EAW027393 ENGLAND (1949). Albert Hill Railway Junction and environs, Darlington, from the east, 1949

Darlington Forge. The Darlington Forge Company Limited was established on Albert Hill in 1854 by Cowans, Sheldon & Co of Carlisle. Together with other manufacturers, including the Whessoe Foundry Company Limited, the Darlington Forge went on to help the town to develop a world-class reputation for heavy engineering. Among other achievements the Darlington Forge Company were responsible for casting mammoth parts for the most famous ships in the Cunard fleet. During the second war the Forge opened a Ministry of Supply unit for gun-making, and for the first time employed women on the shop-floor. The workforce in December 1942 numbered 1,700 men and 300 women. The company was said to have spent £250,000 on new plant and shops, and by the end of the war again employed about a thousand workers. 1954 Although the foundry remained busy, the forging department was much reduced. There followed a long decline, with closure mooted in 1963. 1967 The axe finally fell in January 1967 when the English Steel Corporation announced the closure of the Darlington Forge, blaming 'considerable excess capacity in Great Britain for the production of heavy forgings' and the effect of continental imports. 120 staff and 530 works personnel lost their jobs in a phased closure. 1970 The Darlington Forge Ltd was finally dissolved.

Darlington railway athletic sports fields

Cockerton Green. Note the 1825 National school on it, demolished in 1960.

Albert Road Methodist Church, closed mid-1970s, demolished in the 1980s.

Engine shed 1844. Still standing, due conversion to housing (2017).

A three over two tracks "flat crossing", common in the USA but fairly rare in the UK.

North Lodge Park

St Matthews Church Hall

St Matthews Church, built 1936

Foundry Street

Alliance Street

Hopetown Carriage Works was built by the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1853. Construction and repair of carriages continued into the mid 1880s and the building was then used for a variety of purposes. Eventually Darlington Borough Council purchased the premises and incorporated them in the Darlington Railway Centre and Museum. Since that time both the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust (for the construction of locomotive 60143 "Tornado) and the North Eastern Locomotive Preservation Group (for maintenance of their locomotive fleet) have used the workshops.

Locomotive Works - Stooperdale Boiler Shops

East Coast Main Line from Darlington and the South.

RPMI Stooperdale Offices, originally built to provide office accommodation for the North Eastern Railway's Chief Mechanical Engineer and his staff. A close up view, with further information in the Wiki and comments can be found at image EPW019858 .

Brinkburn Road

Locomotive Works scrap yard.

Darlington Locomotive Works.

North Road

This side of the platform has been converted into a small museum, along with the entrance hall, ticket office, etc.. Darlington Borough Council operates this facility under the title "Head of Steam - Darlington Railway Museum", but in the 2014 days of squeezed budgets the opening hours are restricted. Well worth a visit, but do not forget to check if it will be open before you go!

Railway lines to Bishop Auckland (following the original route of the Stockton & Darlington Railway as far as Shildon) and also to Barnard Castle.

This side of the platform is still a working railway with the Saltburn to Bishop Auckland train service calling at intervals through the day.

Darlington North Road Railway Station was originally built by the Stockton & Darlington Railway and dates from 1842.

Haughton Road

S&DR Crossing (Stockton & Darlington Railway) with its own small signal box.

Fighting Cocks Branch railway, following the route of the Stockton & Darlington Railway towards Stockton and Middlesbrough.

Haughton Road

St James' Church

Allan Street.

East Coast Main Line to the North.