Norton South Junction 1967. Photograph courtesy of Alan Boardman. 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Norton South Junction 1967. Photograph courtesy of Alan Boardman.
Yes, this is Colin Wennington of Darlington Lane back in 1967.
The concrete strip is possibly a part of the Freighliner Terminal used for transferring the containers between lorries and trains. The terminal opened in the mid 1960s and closed in the late 1980s operations being transferred to a new terminal at Wilton, nearer to Teesport and the container traffic coming into the port. There were also problems over vandalism on the branch down to the terminal from North Shore, with one train -reportedly carrying beer! – broken into one dark evening.
Hi. I regularly walk my daughters dogs round the Norton area and I would was wondering if anyone had information on what the concrete strip running beside what is now the prison, Could it be wartime emergency runway or was it something to do with the railway marshaling yards that used to be in the area
John Owens – thank you for the link! Bob – the map of my time is 1970 to 1979. I was only 9 in 1970 and so don”t remember much of what you describe. I was probably wary of walking too far away from home at that age. It is interesting to see the maps previous to that time where the great expanse of Market Garden and Nursery etc. can be seen. 🙂
Regarding the recent comments about the Nurseries and the Parsons Walk in the area south of Junction Road.The Geographic Information System (GIS)on http://www.durham.gov.uk gives access to historic maps covering the above area at various dates.These show lots of very interesting details including nursery buildings footpaths etc.
Sarah Sheraton. The field between Fife Road and William Newton was only a small part of the property. It started just after the Church (which is now the Roundabout above the Green). It stretched to just before the big field which you played in. It was next to the Nurseries I mentioned which my Grandfather later controlled. In all there would be 34 acres. All his crops were sold on Stockton Market, Wednesday and Saturday. My Grandfather was friendly with the Signalman who”s Signal Box was just along the line on this photo. We would walk along the Beck side to the Cabin to see him. He was called Mr. Clayton and lived in the cottage which was next to the Church which Harpers Garden Centre is now situated. On the photo where the boy is standing is part of Parsons Walk. On either side of the Railway was a style with a few steps up either side of the embankment. Working backover Parsons Walk started at the Church and you entered the walk in Ragworth Place.
Also, from my bedroom window, I could see right across to the railway at the edge of Roseworth estate. The majority of my view of the railway lines was obscured by hedgerows but there was a small clear area where I could see all of the trains and their carriages, mostly freight I think. On rare occasions the trains stopped at one side of this clear patch, at the signal. All the usual sounds of the trains drifed over the fields to us, including the audible signals from the trains themselves which were two tones. Every Sunday an ice-cream van would tour the streets of Roseworth and its old-fashioned chimes also drifted across the fields to us in Norton, repeatedly on and off as it changed position. The trains” and ice-cream chimes” volume depended on the direction of the wind at the time. 🙂
Bob Irwin – Sorry, I can”t remember the seat, nor the stile. The entrance to the fields I remember as wide enough for the farm vehicles which harvested the tall crops or I suppose for the vehicles involved in the building of the Glebe estate to enter. I have memories of seeing my Golden Retriever dog”s (Beth”s) head periodically bobbing up and down as she launched herself into the air to see my position over the top of the tall crops when she”d wandered off and I called her. (g) I”m afraid I don”t know who owned the Nursery behind Junction Road opposite Ashville Avenue either, although I do know the Nursery you mean. My father Ken would have known, alas he”s no longer with us to help. The Market Garden your Grandfather owned was situated where? The only place I can think of that you may mean would be between Fife Road and William Newton School (now The Education Centre). There are a few very large homes situated on that plot now. I remember rows and rows of vegetables – cabbages in particular. Was that it?
Sarah Sheraton. When you lived in the last of the semis in Junction Road. Can you remember the wooden bench seat next to the stile just after your house, it faced looking down Junction Road was it dedicated to some person? The fields that you played in were also my playground. My Grandfather had the Market Garden next to these fields. Remembering the beck it had a circular path through these fields. We used to pick the yellow Water Iris”s and also collect the frogsporn. Do you know who owned the Nursery behind Junction Road with the entrance opposite Ashville Avenue? He also backed onto the field that was at the back of your house.
In the 1970″s I lived from ages 9 to 18 in the last semi on Junction Road in Norton before the railway bridge. Crops were grown in the adjacent fields and gypsies” horses were to be found in the fields at the bottom of our long garden. I fed them carrots. In summer myself, my dog and a friend spent time in the fields. We knew not to set foot where Nuffield Hospital is situated now because the ground was swampy. Very scary to walk on. About mid-way between the Ring Road (Centenary) and our home there was a stream. We took our belongings across the fields and made a den by the water there. The stream was surrounded by undisturbed overgrown natural hedgerows along the length of the stream on both sides which afforded us privacy in our fun innocent play. From my bedroom window I could see right across the fields. Right across Stockton in fact. Debenhams tower was a clear landmark. On bonfire night, I could see in the distance, on the far side of the “beck” as we called it, a huge bonfire with fireworks and many people. I assume now that these people were from Roseworth or perhaps even Norton or Ragworth, or all these places. Such a sad time when hedgerows were torn down and drains appeared to drain the beck of the water. The Glebe housing crept slowly nearer and nearer to our home and it became increasingly difficult to cut across the fields to my piano lessons with Miss Endersby on the “Green Court” estate, just over the other side of the ring road from the Centenary. My father had prior knowledge of the plans to build right up to the edge of our property and so sold our home whilst we could command a good price (sensible man) (g) and we moved to Crooksbarn, closer to friends and family. Today”s children certainly do not appear to have the freedom, imagination or adventure we had sadly.
