Catalogue

Photograph of a view of Front Street, Witton Gilbert, looking towards Lanchester, c.1900 The trap is about to go up the Sacriston road; opposite is the Three Tuns, later used as a youth club; in the left foreground is the house where Mr. Thompson lived - his father was the stationmaster; in the right foreground is one of the three almshouses, and in the distance the gatehouse by Nor Lane can just be distinguished

Photograph of a farmer's son (Mr. J. Geddes; Snook Acres) with his pony and cart, at Witton Gilbert, c.1930

Photograph of a miniature trough from Snook Acres Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1980

Photograph of a miniature trough from Snook Acres Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1980

Photograph of an old mortar, now at Witton Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1980 It was found built into a wall when Bug Row was demolished; it had been used as a solid stone, and carved with the date, 1844, to record the date when Bug Row was built

Photograph of an old mortar, showing a carved date, 1844, now at Witton Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1980 It was found built into a wall when Bug Row was demolished; it had been used as a solid stone, and carved with the date, 1844, to record the date when Bug Row was built

Photograph of the lintel from Hopper's House, Witton Gilbert, which was in the village between Glen Hall and Bug Row, and is now demolished, c.1900 The inscription reads 'Thomas Hopper May 1699'; the Hopper family is recorded in the church registers as early as 1577; in 1720 a Hugh Hopper bought the house and land across the road from the house, and started a smithy there; Hopper's House was being used as a Wesleyan Chapel in 1850, and about 1900 it was lived in by a family called Appleton; the lintel is now in the stack-yard of Mr. Gray's Langley Farm

Photograph of the lintel from Hopper's House, Witton Gilbert, which was in the village between Glen Hall and Bug Row, and is now demolished, c.1900 The inscription reads 'Thomas Hopper May 1699'; the Hopper family is recorded in the church registers as early as 1577; in 1720 a Hugh Hopper bought the house and land across the road from the house, and started a smithy there; Hopper's House was being used as a Wesleyan Chapel in 1850, and about 1900 it was lived in by a family called Appleton; the lintel is now in the stack-yard of Mr Gray's Langley Farm

Photograph of the Railway Station, Witton Gilbert, with a group of railway workers, c.1900 The station was built in 1862; the station house is described as being 'rather Scottish in appearance - built of faced stone blocks, with stepped gable roofs'; the station buildings were mainly wooden; the Lanchester Valley branch line ran from Relly Mill Viaduct, Durham, to the Derwent Ironworks in Consett; passenger traffic at the station was high until the 1920s, when the bus services to Durham and Langley Park began

Photograph of Mr. James Wilson (born 1837, died 1911), c.1900 He was appointed schoolmaster of Witton Gilbert by Rev. Cuthbert Carr in 1864, and was also a private tutor to his two sons, Mansel Frederick and Owen Charles, for which he was paid £10 p.a. for five hours in the week, or £16 p.a. for 8.5 hours; his salary as schoolmaster was £18 p.a., or £22 if a member of his family taught sewing; he would have in addition a house, garden and nearly 1/2 acre of land round the school, which would be worth £5 p.a.; he came from Alnwick, and trained as a teacher at Caernarvon; his first post was near Norham; his father George had been a schoolmaster too, and had sent his son to study at the Duke's School, Alnwick; James Wilson was a strict disciplinarian, and an excellent teacher; he had nine children, two of whom, Isabel and John, taught with their father at the National School

Copy of photograph D/Ph 110/7/1

Photograph of an old stone trough, from Snook Acres Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900

Photograph of a mortar, now used as a trough from Snook Acres Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900

Copy of photograph D/Ph 110/9/1

Photograph of the old rectory, Witton Gilbert, the figure in the foreground is the Rev. Arthur Watts with his dog, Carlo, c.1900 The house was probably built in the second half of the seventeenth century and modernised in the early nineteenth century by Dr. Richardson; it was taken down in 1925 because of mining subsidence; money was available to repair it during the war, but men and materials were short; in March 1926, Rev. Mr. Asher moved into the new rectory

Photograph, and copy, of the founding members of the Mothers' Union, Witton Gilbert, at the Rectory, c.1900 Standing (left to right): Mrs. Hudson Coates, Mrs. Clegg, Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Watts (the rector's wife), Mrs. Aston, Mrs. Hutchinson Sitting (left to right): Mrs. G. Hutchinson, Mrs. Dixon, Mrs. Beckett and Mrs. Patterson

Copy of photograph D/Ph 110/11/1

Photograph of Witton Hall Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 With a roof of old pantiles; the cottages and buildings adjoining have long been demolished, and the vegetable garden is now an orchard

