Ryton, Tyne and Wear
Ryton | ||
---|---|---|
Village | ||
Metropolitan county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Areas of the 2011 Tyneside sub division | ||
Post town | RYTON | |
Postcode district | NE40 | |
Dialling code | 0191 | |
Police | Northumbria | |
Fire | Tyne and Wear | |
Ambulance | North East | |
UK Parliament | ||
Ryton is a village in Tyne and Wear, England.[2] It is in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, historically part of County Durham. In 2011, the population of the Ryton, Crookhill and Stella ward was 8,146.[3] It is 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Location
Ryton lies midway between
History
Traditionally, Ryton's economy was built upon agriculture and coal mining. Some think that coal mining was taking place in the area as early as
Ryton's position south of the Scottish Borders and Hadrian's Wall made it a target for Scottish attacks in the area, and it is said to have been burned by William Wallace in 1297. A further attack by David II of Scotland was recorded in 1346, during which the church was plundered.[6]
As well as its coal industry, Ryton formerly contained the lead-smelting reverberatory furnaces of the Ryton Company, whose mines were on Alston Moor. By 1704, this business had been amalgamated into the London Lead Company.[7]
In 1800 the Stargate Pit (Towneley Main Colliery) was opened and on 30 May 1826, a coal dust and methane (firedamp) explosion there killed 20 men and 18 boys. This became known as the "Stargate Pit Disaster". There is a memorial marker at Ryton's Holy Cross Church, and another memorial stone at the pit itself. The Stargate Pit was reopened in 1840 and not closed until 1961.[5][8][9]
Ryton soon became a place of migration for the wealthy, who wanted to escape the
Local politics
In local government, Ryton is in the Ryton, Crookhill and Stella ward, which is in the outer west of the borough. The ward is served by three councillors, who represent Labour. Gateshead Council is Labour controlled.
Ryton is located within the
.Geography
The neighbouring village of Crawcrook is a nexus of coal mining nostalgia also. Remnants of several old pits across Ryton and Crawcrook, including Emma, Clara and Addison can still be found. Within a couple of hundred metres of both Crawcrook and Ryton main street there is rich countryside.
Perhaps the most impressive section of this countryside is Ryton Willows Local Nature Reserve located on the banks of the Tyne, just past Old Ryton Village. It consists of 43 hectares of
Other areas of countryside include nearby Stargate pond and Addison and Hedgefield Woods. Alexander Graham Bell made one of his pioneering telephone calls at Addison woods.[11]
Further up the Tyne Valley, past the village of Crawcrook and into the border of Northumberland, there are rural market towns such as Prudhoe, Corbridge and Hexham.
Ryton today
Ryton is a relatively residential area with a variety of local amenities. In the more central part of Ryton these include a
Ryton has a Mens Shed open two days a week, where local men like to meet and learn and share their skills.
Ryton has an extensive
Away from the town centre there are two golf courses, Tyneside golf club at Ryton and Ryton golf club in nearby Clara Vale. Both are situated in tranquil areas near the banks of the Tyne.
Ryton is home to three schools, Ryton Infants School, Ryton Junior School and Thorp Academy, all of which occupy the same site in the village. Nearby Crawcrook offers two more primary schools. Crookhill Primary is nearby.
Sport plays a role in the local community. Apart from the golf courses and the Edwardian park, Ryton has a football club, Ryton & Crawcrook Albion F.C., who play at Kingsley Park in Crawcrook, a rugby union team, Ryton Rugby Football Club at nearby Barmoor, and a cricket club, situated opposite Charles Thorp.
Ryton benefits from good public transport with regular bus services. A good example of this is the R3/R4 to Winlaton, Blaydon and Rowlands Gill via Stargate, and there are services to Crawcrook, Prudhoe and Hexham to the west and the MetroCentre, Gateshead and Newcastle to the east.
Other features of Ryton
Both
The old
Charles Thorp set up a savings bank in 1815 in a building within the old village known as the White House which still stands there today. It is thought to have been the first bank of its kind in England.[12]
The annual Ryton Music Festival, held over February and March, has been held in the village for more than 79 years. It offers a variety of music and drama including choral singing and
The Ryton Summer Festival, held at the local comprehensive school usually includes live music, sport and arts and crafts stalls.
Each year on the Tuesday before Christmas Eve villagers gather on the village green to sing traditional carols accompanied by a local brass band.
There are two air raid shelters in Ryton Willows, as well as other Second World War features such trenches and shower/toilet rooms with tiles, etc. still visible, next to a railway line that was apparently used to bring children up from London. A dirt road hidden under trees leading up to the bottom of the village may have been a checkpoint.
Notable residents
- George Hepplewhite, furniture designer
- Howard Kendall, footballer
- Sunderland AFC who made over 39 English Football Leagueappearances
- Charles Algernon Parsons, engineer and inventor of the steam turbine[13]
- Stan Ramsay, footballer
- Thomas Secker, Archbishop of Canterbury 1758–68, one-time Rector of Holy Cross Church, Ryton
- Charles Thorp, founder of Durham University
- Robert Thorp, clergyman
- Rachel and Becky Unthank, folk singers, grew up in Ryton
- Nicholas Wood, civil and mining engineer
References
- ^ "Ryton is made up of 25 output areas in this ward".
- ^ "Distance between Ryton, UK and Newcastle upon Tyne, UK (UK)". distancecalculator.globefeed.com.
- ^ "Gateshead MBC ward of Ryton,Crookhill and Stella population 2011". Retrieved 5 July 2015.
- ^ Local History Gateshead: Ryton Retrieved 2 November 2013
- ^ a b Nicholson, Geoff. "A Most Melancholy Accident: The Stargate Pit Explosion of 1826". Durham Mining Museum. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008.
- ^ The Church of the Holy Cross, Ryton, published by The Church of England in the Diocese of Durham Retrieved 3 May 2013
- ISBN 0-901450-55-3. Retrieved 17 December 2018.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ "Victims of 1826 Ryton pit disaster get memorial". BBC News. 16 September 2018.
- ^ "Tyne and Wear HER(3319): Ryton, Stargate Colliery – Details". Sitelines. 26 May 2021.
- ^ "Cycle-routes". Archived from the original on 4 July 2008.
- ^ "Gateshead BC".
- ^ Local History Gateshead: Ryton Retrieved 2013-27-02
- ^ iSee Gateshead Archived 23 December 2007 at archive.today
External links
Media related to Ryton, Tyne and Wear at Wikimedia Commons