To Bob Irwin re “Parsons-Walk” Thus named was the six-mile Path/Walk taking in the Parsonages of Norton Redmarhall and Bishopton. The only remaining section in Norton is between St Mary”s (south) and the Ring-road nr “The Centenary” Several smaller sections still exist off Letch Lane to Carlton and the south side of Redmarshall (Church Lane /High farm) then south of Bishopton Castle “Motte-Bailey “to Bishopton village. A rule on an O.S map will show an almost straight walk / path, which is now mostly housing as far as Letch Lane and in Redmarshall
RH-Picture Stockton currently has a photo of mine showing the Glebe Estate going up and the drainage pipes going in next to the railway 1967. At least one of the farmers tunnels crossed under the line just in front of the signal in the above picture. A visible, rubbish laden stream ca.1970 certainly crossed back under the line just south of Fussick (Fossick) bridge into Blue Hall, near a burnt out/wrecked house, although a number of underground streams existed on both sides of the line in this area. From the Blue Hall side of Fussick Bridge you could see the 1630 hours 4S86 Stockton-Glasgow freightliner (from c.1969 onwards)coming off the Haverton Hill branch at North Shore, about 25 mins before it reversed to arrive at Norton. If it did”nt look interesting you could go home for your tea and not bother to wait for it. 1600-1730 hours was a busy time for freights and passenger trains on the above stretch of line, including a daily returning English Electric (EE) 350 hp shunter, claimed ex- Port Clarence pilot, running flat out to clear the section quickly. The continuous stream of loud, reving EE Type 3s hauling heavy freights and returning coal empties up Stockton Bank all through the late night certainly kept me awake for ages/years post bedtime. The main change was the 2230 hours 1A47 N”castle -Kings X sleeper, just before midnight at Norton an occasional noisier Deltic, the returning IN01 service similarly promised to wake you about 0730 hours. The Peak and Brush/Sulzers were much quieter on such services, and a IN29/47/49? (various codes for it) Kings X- N”castle evening express about 2130 hours at Norton. The local spotters staired speechless at the sight of the first double-headed Clayton Type 1s struggling and smoking to get up Stockton Bank, super shunters with an innovative appearance. During their brief local reign, most slowly took the Ferryhill branch, although some headed for Billingham on ICI tanks.
Bob Harbron. Can you enlighten me on why the walk was called Parsons Walk? I believe as you stated that it started at St Mary”s Chuch went down to the Railway over a style and a few steps(not the 99 steps which were at Billingham Bottoms). At the other side of the Railway it went through John Stones field, alongside the Army camp and upto Ragpath Lane. Then I get lost. I believe then it crossed over this road and continued via Carlton to the Bishops Castle at Bishop Auckland or was it to Durham and the Cathedral. This walk was done by the parsonage of Durham
I have many pleasant memories of the fields described, in the 1950s this was a pleasant walk down Parsons Walk , south of St Marys Church, through hedgerows of wild-rose and flowering Hawthorn , which in their white May blossom was called “Country Confetti”, cascading if shaken( so called as country weddings tended to be the most popular in May between Spring Planting and Harvest, with the bride wear this colourful blossom ) In season it was one field of golden buttercup and cow-slips , while children revelled in blowing the “dandelion-clocks” or making daisy-chains , From Norton to the “99-steps” over the railway, a number of dips in this field carried streams of clear water towards the rail embankment, where a brick tunnel took it through to join the stream in Darlington Back lane at “Fuzzy-Bridge When the Glebe was built extensive network of pipe and drainage pipes were laid to take away these still running springs. Once across the line the path skirted alongside a farm then into Blakeston Lane south of the derelict Gun-site and P-O-W / D.P huts , although I believe a number of these huts survived till the building of Roseworth, pehaps some of your readers can remember them?
Prior to the Glebe being built the land to the left of the freight train was open farmland all the way to Norton village, the fields could be accessed from the Roseworth side by the foot crossing in the foreground (still in use)or by two farm access bridges which ran underneath the railway embankment shown in the picture – these bridges were filled in prior to work starting on the Glebe but the tops of the arches can still be seen from time from the Roseworth side as the ballast on the railway embankment settles down.
The land on the right became some kind of council rubbish tip in the early 1970s, so the local residents had to endure windborne smell and debris, as well as endless loud trains, rubbish lorries and occasional fires.
English Electric Type 3 loco D6775 of Thornaby Depot heads away from Norton South Junction towards Stockton Bank during July 1967 with C. Wennington of Norton looking on.