Photograph of the cottage in the Dene, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 This part of the Dene was known as Poors' Land, and was a Church Charity; in 1834, it was let with 1/4 acre, and produced £2 a year, which was distributed amongst the poor; looking North towards Front Street, Dene House is in the foreground, and the Black Lion public house (now a dwelling house) is in the background; in 1841 Michael Walton was the publican

Photograph of the cottage in the Dene, Witton Gilbert, from the opposite direction to that in D/Ph 110/13, c.1900

Photograph of Witton Hall, Witton Gilbert, showing the farm cottages and the old rectory in the background, c.1900 The original house was part of a leper hospital founded about 1170 by Gilbert de la Ley; parts of the old house still visible are the thirteenth century chapel window, and a late-Norman doorway inside, which is now blocked

Photograph of Witton Hall, Witton Gilbert, showing the farm cottages and the old rectory in the background, c.1900 The original house was part of a leper hospital founded about 1170 by Gilbert de la Ley; parts of the old house still visible are the thirteenth century chapel window, and a late-Norman doorway inside, which is now blocked

Photograph of the old rectory, Witton Gilbert, from the side, showing the carriage road which gave access to the stables on the right, c.1900 All these buildings are now demolished

Photograph of a view of Front Street, Witton Gilbert, looking towards Durham, c.1900 In the left foreground at the bottom of what is now Newton Street was Cuthbert Green's grocery shop; he had a big business here, including a bakery and a butcher's shop; he delivered goods by cart over a wide area, and had stables up behind the shop, and there was a gate at the bottom of the road; further along was the Black Lion public house, and in the background the houses on the Clink can be seen

Photograph of the Armistice Celebrations, Witton Gilbert, in the field now occupied by the White Tun, 1919 The field behind the butcher's shop was also used for junketings, fairs and the like

Photograph of the butcher's shop, Witton Gilbert, when Robert Lawson had taken over, c.1900 Notice that there had been building alterations, and notice the fine display of meat; perhaps the paper garlands indicate a Christmas display

Photograph of the butcher's shop, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The butcher's shop was started in these premises by John Green and was carried on after his death by his widow, the older woman in the picture, and Robert Lawson, whose father, Thomas Lawson, farmed at White House Farm, and was also a butcher

Photograph of a view of Front Street, Sacriston, at Findon Hill, c.1900 In the left foreground is the public house, the Three Horseshoes which in the 1850s was owned by the blacksmith, Robert Bunton, whose forge can be seen across the road by the tree

Photograph of Mrs. Burn outside New Close Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 Mrs. Burn lived at New Close Farm; she is obviously dressed in her best for the photograph

Photograph of Mrs. Burn outside New Close Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 Mrs. Burn lived at New Close Farm; she is obviously dressed in her best for the photograph

Photograph of the bridge in the Dene, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 In 1920 Coroner Graham of Findon Cottage, who owned the land, started a scheme to make the Dene into a park, partly to provide work for the many unemployed; there had been plans to build a caretaker's cottage, but they came to nothing, and vandalism soon destroyed the park

Photograph of the Finney Charity School, Witton Gilbert, which stood at the bottom of Newton Street in the road, c.1900 It was built about 1730 by the will of Mrs. Jane Finney, widow of the Rector of Ryton, to teach four poor children English gratis; when the National School was built, about 1850, this building was wholly occupied as a dwelling by the master; previously he had inhabited the upper floor; the school house was pulled down about 1920

Photograph of Bleach Green, Witton Gilbert, c.1890 The big house was occupied by Lord Durham's woodman, at this date, Hunter Ellison; about 1913, when King George V and Queen Mary were staying with Lord Durham at Lambton Castle, they came for a day's pheasant shooting in his woods here, and had lunch in his cottage; Lord Durham had previously sent over the entire furnishing for the dining room, including the carpet, furniture and crockery which the Ellisons were afterwards allowed to keep; the lunch of course was also sent from the Castle; Mary Smith, who was the niece of Hunter Ellison, is at the door of the smaller cottage where she lived when she was first married to a shepherd who worked for Lord Durham

Photograph of Bleach Green, Witton Gilbert, c.1890 The big house was occupied by Lord Durham's woodman, at this date, Hunter Ellison; about 1913, when King George V and Queen Mary were staying with Lord Durham at Lambton Castle, they came for a day's pheasant shooting in his woods here, and had lunch in his cottage; Lord Durham had previously sent over the entire furnishing for the dining room, including the carpet, furniture and crockery which the Ellisons were afterwards allowed to keep; the lunch of course was also sent from the Castle; Mary Smith, who was the niece of Hunter Ellison, is at the door of the smaller cottage where she lived when she was first married to a shepherd who worked for Lord Durham

