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Ferryhill
lies on the western edge of the Ferrryhill Gap, a natural
gap in the limestone escarpment that outcrops on the East
Durham Plateau.
The ancient
settlement stood on the Old Great North Road (A1, now the
A167) between Darlington and Durham. In the Middle Ages Ferryhill
was a market garden for the Prince Bishops of Durham.
The agricultural
village began to change with the coming of the railways in
1840 and the opening of the first blast furnace in 1850.
Rapid
development of the town followed in the late-19th century
and early-20th century with the expansion of the coal industry.
The two
main pits were the Dean and Chapter Colliery and the Mainsforth
Colliery. Ferryhill's coal industry reached its peak during
World War II when over 5,000 miners worked the mines.
Both
the main pits closed in the 1960s and an industrial estate
and sports complex have been built over the sites of the two
main collieries.
The great
mine heaps have been landscaped and today it is difficult
to find any evidence of the town's mining past.
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Ferryhill
