The first swimming baths opened in Park Street in
1884, but due to demand a larger facility was
opened on Gilkes Street in 1933 and was managed
by Tom Hatfield whose son, Jack, was a world class
swimmer. Public parks such as Albert and the much
later Stewart Park offered opportunities for families to
get plenty of fresh air and exercise. Cycling doubled
not only as a leisure activity, but also as a means of
getting people to the steel works, docks and later
chemical plants that drove Middlesbrough’s
Nineteenth and Twentieth Century development.
Cricket was first played in Middlesbrough in 1844,
but it was football that really captured the town’s
imagination. Names such as Mannion, Hardwick,
Clough and Souness have later become synonymous
with the club which was inaugurated at a meeting
held at the Talbot Hotel in 1876.
Middlesbrough grew as a town because of the
hardwork and tenacity of its labour force. However,
after many hours of toil by the workforce, respite was
often spent in the 100 or so public houses that
flourished in the town. Concern was expressed even
then that more suitable and healthier forms of
relaxation were needed.
The Cycle Centre, managed by Middlesbrough Environment City, is an ideal place
to leave your bicycle if you wish to explore the town on foot. It has free secure
indoor cycle parking spaces, showers, changing rooms, lockers and toilets plus
cycling information and guides. You can find it adjacent to the entrance of the bus
station on Newport Road. For more information visit www.menvcity.org.uk
Today, cycling is still seen as an excellent healthy means of
transport and is also a great way to explore Middlesbrough’s
heritage. A circular cycling route that takes you from the Viking
settlement in Coulby Newham, to the original industrial and
commercial heart of Middlesbrough does just that. It follows
part of the National Cycle Route 65, which starts in Hull
and passes through the North York Moors.
- Check to ensure the saddle is at the right height
- Ensure brakes are in full working order
- Ensure gears are in full working order and that you are familiar with
their use
- Use a cycle helmet at all times and appropriate clothing
- If needed wear high visibility clothing
- Be observant at all times
- Use clear signaling and appropriate length of signalling
- Maintain a good road position at all times
- Follow the Highway Code
- Always carry a copy of the Middlesbrough Cycle Map
(Free from Middlesbrough Cycle Centre)
- If not cycling with an adult, always inform your parent or guardian of
your route and the time you are expected to return
HAVE A GOOD ONE!
For more information about the One Planet Middlesbrough project,
visit www.menvcity.org.uk or call 01642 243 183
Graphics and Layout by Ben Gell, Anya Grainger and Alex Wright.
Benedictine Priory closed by Henry VIII.
1537
Edward Pease and a group of Quaker businessmen formed
the Stockton to Darlington Railroad Company.
George Stephenson made Chief Engineer of the Company.
Locomotion No. 1 travels from Shildon to Stockton, a world
first.
The first coal shipped from the Tees.
The farmstead at Middlesbrough sold to a group of
Darlington Quaker business men led by Joseph Pease, the
“Father of Middlesbrough”.
Richard Otley commissioned to design a new town to house
a maximum of 5,000 people.
The first house built in the “new town” of Middlesbrough
(April).
“Port Darlington” opened as a new coal staithes with
William Fallows, another “Father Of Middlesbrough”, as
Master (December).
The “Sunnniside” locomotion transported the first coal along
the new Middlesbrough branch railway line (December).
William Fallows organises the first shipment of coal from
Middlesbrough.
Middlesbrough Pottery founded in Commercial Street. It was,
at the time, the biggest employer.
Coal exports from the Tees reaches 1.5 million tons a year.
Bolckow and Vaughan opened their first iron works.
Middlesbrough Dock opened.
Iron ore discovered in the Cleveland Hills by John Vaughan
Iron works producing 64,000 tons per year.
Henry Bolckow becomes Middlesbrough`s first mayor.
John Vaughan becomes Mayor Of Middlesbrough.
William Fallows made Mayor of Middlesbrough
Boring begins at Bolckow and Vaughan’s Saltworks on
Vulcan Street
Bolckow becomes Middlesbrough’s first MP.
