Place:Harton, Durham, England

source: Family History Library Catalog

A Vision of Britain through Time provides the following description of Harton from John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales of 1870-72:

"HARTON, a township-chapelry in Jarrow parish, Durham; on the coast, 2 miles S of South Shields [railway] station. Post town, South Shields. Acres: 1,537; of which 144 are water. Real property: £8,672; of which £4,000 are in mines, and £300 in quarries. Population: 877. Houses: 176. The name is a corruption of Heorte-dune, signifying "the hill of stags;" and, like the names Hart, Hartness, and Hartlepool, commemorates the ancient abundance of harts on the Durham sea board. An extensive colliery at West Harton is 215 fathoms deep. A cavern on the coast is called the Fairies' Kettle cave. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Durham. Value: £300. Patrons: the Dean and Chapter of Durham. The church was built in 1868."

Harton was a township in the ancient parish of Jarrow. It became a separate civil parish in 1866. From 1894 until 1921 it was part of South Shields Rural Rural District. In 1921 the civil parish was abolished and the area was split between the parishes of South Shields and Whitburn. In 1974 this part of Durham became part of the district of South Tyneside within the county of Tyne and Wear.

Research Tips

• County Durham Archives. Durham County Record Office is located on the Lower Ground Floor of County Hall, the administrative headquarters of Durham County Council, in Durham City.
• Northumberland and Durham FHS covers both Northumberland and the northern part of County Durham. The Family History Society have a research centre in Percy House in central Newcastle upon Tyne (full address on website), open Monday to Friday from 10 am to 4 pm. Browse the website to see what else the society can provide.
• The Cleveland, North Yorkshire & South Durham Family History Society covers the southern part of County Durham as well as the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire on the south side of the River Tees. Their homepage includes a map to show the society's coverage. (Once again, full address and other details on the website)
• Further information from GENUKI
• Ordnance Survey map of Durham 1832 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time. This map includes the boundaries of the various Wards (or "hundreds") in existence at that time.
• Ordnance Survey map of Durham 1900 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• Ordnance Survey map of Durham 1944 provided by A Vision of Britain through Time
• English Jurisdictions 1851, a parish finding aid provided by FamilySearch, particularly helpful in large towns and cities.
• Unfortunately, the Victoria County History for Durham is limited in its coverage. It only includes the cathedral city of Durham, including an account of the cathedral itself. Also covers Stockton Ward in the south-east of the county (bordering North Yorkshire) including Hartlepool and Stockton on Tees.