Margrove Park

Information about the history of Margrove Park is taken mainly from the Durham Archaeological Journal during 1994.
Margrove Valley is a small glacially formed valley that contains four distinct communities, Charltons ,Margrove Park, Boosbeck and Aysdale Gate, all of which were constructed after the arrival of the railway in 1861. The records for 1871 records two further dwellings, the Tilery cottages which were occupied by the workers, at the recently opened brickworks.

The first houses for ironstone miners appear to have been constructed in 1872 to provide accommodation for the migrant workers.
Whilst some local residents believe the name Margrove Park to be a Victorian gentrification of the area, it appears the place name is much earlier The earliest documentary reference is for Magerbrigge which appears etween 1230 and 1250 in the Guisborough Cartulary. Whilst more recognisable Maugre Park is documented in 1407. Said to be a Deer Park at some time in the past.

HOUSES AT MARGROVE PARK

The Deer Park at Margrove Park was 355 acres. Stanghowe Iron company constructed a total of one hundred houses at Margrove Park in 1873. The permission to build the houses was agreed in 1870 when a document was signed between J Wharton for the Skelton Estate and G. Wythes and J Cochrane of the Stanghow Iron Co.

The houses at Margrove Park are thought to have been built of bricks from the Carrs Tilery, half a mile away from the site.The houses were erected on the southern slopes of the Margrove Valley. There are two rows of houses situated round three sides of the village green. No’s 1 to 52 on the up slope ,ending to what is known as the barracks, and is subdivided in to three blocks or terraces. The other row is also divided into three terraces, No’s 53 to 66 along the top of the green and 67-83 and 84 to 100 on the down slope.

The houses were built of bricks laid in English bond with five rows of strechers,then a row of headers.
The brickwork is fairly uniform. Except for two rows of decorative white bricks separated by red, just above the window on the ground floor. There were two windows at the front and three at the rear. All with vertical sliding sash. The windows at the front had sandstone lintels and sills, whilst at the rear the windows had brick lintels but were otherwise similar. The roof was made of slates.

The history of the Margrove Park houses is incomplete. However, some information can be garnered from census documents. One record exists outside this sequence is an account of a visit in 1873-4 to East Cleveland by John Foreman. President of the Durham Miners Association, and William Grieves, President of the Northumberland Miners Association.

The deputation noted ,”Workman’s cottages were erected in open situations, and not in streets, according to the usual custom, and having gardens in close proximity, all the minor conveniences being duly cared for.
The census for 1881 records that sixty -four houses where occupied at this time, whilst the remainder were empty. The census for 1891 provides more information: