Mainsforth

Mainsforth is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Bishop Middleham, in the County Durham district, in the ceremonial county of Durham, England.[1] It is to the east of Ferryhill. The earliest settlement in Mainsforth may have been on Marble (Narble Hill). It has been suggested, without great historical foundation, that this was a Danish settlement. In 1961 the parish had a population of 229.[2]

Mainsforth
Signpost in Mainsforth
Mainsforth is located in County Durham
Mainsforth
Mainsforth
Location within County Durham
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom

From medieval times through to the early twentieth century the village was in effect a small collection of farms and farm workers' cottages.

Mainsforth Hall was a significant building in the centre of this small village, until its demolition in the 1960s. The hall was for many years the dwelling of the Surtees family. The most famous member of the family was Robert Surtees (1779–1834), a County Durham historian.

Today the hamlet contains several farms and older cottages and some modern executive-style detached dwellings. It retains its character principally because of the many trees in the village and because of the retention of the wall of Mainsforth Hall in the centre of the village.

Mainsforth Colliery, active from 1872-1968, lay between the village and Ferryhill Station.

Civil parish

Mainsforth was formerly a township in the parish of Bishop-Middleham,[3] from 1866 Mainsforth was a civil parish in its own right,[4] on 1 April 1983 the parish was abolished and merged with Bishop Middleham and Ferryhill.[5]

References
  1. Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 93 Middlesbrough (Darlington & Hartlepool) (Map). Ordnance Survey. 2010. ISBN 9780319228777.
  2. "Population statistics Mainsforth CP/Tn through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  3. "History of Mainsforth, in Sedgefield and County Durham". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  4. "Relationships and changes Mainsforth CP/Tn through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  5. "Durham Western Registration District". UKBMD. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
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