Photograph of the War Memorial, Witton Gilbert, c.1922 The Rev. W.A. Elder, the curate, dedicated this in Witton Dene on 1 September 1922; 200 men from the parish went to the Great War, and 34 were killed

Photograph of Mrs. Lazenby outside one of the houses in the Clink, Witton Gilbert, with one of her cherished possessions, c.1900 At one time Mrs. Lazenby lived in the Finney Charity house, after it had stopped being used for a school

Photograph of Front Street, Witton Gilbert, looking towards Lanchester, c.1900 In the left foreground is Albion House, now demolished; in the 1930s, the ground floor was used as a fish and chip shop, and the rest of the premises were used by the butcher next door as a store; the Glendinning Arms was almost certainly named after the publican who kept it in 1828, a stonemason called Thomas Glendinning; in the right foreground is the former Workmen's Club, now Hall's glass factory; Thomas Moralee, a hosier and photographer, who lived on Front Street was a founder member of the Club in 1908; in 1920, when the Club was paid for, Thomas Moralee was given a walking-cane with a silver band inscribed 'With gratitude for services rendered'

Photograph of a break in the harvest at Langley Old Hall, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The old gentleman was the farmer, William Smith

Photograph of the Mothers' Union, Witton Gilbert, c.1930 Rev. A. Asher is on the right, the Rev. L. Thompson, who helped him, is on the left, and Mrs. Asher wearing a white coat, is in the middle

Photograph of Witton Hall Cottage, Witton Gilbert, 1933 This cottage stood on the other side of Witton Hall, fronting the coach road, and there was another smaller cottage attached on the left; at the side of the cottage on the right of the picture was a gate which led to a third cottage behind the other two

Photograph of Robert Pescod, Witton Gilbert, with his coal delivery lorry, c.1920 Each Saturday, the lorry would be scrubbed out, seats put in and used to take village people in and out of Durham; Mr. Pescod's father was the manager of the White House Colliery; he bought and transported all the coal, house-coal which was sold in the area, and small-coal which was taken by horse and cart to Witton Station to be sold to Washington Chemical Works, Dunston Power Station and Durham Gas Works

Photograph of Robert Pescod, Witton Gilbert, with his coal delivery lorry, c.1920 Each Saturday, the lorry would be scrubbed out, seats put in and used to take village people in and out of Durham; Mr. Pescod's father was the manager of the White House Colliery; he bought and transported all the coal, house-coal which was sold in the area, and small-coal which was taken by horse and cart to Witton Station to be sold to Washington Chemical Works, Dunston Power Station and Durham Gas Works

Photograph of [probably] The Fold, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 There was a coal market here in the Fad at the end of the nineteenth century; this was said to be one of the first open coal markets in the country, and there was a right of way, used by the Scots, to it from Nor Lane

Photograph of [probably] The Fold, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 There was a coal market here in the Fad at the end of the nineteenth century; this was said to be one of the first open coal markets in the country, and there was a right of way, used by the Scots, to it from Nor Lane

Photograph of Witton Gilbert Station, with a goods train is visible in the distance, c.1900 The main goods carried from the station were coal and coke, creosote and timber; in 1874 the line was widened and a second platform made; in the 1930s passenger traffic declined and so the service was withdrawn, the station being used for goods only, until 1963 when it was closed altogether

Photograph of Dean Terrace, Witton Gilbert, looking towards Durham, c.1900 Hedley's shop is in the left foreground; the cottage by the tree, Dene Cottage, is still there; in Rev. Watts' time, Sunday School was held there, and there was a lending library there in the 1900s; the three houses on the Clink Bank have now gone, as have the 80 houses visible in the background; these were built by the Bearpark Colliery Company to house their workers, and were pulled down during the Great War; on the right of the picture are the National Schools; Infants' and Mixed, the latter built about 1843; it was described as inches A neat building which will accommodate about 60 children inches; elsewhere it was remarked that the average attendance is uncertain according to the season, but may be stated at about 30; after the new Council School was put up across the road from the War Memorial, after the Great War, the Mixed School became the Church Hall, and the Infants' School, higher up the Bank, became the Scout Hut; both these buildings were demolished in 1966

