Whitworth, Durham

Historical Description

Whitworth, a parish in Durham, near Spennymoor station on the N.E.R., and 4 miles NE by N of Bishop Auckland. It contains Spennymoor, which has a post, money order, and telegraph office. Acreage, 1568; population of the civil parish, 6295; of the ecclesiastical, 1015. For parish council purposes Whitworth was divided into Whitworth Within, including Spennymoor, which was annexed to Tudhoe; Whitworth Without, having a parish meeting; and Old Park, a parish council. Old Park belonged once to the Bishops of Durham, became the residence of Dr. Wharton, was the residence of Archbishop Gray, Metropolitan of South Africa, passed to the Myddleton family, and was sold to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Durham; net value, £259 with residence. Patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Durham. The church is in the Gothic style, and consists of chancel, nave, and turret.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Whitworth from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Whitworth)

Land and Property

The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for County Durham is available to browse.

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following newspapers covering county Durham online:

• Hartlepool Mail
• Northern Echo
• Durham County Advertiser
• Teesdale Mercury