Greenfield Academy
  • Thornhill Primary School
  • Timothy Hackworth Primary School

Community and geography

The Shildon Town Band was founded in 1937 from the remnants of the Shildon Wesleyan Band. The band was conducted by Mr Ernie Bennett, other notable members were Ivan Pearce, The Allinson Brothers George, Fred, Jack and Jim, another long member was the secretary Graeme Scarlett.

Parks and green spaces

Hackworth Park is a park in Shildon town centre named after Timothy Hackworth. The park contains a drinking fountain created to commemorate one of the engines he designed and there is a statue of him.

Town Square

thumb|The square

Ahead of the new Millennium the town received £24 million in funding to make improvements to the town. These improvements included £380,000 for a new town square which is home to a 6-foot statue of Timothy Hackworth.

Distance to other places

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible"

!Place

!Distance

!Direction

!Relation

|-

|London

|

|South

|Capital

|-

|Stockton-on-Tees

|

|South east

|In the county area and significant to railway heritage

|-

|Durham

|

|North

|Nearest city and historic county town

|-

|Darlington

|

|South east

|Largest place in the county and significant to railway heritage

|-

|Newton Aycliffe

|

|East

|Next nearest town

|-

|Bishop Auckland

|

|North west

|next nearest town

|}

Sport

Local football club Shildon A.F.C. compete in the Ebac Northern League Division One. In November 2003, the club reached the FA Cup first round for the first time in 42 years, when in 1962 they lost 5–2 away to Oldham Athletic. In the 2003 match Shildon were beaten 7–2 away by Notts County. The club was successful in the 1930s, winning the Northern League on three occasions. In season 2014–15, they needed to win their final game to become Northern League Champions and add the title to the Northern League Cup and the Durham Challenge Cup. A 1–1 draw at Bedlington meant that they continue to wait for their first title since 1940.

Durham Tigers are the local rugby league team. The club runs age level teams in the North East Junior League.

Shildon Running & Athletic Club, founded in 1986, is based at the Stadium 2000 on Middridge Lane in Shildon [http://www.shildonrunning.co.uk].

Shildon Railway Cricket Club joined the NYSD premiere league in the 2015 season, and won the 3rd division at the first attempt.

Transport

Rail

thumb|Shildon Railway Station

thumb|upright|The Grade II listed signal box at Shildon believed to have been designed by Thomas Prosser.

Shildon Station is an unstaffed railway station managed by Northern. The signal box was built in 1887 (with alterations made in 1928 and 1984) and was possibly designed by Thomas Prosser is grade II listed. The station is served by the Bishop Line which runs between Bishop Auckland and Darlington. The service on the line is designated as Community rail by the Department for Transport in January 2011. The line continues between Darlington and Saltburn as the Tees Valley line.

Bus

Shildon is served by bus services operated by Arriva North East and Scarlet Band. The services are 5, 5A, X1, 1 and Weardale service 99

Notable people

  • Timothy Hackworth, railway engineer
  • Daniel Adamson, railway engineer
  • Sid Chaplin, writer, after whom the local library is named
  • Harry Beevers, plant physiologist
  • Thomas Ferens, politician

References

  • Locomotion – Railway Museum
  • Shildon Town Council – Town Council
  • Shildon and District Town Crier – Newspaper
  • Shildon AFC – Football Team
  • Jubilee Fields Community Association