A distant view of the Dinsdale Hotel and woods with the River Tees in the foreground, as seen from Middleton One Row. The hotel was built in 1829 to accommodate people coming to use the spa waters at Dinsdale (discovered 1789), in the 1850s it was converted into Dinsdale Park Retreat for Mental Invalids and in 1920 it became Dinsdale Park Residential School. 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
I did my student teaching at Dinsdale Park School during the fall term, 1973. I have a picture of American and Russion student teachers on the staircase in the entryway.
Hi Fran would love to see any pictures you have of the school my wife worked there in the 70’s
I currently live in the building that was Dinsdale Hall Hotel and am interested in it”s history. I would especially like to see old photos or even a painting.
My Great grandfather and his parents were living at the Old Mill Dinsdale in 1881 where he ( and his father) were gamekeepers. A lodger was described as a “fisherman”. Would they have all worked for Surtees who owned the manor house and hall?
Trevor Bond – Hi Trevor, yes that”s me, now living “dahn sarf”! Regards to Nigel, his spin bowling got me out many times in Ropner Park where the tree that we used as a wicket is now enormous.
Chinese or What – Putting it down for prosperity then no one forgets, local slang or sayings, The Last One or was it the La Swan, Chinese Restaurant, Bridge Road, Stockton, depending where you are will depend on the answer you get, asking over the counter in Boots what the best thing for Heartburn is will get you a totally different answer stood in a bus queue in the High Street, like a number three bus. Roy.
Late Final – Talking about grossly exaggerated sayings, of the rag and bone man and the Gazette sellers have you noticed in recent years how papers are sold on the basis that if you want one here I am and no shouting. Beats all the different sayings no matter what the spelling are entered here. Roy.
Middleton one Row (two) – It was a very long way away from home, but what else did we have to do and in some cases, did I have to do, because many a time I went on my own, mainly on Sundays, fishing. Still never had a rod, net or even a hand grenade, but got all the fish I could carry and what ever type I wanted. The fishing season was on and competitions were on a Sunday, I had great fun during the day but tea time was the best, competition over and all gone home with their medals and pieces of silver. Looking at the river to the left just after the rapids was a lot of greenery in the water across the other side, river only knee deep here, splodged over and in the greenery were dozens upon dozens of fish some real whoppers all there for the taking, don’t tell any one will you. Roy.
Clifford Thornton did you live in Linden Avenue or opposite the park in the 50’s ? As John Bond , who incidentally lived with us in Hartburn Lane at the time and turned out to be a brother, said your name rings a bell.Did you go to Richard Hind and then on to Grangefield Grammar, and whilst at university did you do holiday work at I C I one summer.If none of this then I must ask my other brothers.
cliff thornton, yep, that”s us. thought your name was familiar but think probably you know the younger bros rather than me. [sorry I didn”t put my name first time]
Cliff Thornton — When I sold the Sports Gazette around the estates on Saturdays for Mickey Fenton, the cry was a resounding “Sports Geee….Zo”. Had to let the customers know we”d arrived! J.S.
Ian, never mind vampires, what about the daleks? There”s a new series of Dr Who started here, and the shivers STILL run down my back when I hear :Exterminate”. My hubby tells me he and his mates used to run around with sink plungers stuck to their foreheads, playing daleks… the mind boggles!
Must admit, when I was a kid I thought people said Middleton Monroe too! My younger brother used to call Captain Cook”s Monument…Captain Cook”s ORNAMENT.
John Bond – was it you and your brothers who lived for a while on Hartburn Lane in the 1950s? As for street cries, you are opening up a whole new seam…. “Hen-ee Feeeesh” Good old Percy the fish man. “Rag-bo, hany rag-bo” was the rag & bone man. And I`m also chickening out of attempting to write down the Evening Gazette call 🙂
oh lord, here we go. I”ve got to get some work done really, but street cries. “Yane gulls!” that was what it sounded like. It was the rag and bone man with the horse and cart in Parkfield. And much later, on one of the vegetable stalls on the market, when it was getting near to packing up time, this lad would stand and shout”Right girls, it”s two for twenty five pence now, your fresh cauliflowers. Come on now girls, and let”s gerr “ome!” I have absolutely no idea how to write down the noise made by the chap who used to sell the Gazette in the High Street.
ann dove and brian bennison. Here”s another one. My brother nigel, whom I won”t name to save his blushes, used to refer to a certain highly visible column on the hill opposite Rose”mary” Topping as Captain Cook”s Money Bank. ian bruce. I can remember hoping and praying several times that my sore throat would not be diagnosed as tonsilitis. So far so good. Did you not get jelly with the ice cream?
How about Jeopardy? Jobs in Jeopardy. Where is it?
John Bond, I certainly remember the Carter Bequest Hospital very well. I also remember the ice cream I had after I had my tonsils out there in 1949 or 1950. I”m pretty sure it was in Cambridge Road in Middlesbrough (although it might have been Oxford Road). I also remember the Hotspur and Rover (and the Adventure), one of which had a story about vampire bats which kept me awake for days when I was a bit younger.
Hello John Bond. Long time since I heard the name of Carterby Quest, I was in there in late 1959, it was a little cottage hospital in Middlesbrough.
Strange how we mishear and misread, and are quite content in our ignorance Lacking a classical education, there was a period when I thought terminus was somehwere outside the town where the occasional bus went.
mary scott. Not heard middleton monroe before. What a gem. I shall treasure it. Wonder if you know where the hospital was that I thought was named after somebody called Carterby Quest, which I always thought would be a great name for a private investigator in something like the Hotspur or the Rover.
For years and years I thought the name was “Middleton MONROE” Talk about a blonde moment!
Middleton one Row – Sounds a long way a way when you say Darlington to a little kid, well no matter how far away it was and what jurisdiction it came under, it was a nice place to be when much younger, either for the day or camping, no adults just us kids having fun, no bogey men hiding behind any trees, or if there was I never saw them. All there was to know about river fish I learnt there, everything except catching them can’t have done, never had a rod, then, in between or now. Many ways I learnt how to cook them, the best way to the nicest taste was cooking them in a mud oven by the river bank, and the flesh just fell away from the bones. Just back from the water and out of the village a bit was a field were we used to camp, let the farmer know and all was fine, in the mornings the first point of call after the loo was the farm house, on the window ledge outside the kitchen door was always a jar of milk for us, which we left the money for each morning, cant remember how much but next to nothing. Listening to the big lads talking about night fishing sounded exciting, never tried it just put a few theories to the test, like shining a torch in to a still part of the river and watch the fish rise to the surface, it worked, but had enough fish for the morning, how we got them is a story for another day. Roy.
To Shirley Osborne, My Father”s name is John William Wealleans, b1903–d1975. During the forties my parents and I had occasion days out at Dinsdale and Middleton one Row. My Dad never mentioned an ancester at the home. My e mail address is :- alanandhilary@ah4721.freeserve.co.uk Maybe we are related?
One of my ancestors John William Wealleans died at Dinsdale Park Retreat in 1868 (the cert. gives Dr. Mackintosh as the informant. I am not sure why he was at Dinsdale Retreat, he was born at Peels and lived at Flotterton House which his father built in 1806. He died a very wealthy man leaving £30.000 quite a large sum in 1868. Thank you for giving me some idea of the area.