Hartlepool Area Summary
Hartlepool is a town in the non-metropolitan county of County Durham, North-East England. The town lies on the North Sea coast, 7.5 miles (12km) north of Middlesbrough and 17 miles (27km) south of Sunderland. The town is governed as part of the Borough of Hartlepool that also controls outlying villages such as Seaton Carew, Greatham and Elwick. Stockton-on-Tees is also to the south of the town with Redcar and Cleveland to the South East along the line of the River Tees.
The Borough of Hartlepool centres on the town of Hartlepool and in the 2011 census the population count was 92,028.
Hartlepool was founded in the 7th century, around the monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew in the Middle Ages and its harbour served as the official port of the Country Palatine of Durham. After a railway link from the north was established from the South Durham coal fields, an additional link from the south, in 1835, together with a new port, resulted in further expansion, with the new town of West Hartlepool.
Industrialisation and the start of the shipbuilding industry in the latter part of the 19th century caused Hartlepool to be a target for the Imperial German Navy at the beginning of the First World War. A bombardment of 1,150 shells on 16th December 1914 resulted in the death of 117 people. A severe decline in heavy industries and shipbuilding following the Second World War caused periods of high unemployment until the 1990s when major investment projects and the redevelopment of the docks area into a marina saw a rise in the town’s prospects.
Hartlepool is full of award-winning attractions such as the Hartlepool Historic Quay, the HMS Trincomalee, and the Museum of Hartlepool. There are also loads of other places for you to visit such as St Hilda’s Church and Cameron’s Brewery.
Hartlepool Marina’s centrepiece is the award-winning Historic Quay a faithful reproduction of an 18th-century seaport portraying the exciting experience of what life was like at the time of Nelson and Trafalgar.
Hartlepool Art Gallery and Tourist Information Centre are located at Church Square – within a minute’s walk from the railway station and close to the town centre.
HMS Trincomalee 1817 represents the pinnacle of the ship restorer’s craft and visitors can now savour the unique atmosphere and experience of life onboard the Classic British Frigate.
Hartlepool Maritime Experience is a superb re-creation of an 18th-century seaport, telling the story of life at sea at the time of Nelson, Napoleon and the Battle of Trafalgar which dares you to experience life aboard a British Naval frigate two centuries ago!