Photograph of the blacksmith's shop, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The building is still there, next to Snook Acres Farm; the smith's family lived in the house on the other side of the Smithy; Richard Bainbridge, the smith, is the second from the left; he bought the property in 1904, and died in 1926; holding the horse is John Richard Bainbridge, his son, who went to Australia, and died unmarried at Geelong in 1933; on the right is George Bainbridge, another son who carried on the smithy and made cycles and motor bicycles; the boy holding the hammer is the apprentice, and possibly another of the Bainbridge sons; note the men's leather aprons, the tool box, the handles of two ploughs, and the equipment for banding iron to cartwheels

Photograph of the blacksmith's shop, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The building is still there, next to Snook Acres Farm; the smith's family lived in the house on the other side of the Smithy; Richard Bainbridge, the smith, is the second from the left; he bought the property in 1904, and died in 1926; holding the horse is John Richard Bainbridge, his son, who went to Australia, and died unmarried at Geelong in 1933; on the right is George Bainbridge, another son who carried on the smithy and made cycles and motor bicycles; the boy holding the hammer is the apprentice, and possibly another of the Bainbridge sons; note the men's leather aprons, the tool box, the handles of two ploughs, and the equipment for banding iron to cartwheels

Photograph of Miss Annie Wilson, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 See note on D/Ph 110/43

Photograph of Miss Annie Wilson, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 See note on D/Ph 110/43

Photograph of a School Group taken at the new National School, Witton Gilbert, c.1870 James Wilson had been appointed schoolmaster by the Rev. Cuthbert Carr in 1864; in this photograph, he would be in his early 30s; it is possible that the woman teacher was his wife, Nancy Wilson; note the boy with the crutch, and the general smartness of the children - their parents paid 2 pence, 3 pence or 4 pence for their schooling; at this date, the number of children in attendance was about 60, so half the school is on this picture

Photograph of William Marshall Hall, the gardener at Sniperley Hall, and his wife, c.1880

Photograph of Mrs. Margaret Burn with her dog, at the door of Langley Old Hall Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 She used to sell butter and eggs every Saturday in Durham Market

Photograph of school group, Witton Gilbert, c.1890 The master is James Wilson, who retired in 1894; the young lady teacher is probably his daughter, Isabel; the woman in the middle is perhaps in charge of the Infants' Section, and beside her is a young pupil-teacher; the children look smart, and hand-crocheted lace collars are in evidence; the school was at this time a gallery school, with long benches along which you progressed according to your age or ability

Photograph of the children of Thomas Lawson of Whitehouse Farm, Witton Gilbert, c.1890 There were 10 in the family - the two youngest were perhaps not born when this photograph was taken

Photograph of the Post Office, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The small girl is Miss May Fairlamb, the woman, her aunt, Annie Wilson, and the man, her grandfather James Wilson; he started the Post Office in his home Norham House (called after the town near which he had his first teaching post) when he retired from being schoolmaster at Witton in 1894; he died in 1911, and the Rector petitioned the Postmaster at Durham to appoint his daughter, Miss May Wilson, in his place; she gave up in 1944; her sister, Annie, helped, delivering the post to the out-lying farms, whilst May delivered in the village; there were two posts per day - they had to be taken to, and collected from Witton Station; the sisters also ran a news agency and a lending library; the Post Office sign is now at Beamish Museum

Photograph of Dean Terrace, Witton Gilbert, looking westwards , c.1900 The shop in the centre of the picture was Hedley's, which sold boots, shoes and clothes of all kinds; further west are the outbuildings of Cuthbert Green's shop, and the shop itself; across the road is a wooden house of one storey, now demolished, and the east end of the Finney Charity School which stood in the road; the most distant figure with hat and umbrella is Rev. A. Watts

Photograph of Dean Terrace, Witton Gilbert, looking westwards , c.1900 The shop in the centre of the picture was Hedley's, which sold boots, shoes and clothes of all kinds; further west are the outbuildings of Cuthbert Green's shop, and the shop itself; across the road is a wooden house of one storey, now demolished, and the east end of the Finney Charity School which stood in the road; the most distant figure with hat and umbrella is Rev. A. Watts

Photograph of a view of Front Street, Witton Gilbert, looking towards Lanchester, c.1900 On the right, the Witton Gilbert Hotel is said to have put up soldiers after the Great War; on the left is the entrance to the Fad, Albion House, the Butcher's Shop, and Oak Cottage

Photograph of a view down Front Street, Witton Gilbert, c.1900 The shop belonged to Shorts; the three single-storey cottages were almshouses, for which a rent of 6 pence per week was charged, the big house was owned by a Mr. Phillips, and the last house by the Sacriston Road turning, was a pump house; in the right foreground is the Workmen's Club