History
Yarm is situated on a low pennnsula by the river Tees, 4 miles from Stockton, 15 miles from Guisborough, 16 miles from Northallerton and 44 miles from York, and was described as "a parish in the wapentake and liberty of Langbargh".
It was in the early 19th century a busy river landing capable of navigation by vessels of "sixty tons burthen".
At around c1800 there was very little trade or manufacturing and the local produce of corn, flour, cheese, butter and bacon were shipped down river and then to London. Salmon was in abundance in the river Tees at this time and was another important source of local revenue. Thursday was market day and although it did decline due to the growth of Stockton as a major port on the river, the building of several corn mills brought about its revival.
Yarm Fair, which still returns to the town to this day, if not in the same format, was held four times each year. The fair of the 19th and 20th of October, which is the nearest to the current fair, was for horned cattle and horses on the 19th and sheep and cheese on the 20th and was recognised as one of the most popular in the north of England. To provide an idea of the amount of business that took place during these fairs, it is estimated that on the second day of the fair, during the years from 1818 to 1821, some 500 tons of cheese was sold each year and this excludes the large amounts bought by the merchants that were never brought to the fair.
The "new iron railway from Stockton to Darlington" passed only a mile away from Yarm and a branch line was built which came down to the bridge.
Yarm still suffers from flooding to this day owing to to its only slight elevation above the river bed and records show some severe floods occuring. Most notable were the floods of 1753 which showed a level of 7 feet and the flood of 1771 which rose to a height of 20 feet causing considerable damage and some loss of life. It was recognised that the loss of life would have been much higher if it were not for the help and assistance of the people of Stockton and the surrounding villages who came to the aid of the local population. The next flood of significance was in 1822 when the water reached a height of 7 feet once more.The original bridge built by Walter Skirlaw, Bishop of Durham, in the year 1400 was modified to withstand the pressures of the flood waters by changes to the northern arch and it was also widened and made more substatial.
A new single span iron bridge with a span of 180 feet was built but unfortunately collapsed around midnight on the 12th of January, 1806 just prior to being opened. The parish church of St. Mary Magdalen, stands at the west side of the town, and was rebuilt in 1730. Although the exterior is thought to be quite plain it has a remarkable painted glass window by Pecket which portays a full length figure of Moses, delivering the law on Mount Sinai.
A Free Grammar School dating from Queen Elizabeth and founded by Thomas Conyers (of which the cuurent school bears his name) and extended by Wm. Chaloner Esq., and a National school able to educate up to 160 pupils, built in 1816 formed the basis of the local education system[
Description(s) edited from Langdale's Yorkshire Dictionary (1822) and Baine's Directory of the County of York (1823).]
Edited from the original transcript by kind permission of Colin Hinson.
Maintainer of the Genuki Yorkshire pages
It was in the early 19th century a busy river landing capable of navigation by vessels of "sixty tons burthen".
At around c1800 there was very little trade or manufacturing and the local produce of corn, flour, cheese, butter and bacon were shipped down river and then to London. Salmon was in abundance in the river Tees at this time and was another important source of local revenue. Thursday was market day and although it did decline due to the growth of Stockton as a major port on the river, the building of several corn mills brought about its revival.
Yarm Fair, which still returns to the town to this day, if not in the same format, was held four times each year. The fair of the 19th and 20th of October, which is the nearest to the current fair, was for horned cattle and horses on the 19th and sheep and cheese on the 20th and was recognised as one of the most popular in the north of England. To provide an idea of the amount of business that took place during these fairs, it is estimated that on the second day of the fair, during the years from 1818 to 1821, some 500 tons of cheese was sold each year and this excludes the large amounts bought by the merchants that were never brought to the fair.
The "new iron railway from Stockton to Darlington" passed only a mile away from Yarm and a branch line was built which came down to the bridge.
Yarm still suffers from flooding to this day owing to to its only slight elevation above the river bed and records show some severe floods occuring. Most notable were the floods of 1753 which showed a level of 7 feet and the flood of 1771 which rose to a height of 20 feet causing considerable damage and some loss of life. It was recognised that the loss of life would have been much higher if it were not for the help and assistance of the people of Stockton and the surrounding villages who came to the aid of the local population. The next flood of significance was in 1822 when the water reached a height of 7 feet once more.The original bridge built by Walter Skirlaw, Bishop of Durham, in the year 1400 was modified to withstand the pressures of the flood waters by changes to the northern arch and it was also widened and made more substatial.
A new single span iron bridge with a span of 180 feet was built but unfortunately collapsed around midnight on the 12th of January, 1806 just prior to being opened. The parish church of St. Mary Magdalen, stands at the west side of the town, and was rebuilt in 1730. Although the exterior is thought to be quite plain it has a remarkable painted glass window by Pecket which portays a full length figure of Moses, delivering the law on Mount Sinai.
A Free Grammar School dating from Queen Elizabeth and founded by Thomas Conyers (of which the cuurent school bears his name) and extended by Wm. Chaloner Esq., and a National school able to educate up to 160 pupils, built in 1816 formed the basis of the local education system[
Description(s) edited from Langdale's Yorkshire Dictionary (1822) and Baine's Directory of the County of York (1823).]
Edited from the original transcript by kind permission of Colin Hinson.
Maintainer of the Genuki Yorkshire pages
