Shotley Bridge

Shotley Bridge is a village, adjoining the town of Consett to the south in County Durham, England, 15 miles northwest of Durham.

It is located on the A694 road starting from Consett and Blackhill to the south, then continuing north east to East Law, Ebchester and onward to Swalwell within the borough of Gateshead. Shotley Bridge sits beside the River Derwent which is crossed by the bridge giving the name. A small portion sits on the far bank of the River Derwent to the north west within the county of Northumberland. and along a side road to the west of the Kings Head Social Club and right off the A694 sits the hamlet of Shotley Grove.

thumb|Shotley Bridge - centre of village with Crown and Crossed Swords public house on the left and road leading to the bridge of Shotley Bridge on the right.

thumb|The bridge at Shotley Bridge, from where the village gets its name.

Shotley Bridge was once the heart of Britain's swordmaking industry.

History

There were formerly several fords over the River Derwent near this place and in medieval times a wooden bridge. The present stone bridge was widened in 1820, but its original date is not known.

The bed of the river itself was the source of stone for millstones, and licences for this are recorded at "Shotley Brig" in 1356.

It was during the Victorian era that much of the town's architecture was constructed, including some grand residences and many listed buildings, so that by 1898 it had much of its present form. Shotley Bridge was chosen because of the quality of the ironstone in the area and the softness and fast flow of the River Derwent. The current parish church is that of St John at Snod's Edge, also Grade II listed, dating from 1837 when it was founded as a chapel outpost of St Andrew's. There is a Roman Catholic Church, Our Lady of the Rosary (1952),

Shotley Bridge Hospital

thumb|Shotley Bridge Hospital

Shotley Bridge Hospital originated with the acquisition of the Whinney House Estate in 1912. The site was initially used as a tuberculosis hospital but served as a facility for the care of people with mental problems being known as "Shotley Bridge Mental Defectives Colony" from 1927 to 1940, when it was converted to an Emergency Hospital to cope with the Second World War, particularly providing plastic surgery, becoming a general hospital in 1948.

Other buildings and public houses

thumb|Crown and Crossed Swords public house in Shotley Bridge.

In the Victorian boom time, the village was often referred to as a town

Other attractions

There are a couple of footpaths of note.

One heads west and away from the A694 from close to the King's Head, crossing the River Derwent at Shotley Grove (there is a choice of two bridges 400 metres apart) then continuing along the north bank of the Derwent to Allensford and the A68. The path continues beyond this on the south side of the Derwent to Wharnley Burn Waterfall.

thumb|Mere Burn outside Newlands. A small waterfall exists as shown where the footpath crosses Mere Burn further away from Newlands on the way to Shotley Bridge.

thumb|The first of the two Small Burn Falls waterfalls (also nicknamed Sisterson Falls after a nearby farm), Newlands. The first is the nearest one to the hamlet, hidden in a gorge.

thumb|The second of the two Small Burn waterfalls, Newlands. This waterfall is further away from Newlands, again on the stream known as Small Burn.

The other can be accessed up a set of small stone stairs from the road on crossing the bridge across the Derwent to the right (east). This path leads along the north bank of the River Derwent, through first a large field on the opposite side of the river to the Shotley Bridge Cricket Club, then a small wooded nature reserve including the artificially created Price Pond (Google Maps) / wetland and stream, a farm at the top of the following hill, and eventually to the Northumberland hamlet of Newlands. This path has the nickname Waterfall Way due to there being one small waterfall on Mere Burn and two on Small Burn close to the Newlands end of the path. The two near Newlands are also referred to as Sisterson Falls with reference to a nearby farm.

thumb|Price Pond, on the north bank of the River Derwent, slightly north of Shotley Bridge

The Derwent Walk is accessible from Blackhill to the south and from the road to Medomsley heading away from the Crown and Crossed Swords pub and A694 to the east. It also passes north eastward from Blackhill to the south of Shotley Bridge Hospital.

thumb|The Derwent Walk near Shotley Bridge Hospital

Notable people

Professional footballer Ben Clark was born in Shotley Bridge.
England Test cricketer Paul Collingwood played for Shotley Bridge Cricket Club in his youth.
The Italian poet and writer Avro Manhattan spent his final years in Shotley Bridge, his wife's home town, and is buried there.
England Rugby Union international Mathew Tait was born in Shotley Bridge.

References

External links

Shotley Bridge Directory Map and local information
Shotley Bridge Conservation Area