In the first century , the site of what is now Middlesbrough , was a timber constructed church and a settlement on a small hill rising sharply from the river and gently sloping away to the south surrounded by marshland.
It is said that the name Middlesbrough comes from the fact that it was half way on the monks journey from Lindisfarne to Whitby, in some references it is called Middleberg.

After the conquest King William 's army laid waste to the north including the villages around Middlesbrough and the settlement itself.
In 1119 Robert de Brus , who had aquired large tracts of land in the area , gave the chapel at Middlesbrough to the monks of Whitby so long as it was maintained and occupied by its monks.

The Middlesbrough estate was purchased by William Hustler in 1637 and it stayed in the family until the land owned by the Hustlers was divided by an act of parliament between the two sons of the last surviving Hustler daughter . William Peirse became the owner of the hamlet of Middlesbrough , which was at that time a farm and 13 houses .William sold his share of the land to Joseph Pease and Partners for 30,000 pounds in 1828
Around this time coal and timber were being exported from staithes near the Middlesbrough farm because this part of the river gave deeper births than down stream at Stockton . Joseph Pease and his partners laid down plans for a new town to be created on the land he purchased in 1828 and in 1830 the first house was completed of the infant town.

 

Layout of the new town of Middlesbrough

The first property owners of Middlesbrough

Henry Pease Merchant Darlington

1,2,3,4,16,22,44,47,48,49,50,51,71,108,109,110,111

Richard Otley Land Surveyor Darlington 5,33,34,36,39,42,43,45,92,95,96,99
W.A.Hartley Iron Merchant Darlington 6,7
Isaac Coates
"
"
 ","
Thomas Corby Innkeeper Middlesbrough 8,9
William Lister Ironfounder/Whitesmith Darlington 10
William Fairbridge Butcher Middlesbrough 11,12
T.Rayner Innkeeper Middlesbrough 13
T.Harris Coalfitter Middlesbrough 14
T.Richardson Middlesbrough owners   14a
vacant      
J.Flintoff   Witton 17
W.Fallows   Middlesbrough 18
Longridge and Rev I.Benson     20,21
G.Chapman Joiner Middlesbrough 19,46,106,107
T.Davidson   Middlesbrough 23
C.Hutchinson Brewer Middlesbrough 24,116
Robert Addison   Allenby 25
George Coates Miller Norton 26
Edward Malthouse Blacksmith Middlesbrough 27
vacant     28,29
T.Moore Tailor Middlesbrough 30
D.MacNaughton Draper Middlesbrough "
William Pickering Farmer Crathorne 31
J.Miller   Darlington 32
Henry Beckwith Cabinet maker Stockton 35
Jos Stephenson Yeoman Darlington 38
W Blenkinsop Innkeeper Stockton 40
W+J Smith Housebuilder Stockton 40 groundfloor
W Bacon Earle Cartwright Darlington 41
vacant     52,53
Thomas Sweeting Butcher Middlesbrough 54
Robert Elliott House/coach Painter Middlesbrough 88,91,94,97,98,104,105
John Graham Shoemaker Middlesbrough 70
vacant     56 to 69, 72,75,76,79,81,82
Michael Graham Gentleman Middlesbrough 73,74
Robert Gargett Shoemaker Middlesbrough 77
John Jackson   Lackenby 78,80,83,84
J.G Holmes Shipbuilder Middlesbrough 85,86
Isaac Sharp Accountant Darlington 87
J Thistlethwaite     87
William Scales   Huton Rudby 88,91
Joseph Taylor Coalfitter Middlesbrough 89,90
vacant     93,100
John Davidson Farmer Marton 101
William Loraine Bricklayer Middlesbrough 102
John Davidson Bricklayer Middlesbrough 103
vacant     112,113
Robert Manners Innkeeper Middlesbrough 114,115
Adam Rudd Yeoman Middlesbrough 123
William Green Shoemaker Middlesbrough 122
John Strong   Middlesbrough 120
Wm Newton Jackson     121
John Nesham     118,119
William Sherwood     " , "
Thomas Dodgshon Joiner Middlesbrough 117

 

 

Perhaps the most important persons for the development and dramatic increase of Middlesbrough as a town were Henry W.F.Bolckow and John Vaughan. Joseph Pease persuaded Bolckow and Vaughan to open an Iron works in 1841 to give the emerging new town an alternative industry to that of coal exporting. The export of coal at that time was starting to be controlled by Hartlepool with it's deeper port facility, closer rail access and closer coal fields of Durham.

The Ironworks produced bars, rails and plate from pig iron that was being produced at Bolckow and Vaughans blastfurnaces at Witton park.Witton park at this time was using ironstone imported from the workings around Grosmont in Yorkshire. In 1850 John Vaughan and his suveyor John Marley discovered the ironstone outcrop above Eston and started extracting it.At first the stone was taken by rail to Witton park then brought back as pig iron to Middlesbrough. This round trip was stopped when Bolckow and Vaughan built Blastfurnaces next to the river below Eston and also at their Middlesbrough site.

 

This is John Vaughan's and Henry Bolckow's town house as it is today. It is in ,what is today ,the St Hildas district of Middlesbrough but would have been almost on the edge of Middlesbrough when it was built.

 

The centre of Middlesbrough has changed a lot but the Town Hall and Victoria Square are reminders of what was once a Victorian New Town.

The shopping centre was built in the 1970's along with the tall building (Corporation House)they replaced rows of terraced houses and shops.


John Vaughan
1799 - 1868
Ironmaster and Mayor of Middlesbrough 1855
Sir Samuel
Alexander Sadler
1849 - 1911
Industrial Chemist and
Middlesbrough M.P.
Henry William
Ferdinand Bolckow
1806-1878
Ironmaster and
first Mayor of
Middlesbrough.

Three Statues in the centre of Middlesbrough.

The Transporter Bridge, linking Middlesbrough to Port Clarence.
This wall is all that is left of the salt works built by Bolckow and Vaughan on Vulcan street Middlesbrough. Salt deposites were discovered here in the late 1850's. Boring started in 1859 and the saltwells stopped production on the 29th August 1862.
In the distance is the site of the old shipyards which today are used for the fabrication of modules for the oil industry.
This is the view looking from Bolckow's statue towards the railway station.

Apart from the modern street fittings and the ugly building in the background, this view is essentially the same as in Bolckows day.
The station once had a cast iron and glass arched roof but this was totally destroyed when it was bombed during the Second World War.

Exchange square looking in the opposite direction and towards Marton road.The two buildings on the end where part of a row, but they were pulled down along with the Exchange building to make way for the A66 road. This area around the square is currently being cleaned up and repaired in keeping with it's original style.
The Original Town Hall which stood in the middle of the town.Today it is surrounded by modern houses and pedestrian walkways.Unfortunatly it is also a target for vandles.
East Street looking from Lower East street towards the old Town Hall.