Ovingham

Ovingham is a civil parish and village in the Tyne Valley of south Northumberland, England. It lies on the River Tyne 10 miles (16 km) east of Hexham with neighbours Prudhoe, Ovington, Wylam and Stocksfield.

The River Tyne provided an obstacle between Ovingham and Prudhoe until 20 December 1883, when a toll bridge (Ovingham Bridge) was finally opened, taking the place of the ferry. The steel tubes are marked Dorman Long Middlesbrough, the firm which designed and built the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Tyne Bridge.

Economy

There was a dyehouse at Ovingham, and in 1828 William Bullock was the foreman. Both Thomas Bewick from nearby Cherryburn and George Stephenson from nearby Wylam had relatives who were dyers. One of Bewick's woodcuts is entitled the Dyers of Ovingham. Two men are carrying a large tub on a pole. Mabel Stephenson, George's mother, was a daughter of an Ovingham dyer named Richard Carr. There were weavers in Ovingham, as well as a local tidewaiter, or customs inspector.

Landmarks

The vicarage was, in medieval times, a cell for three Augustinian canons of Hexham, and was rebuilt in the seventeenth century. It was formerly the residence of the late Frank Atkinson, who did so much to establish the Beamish Museum and also the Bewick Trust at Cherryburn. Bewick received his education in the vicarage and the church.

The Ovingham 'pack-horse' bridge over the Whittle Burn consisted of two segmental arches with a width of five feet between the parapets, so that it could not be used for wheeled traffic. It is likely that the Ovingham mill dam on the Tyne raised the level of the water. There was a great fire at Ovingham in 1697 and the bridge fell down. So the bridge which previously stood was repaired or rebuilt in 1698. There is also a concrete bridge over the water for traffic, which in time of flood becomes a ford. The bridge was destroyed in flooding on 5 December 2015.

Whittle dean is a deep woody dell which stretches southwards and joins the Tyne east of Ovington. The waters of this dean (peculiarly soft and clear) are the most celebrated in the north of England for whitening linen cloth. Mr. William Newton's bleach green, situated on this stream at the confluence of the Tyne is known and famed throughout all these northern parts. The Whittle Burn can be traced back to the present day Whittledean Water Works on either side of the Roman Wall near Welton Hall.

The first three trees of the Ovingham Community Orchard were planted in the old grazing field next to the allotments by children from Ovingham First School on Friday 23 November 2018. The following morning about 40 villagers turned out to plant the remaining 21 trees. Each tree will produce a different variety of apple.

Transport

The village is served by Prudhoe railway station on the Tyne Valley Line. The line was opened in 1838, and links the city of Newcastle upon Tyne in Tyne and Wear with Carlisle in Cumbria. The line follows the course of the River Tyne through Northumberland.

Passenger services on the Tyne Valley Line are operated by Northern. The line is also heavily used for freight. The railway station is across the River Tyne on the south bank of the river.

The village lies about 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the A69 road giving good links with Newcastle upon Tyne, Hexham, and Carlisle. The A695 road is accessible across Ovingham Bridge giving access to places on the south side of the River Tyne including Gateshead.

Church

The Church of England parish church of Saint Mary has a tall slender Anglo-Saxon tower. There are fragments of an Anglo-Saxon cross in the church, which was much enlarged in the 13th century – wider, loftier and with long lancet windows. The nave with aisles is only two bays long, as the north and south transepts, each with a west aisle, take up the space of two more bays. There is a long chancel with very little ornament. The churchyard has a number of gravestones in memory of prominent villagers. In the porch is a stone slab commemorating Thomas Bewick who is buried in the churchyard, next to the tower.

Markets and fairs

Ovingham had a charter for a market and two annual fairs on 26 October and 26 April. There was also a monthly tryst for cattle and sheep, which was discontinued in 1823. The ceremony for the Fair was similar to that for the Stagshaw Bank Fair at Corbridge nearby. A procession moved to the principal alehouse for the 'riding of the fair', led by the Duke of Northumberland's pipers, dressed in light blue and adorned with the Duke's sign of a crescent moon. The procession included the Duke's agent, bailiff, constable with many farmers and tenants. The fair was proclaimed and then they beat the bounds, returning to the tavern to drink the Duke's health from punch provided by him. After this men, women and children alike went to enjoy the amusements – stalls, Punch and Judy and performers such as fire-breathers. The custom was discontinued in time, but it has been revived in recent years as the 'Goose Fair', since in the days of the old Fair geese would play an important part in the sale. Quill pens were made in Ovingham from goose feathers.

Description courtesy of Wikipedia.

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24th May 2009

The Vicarage.

The Old Vicarage in Ovingham dates from the 15th century, with 17th and 19th century additions. The house was once a cell of Hexham Abbey. The first vicarage at Ovingham was a pele tower. It stood on the site of the present vicarage and was rebuilt three times, after being destroyed in Scottish raids in 1293, 1312 and 1316. Thomas Bewick was educated in the vicarage and St Mary's Church, and is buried in the churchyard at St Mary's.

Grade 2 Listed. Source: Co-Curate.

The Village Cross.

