Stockton-on-Tees: A Potted History

Stockton-on-Tees was a small port and market town on the northeast coast of England for much of its history. Ship building and other industries gradually established themselves but the town received a massive boost during the Industrial Revolution. The opening of the pioneering Stockton & Darlington Railway enabled coal to be transported to the coast, industries developed around the discovery of iron ore locally, as well as engineering and potteries and the population expanded rapidly. The town was transformed by large areas of Victorian dwellings, absorbing neighbouring settlements. By the turn of the twentieth century the town was supported by a thriving market, theatres, pubs, schools, libraries, fairs, parks and churches. The depression of the inter war years and the closure of shipyards saw many lose their jobs but period also saw the start of the chemical industry at Billingham which grew into a vast complex. Although today Stockton has lost much of its traditional industry, sites have being turned into business parks, attracting service industries and a university campus. The story of the town tells of heroes, inventors, business leaders, rioters as well as the lives of ordinary folk.Illustrated throughout, this accessible historical portrait of the transformation that Stockton-on-Tees has undergone through the ages will be of great interest to residents, visitors and all those with links to the town.