Parish in County Durham, England
| Coordinates: | 54.631, -1.653 |
|---|---|
| OS grid ref: | NZ 22 26 |
| Population: | 9,976 |
Shildon is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, set on the edge of the old Durham coalfield between Bishop Auckland and Newton Aycliffe. The surrounding landscape is the mix of reclaimed industrial land and rolling northeast Pennine foothills typical of the area, and its position gave it good road links for commuting while retaining a strong local character.
Its identity is closely tied to early railway history: the town was a centre for locomotive building and is associated with engineers such as Timothy Hackworth and the pioneering Stockton and Darlington Railway. The Locomotion museum and related heritage projects have become focal points for regeneration, shifting the economy from coal and heavy engineering towards heritage tourism, light industry and services, and sustaining a civic pride in the town’s historic role in Britain’s transport revolution.
DL4 1HE, DL4 2BQ, DL4 1PZ, DL4 2AN, DL4 1QP, DL4 1AU, DL4 1AH, DL4 2LL, DL4 1PG … See all