Village Cross. Late C18/early Cl9. Ashlar. 3 broad square steps to cross base, a large square block with chamfered top edge. Tapering rectangular shaft with broach-chamfered edges. Top stone of shaft renewed. Cross head has concave sides to arms and ball in centre.

Grade 2 listed. Source: Historic England.

The Old School House.

The Whittle Burn.

Whittle Burn is a tributary of the River Tyne. It flows in a roughly southerly direction and joins the Tyne at Ovingham. The burn is about 16 km long with a catchment area of 29 km2. The upper sections of the burn are heavily modified, with an intricate network of watercourses/aqueducts built in the 19th century, which link reservoirs at Colt Crag, Hallington and Whittle Dene. This includes both open water courses and tunnels. The lower sections of Whittle Burn form the is a deep steep-sided valley of Whittle Dene, with an ancient woodland, managed by the Woodland Trust.

Source: Co-Curate.

The Pack Horse Bridge.

Footbridge. C18. Dressed stone. Narrow bridge of 2 segmental arches with arch bands. Triangular cutwater between. Plain parapet with chamfered top. Approach walls splay outwards and have ridged coping.

Grade 2 Listed. Source: Historic England.

The Village Hall (The Reading Room).

The Reading Room is the village hall in Ovingham, located on West Road. It was officially opened on the 18th of May 1894, by Mrs E Bigge as a place where residents could read books and newspapers that they otherwise might not be able to afford. During the Second World War it was used for billeting soldiers brought back from Dunkirk. In 1971 the Reading Room re-opened following renovations, with an extension, a kitchen and toilets. In 1984 a second extension, the Blackett Room, built on land donated by Mr and Mrs Frank Atkinson, was opened.

Source: Co-Curate.

The Bridge End Inn.

The White Swan Public House, Main Road.

The Bridges.

Ovingham Bridges are a pair of side-by-side vehicle and pedestrian bridges across the River Tyne linking Ovingham and Prudhoe in Northumberland, England. Following a lengthy refurbishment programme by Northumberland County Council, Ovingham Bridge re-opened to vehicles on 5 September 2016. The vehicle bridge is a single track of reduced width for cars and light vans only. There is no footpath; pedestrians use the separate footbridge that runs alongside and with the same deck level.

The centre piers are set wider, allowing the deck to spread and two vehicles can pass, although this is rare. No traffic controls are installed; drivers observe the far end and wait or enter the bridge using a set of unwritten rules that usually function well.It was built in 1883 by the Ovingham Bridge Company and replaced the earlier ferry. The steel tubes are marked Dorman Long Middlesbrough, the firm that designed and built the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Tyne Bridge. It was originally opened and operated as a toll bridge until 1945. The toll house has long since been demolished. It was located on the downstream side at the southern end of the bridge. In 1974 a footbridge was erected alongside, immediately downstream of the main bridge. In 2009 both bridges underwent a strengthening programme as they had been closed during the January floods of 2005. Gabions were installed around the base of the pilings to prevent scour, and the river channel was dredged to direct the main flow away from the piers. As the original piling depths were not recorded, brackets were welded to the pilings and seismic pulse testing performed.

On 30 June 2014, the vehicle bridge was closed for extensive maintenance projected to take around 12 months. A small closing ceremony saw the last vehicle to cross – a horse and cart – as a reminder of the first vehicle to cross when it was originally opened.

During May and June 2014, access trackways were built to the underside of both ends of the bridges, and extensive steel scaffolding installed below and to both sides of the bridge structure. The scaffolds even incorporated wooden boarded cutwaters to protect the scaffold if the river should flood. Lattice long span 'unit beams' were fitted to all spans except the North and South. Concrete pads were cast below the bridge end spans adjacent to the approach roads so that the spans could be jacked up. This was to allow extensive modification of the area where the steel bridge rests on the stone abutment. New concrete structures were cast as pier caps and compliant pads installed to allow the entire span to expand and contract with seasonal temperature changes. The bridge deck including cross beams were completely replaced. The footbridge was also due to be closed and have new decking. Pedestrians were redirected to use the main bridge whilst this was underway.

Source: Wikipedia.

The River Tyne at Ovingham.

Castle View.

Main Road.

Around The Village.

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More Information:

• Wikipedia - Ovingham
• Northumberland Communities - Ovingham
• Bridges On The Tyne - Ovingham Bridges
• Keys To The Past - Ovingham
• Historic England - Ovingham
• Co-Curate - Ovingham

See my other photos around Ovingham:

• Allendale
• Blanchland
• Broomley
• Bywell
• Cherryburn
• Corbridge
• Corbridge - St. Andrew's Church and Vicars Pele
• Corbridge Bridge and River Tyne
• Heddon-on-the-Wall
• Heddon-on-the-Wall - Hadrians Wall
• Heddon-on-the-Wall - St Andrews Church
• Hexham
• Hexham Abbey
• Hexham Railway Station
• Hexham - River Tyne and Hexham Bridge
• Ovingham - St. Mary the Virgin Anglican Church
• Riding Mill
• Stocksfield
• Wylam
• Wylam Pumping Station
• Wylam - Abandoned Farm