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LOCAL WEATHER
© Copyright 2004Underlined Text & Images are used for Hyper-Links to more Relevant InformationLast modified: March 02, 2004 |
Gateway to the Border Reivers Country
Tyneside Metro Rapid Transit System
Gosforth ParkIn 1166 a small village of to the north of Newcastle called "Goseford" had derived its name from the Old English meaning Goose Ford and the ford over the Ouse Burn which ran through it. Charles Steel explains that the pronunciation and spelling changed as it did with nearly all town and villages as they developed into what is now known as Gosforth.In 1887 Bulmer's History and Directory of Northumberland describes Gosforth as an important parish on the north side of Newcastle divided into the townships of North Gosforth, South Gosforth, CoxIodge, Kenton, Fawdon, and East and West Brunton.NORTH GOSFORTH comprised the area to the north of the Ouse Burn which now encompasses Gosforth Park. Gosforth House was built by the wealthy Brandling family in 1760 within the park and sold in 1852 when the Brandlings were bankrupt with more than 2,000 acres of land.
SOUTH GOSFORTH was separated from North Gosforth by the Ouse Burn. Its antiquity stretched back to Saxon times, and in 1319 the English army encamped there en route to the siege of Berwick.The Brandling family had financed the sinking of Gosforth colliery which began in 1825 on land on the south bank of the Ouse Burn, it was was short‑lived and closed four years later when it ran into unexpected mining difficulties.Salters' Bridge dates back to the 13th century, and crosses the Ouse Burn near to Killingworth Road. It was so called because it stood on the old salters’ peth which ran from Hartley salt pans up to Blanchland, The route through Gosforth was known as Salters' Lane ‑ part of which became what is now Salters Road. The bridge, originally seven feet wide, has been widened over the years, but still retains much of its original stonework.
COXLODGE's inhabitants were mainly coal miners working at the nearby CoxIodge colliery which was started in 1805 by the Brandling family and produced around 700 tons of coal per day from the 50 men and boys.CoxIodge Hall was built in 1796 by Job Bulman, a medical man originally from Gateshead who had made his fortune in India, and who lived there until his death in 1818. The hall, which stood on the north side of what is now The Drive at Gosforth, changed hands several times before it burned down in 1877 (it was rebuilt two years later). Occupants included the famous soap manufacturer Thornas Hedley and shipbuilding magnate Andrew Leslie.By the 1930s much of the CoxIodge estate had been sold off for suburban development and the hall became a private school which survived until 1939, but all that remain now are the stables ‑ which are used as offices ‑ along with a lodge. Bulman Village dated from about 1825 and was named after the owner of CoxIodge Hall, who sold off this portion of his estate for building purposes. It occupied the area which could be regarded as the centre of modern day Gosforth. The largest building being the police station, which was built in Hawthorn Road in 1885. At the time it was described as a substantial redbrick building fitted with all modern conveniences, including mess room, offices, sitting room and bathroom ‑ plus four cells for the detention of prisoners, and accommodation for the deputy chief constable, two sergeants and several constables.
CoxIodge Asylum, often referred to as the lunatic asylum for the City of Newcastle, stands not too far from the old CoxIodge village. Building work began in 1865 ‑ a gigantic project to house around 130 patients with a further 35 acres to enclose it within its walled grounds. Further improvements were made to increase patient numbers by 170, and in 1886 the average number of patients was 291.Over the years its status changed and, for a time between 1914 and 1918, it became a hospital for First World War casualties. The premises later became better known as St Nicholas' Hospital, and although many of the fine stone buildings remain, much of the land has now been sold off for housing development.KENTON was the largest township in the parish. There are two theories about how it got its name, the first being that because the original village was situated on high ground (the area now known as Kenton Bar), it could be "kenned" or seen from many miles away.The other possibility is that in 1242 the name was written as "Kyngton" or "Kington", and therefore derived its name from this spelling. It is uncertain what connection, if any, it had with royalty, but the nearby area of Kingston Park is probably a later derivation of this name. Coal was also mined in Kenton from the mid‑1700s until the opening of CoxIodge colliery in 1805.Kenton Quarry. which ceased production in the 1920s, stood on the area of land just west of what is now Creighton Avenue. Thousands of millstones and grindstones quarried here were exported all over the world and was used for the construction of many of Newcastle's public buildings. including St Thomas's Church,Jesmond cemetery, and the old town hall.
In the early nineteen hundreds Gosforth Park became the Northern Terminus of Newcastle Cities First Metropolitan Transit system, the horseless Trams brought workers and Horse Racing Spectators from the City Centre out to the then edge of rural Northumberland.We hope you will bookmark us to Watch This Space grow
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