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You are here > Home > History & Heritage > Industrial Heritage

Industrial Heritage

Durham’s industrial past is brought to life at award-winning attractions across the county.

Mother Nature favoured Durham by providing abundant natural resources.  Beautiful stone for quarrying plus coal, lead and iron ore for mining positioned the county on the international industrial map of the past. 
 
Coal was the undisputed king and in the 1800’s Durham was the leading producer of coal in England. ‘King Coal’ created its own empire, firing the Industrial Revolution and whilst Durham’s landscape today shows little signs of this once extensive industry, the heritage of coal is still very much alive in The Colliery Village at Beamish Museum.

Durham was also the adopted home or birthplace of industrial pioneers and inventors. The engineering skills of Victorian railway pioneer Timothy Hackworth (1786-1850) meant Durham became known as the ‘Cradle of the Railways’ where new ideas were nurtured, developed and tested.  And at Killhope Museum you can experience the life and work of the lead mining families of the North Pennines.

Without doubt, Durham wears its industrial heritage with pride.

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  1. The 1900s Town Street at Beamish Museum

    Add Beamish - The Living Museum of the North to your Itinerary

    Beamish - The Living Museum of the North

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Beamish

    Discover an amazing journey through time at Beamish Museum as you travel back in time to the 1820s, early 1900s, 1940s and 1950s and become immersed in real, living history.

    Dates

    Awards

    • Visit England VAQAS 2021VAQAS
    • Regional and Miscellaneous North East England Tourism Awards - Large Visitor Attraction of the Year Award - Highly Commended 2020North East England Tourism Awards - Large Visitor Attraction of the Year Award - Highly Commended
    • Visit England VisitEngland Award for Excellence Bronze 2016VisitEngland Award for Excellence Bronze
    • Regional and Miscellaneous TripAdvisor Travellers Choice Award 2020 2020TripAdvisor Travellers Choice Award 2020
    • Regional and Miscellaneous WTTC Safe Travels 2021WTTC Safe Travels

    Indicative Availability

    Book Beamish - The Living Museum of the North Online (opens in a new window)

    More info for Beamish - The Living Museum of the North
  2. A train at The Weardale Railway

    Add The Weardale Railway - The Auckland Project to your Itinerary

    The Weardale Railway - The Auckland Project

    Type

    Type:

    Railway

    Stanhope

    Take a ride on the Weardale Railway heritage passenger service to enjoy stunning views of Weardale, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and explore the historic market towns of Wolsingham and Stanhope.

    Dates

    From:
    1 Jan 2023to31 Dec 2023
    More info for The Weardale Railway - The Auckland Project
  3. Durham Mining Museum

    Add Durham Mining Museum to your Itinerary

    Durham Mining Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Heritage / Visitor Centre

    Spennymoor

    Spennymoor Town Hall has it’s dedicated memorial to the works and lives lost during the mining period across County Durham. Events cover mining in the Northern part of England i.e. County Durham, Northumberland, Cumberland, Westmorland and the…

    Dates

    From:
    1 Jan 2023to31 Dec 2023Various Opening Times
    More info for Durham Mining Museum
  4. Derwentcote Steel Furnace

    Add Derwentcote Steel Furnace to your Itinerary

    Derwentcote Steel Furnace

    Type

    Type:

    Industrial Archaeology

    Hamsterley

    Built in the 1720s, Derwentcote is the earliest and most complete steel-making furnace to have survived in Britain.

    Dates

    From:
    1 Jan 2023to31 Dec 2023
    More info for Derwentcote Steel Furnace
  5. Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre

    Add Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre to your Itinerary

    Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre

    Type

    Type:

    Heritage / Visitor Centre

    Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre is small building of architectural beauty situated in Wheatley Hill cemetery. It houses a permanent exhibition of colliery village life.

    Dates

    From:
    1 Jan 2023to31 Dec 2023Various Opening Times
    More info for Wheatley Hill Heritage Centre
  6. Horden Colliery Heritage Centre

    Add Horden Colliery Heritage Centre to your Itinerary

    Horden Colliery Heritage Centre

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Horden

    Heritage Centre with themed rooms. Mining Museum going back 100 years with 350 archives, photographs of Horden, lots of history, 1940s rooms.

    Dates

    From:
    1 Mar 2023to31 Oct 2023Various Opening Times
    More info for Horden Colliery Heritage Centre
  7. Children wearing hard hats in Killhope Lead Mine in dark truck full of rocks

    Add Killhope Lead Mining Museum to your Itinerary

    Killhope Lead Mining Museum

    Type

    Type:

    Museum

    Cowshill

    Killhope is a multi award winning Victorian lead mining museum offering a great day out for the family. Guided mine tours, working water wheel, original machinery, exhibitions, workshops, family events, performances, stunning scenery, shop and cafe.…

    Dates

    From:
    1 Apr 2023to31 Oct 2023Open 10:00 - 16:30

    Awards

    • Visit England VAQAS 2021VAQAS
    • Green Awards Green Tourism Business Scheme - Gold 2017Green Tourism Business Scheme - Gold
    • Visit England Code of Practice 2017
    • Visit England Visitengland Hidden Gem 2016Visitengland Hidden Gem
    • Visit England Best Told Story 2021Best Told Story
    More info for Killhope Lead Mining Museum
  8. Exterior view of the Mining Art Gallery

    Add Mining Art Gallery - The Auckland Project to your Itinerary

    Mining Art Gallery - The Auckland Project

    Type

    Type:

    Gallery

    Bishop Auckland

    With three permanent rooms and one temporary exhibition space on the ground floor, the gallery explores working life in the coal mines through original artefacts and artworks by prominent mining artists such as Tom McGuinness and Norman Cornish.

    Dates

    From:
    22 Feb 2023to31 Dec 2023Various Opening Times
    More info for Mining Art Gallery - The Auckland Project
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