Dorman Long iron works founded.
Bolckow and Vaughan open the first Bessemer Steel Plant.
4 Bessemer converters turning out 3,000 tons of steel per
week.
Population 91,302 inhabitants.
1821
1821
1825
1826
1829
1829
1830
1830
1830
1831
1834
1840
1841
1842
1850
1853
1853
1855
1859
1859
1868
1875
1875
1881
1901
Please use in conjunction with Middlesbrough Cycle Map (free from the Cycle Centre)
Population 25 inhabitants.
1801
1600’s Middlesbrough continues as a small farmstead.
The Church at Middlesbrough recognised as a Priory by
Robert de Brus.
1119
Church, Farm... Industrial Giant
Timeline
For further information on Lingfield Farm Countryside Centre,
Newham Grange Leisure Farm, Albert Park, the Town Hall,
Transporter Bridge and Central Library please go to
www.middlesbrough.gov.uk
1. Coulby Newham mentioned in the Domesday Book as “Colebi” and
“Nieweham”. These were originally two separate settlements.
2. Lingfield Farm Countryside Centre was up until the 1990’s, a
working farm and can be seen on the old Tithe Maps.
,
3. St Mary s Roman Catholic Cathedral opened in 1988 to
serve the Diocese of Middlesbrough (from the Tees to the
Humber). Its predecessor had been in Sussex Street since 1876.
4. Fairy Dell was once the private garden of Gunnergate Hall. The
mansion built in 1857 by a Quaker Banker, Charles Leatham,
was later owned by John Vaughan, one of Middlesbrough’s first
Iron Masters.
5. Newham Grange Leisure Farm had been owned by the
Hopper Family for over 400 years starting with Nathaniel in
1580.
6. Tollesby originally spelt “Tollesbi” was, like Ormesby, originally a
Viking settlement.
7. Albert Park donated by Henry Bolckow for the “purpose of healthful
recreation and exercise” in 1864 and named after a fellow
Prussian the late Prince Albert of Saxe Coburg Gotha. It was
opened in 1868 by HRH Prince Arthur, son of the Prince
Consort and Queen Victoria.
8. The Central Library opened in 1912 by means of a donation
given by Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish-American philanthropist.
Part of the land for the building was also donated by Amos
Hinton, a grocer and politician.
9. The Town Hall opened in 1889 to replace the original one. It was
here that the first building, built in 1846, accommodated both a
town hall and covered market place.
10. Exchange Square became the financial centre of Middlesbrough
in the 1860’s. The Royal Exchange, built in 1868, for a time
stood at the center of the world’s iron and steel economy. Sadly
it was demolished in 1985.
11. The Railway Station opened in 1877. Designed by a famous
architect, William Peachey, it was a showcase for the greatness
of Middlesbrough. Sadly in 1942 it was hit by German bombs
and the glass roof was almost totally destroyed.
12. Cleveland Buildings were Henry Bolckow and John Vaughan’s first
homes and offices in Middlesbrough, built in 1840.
13. The former Cleveland Club was originally a bank and is now
considered one of Middlesbrough’s finest old buildings.
14. The Transporter Bridge opened in 1911. It symbolizes the
industrial might and ingenuity of Teesside in the late nineteenth
and early twentieth century.
15. The Dorman Museum opened in 1904, it was donated by Sir
Arthur Dorman, one of Middlesbrough’s prominent steel
producers.
16. Acklam Hall built between 1680-83 by Sir William Hustler, a
wealthy draper and altered in 1845 to a Victorian gothic style
by Thomas Hustler. He himself was involved in the early
development of Middlesbrough but resisted attempts to allow his
land in Linthorpe and Acklam to be encroached upon by this
ever-expanding industrial town.
17. The Avenue of Trees. An avenue of lime trees planted at the end
of the 17th Century originally stretched all the way up to Low
Lane.
18 .Hemlington Lake was only created in the early 1970`s.
Hemlington itself dates back to Saxon times, though a Neolithic
axe found in the nearby village of Stainton has been found
dating as far back as 3,000 BC.