Darlington_Railway_Centre_and_Museum

Head of Steam

Head of Steam

Railway museum in County Durham, England

Head of Steam, formerly known as the Darlington Railway Centre and Museum, is a railway museum located on the 1825 route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, which was the world's first steam-powered passenger railway. It is based inside the station building at the North Road railway station. Its exhibits are devoted to the area formerly served by the North Eastern Railway with a particular focus on the Stockton & Darlington Railway and the railway industry of Darlington.[3][4] In 2022, plans were submitted to expand the museum as part of the Railway Heritage Quarter.[5] In December 2023, the museum temporarily closed its doors to undergo a £35 million redevelopment.

Quick Facts Established, Location ...

In October 2023, Darlington's Rail Heritage Quarter was renamed Hopetown Darlington, celebrating the rich rail heritage of this area of Darlington which is known as Hopetown due to the location of the historic Hopetown Carriage Works and Hope Town Foundry.[6]

Hopetown Darlington is a 7.5 acre site encompassing the former Head of Steam (now renamed North Road Station Museum), an exhibition hall for blockbuster exhibitions, a 4D virtual reality time travel ride, an adventure playpark, a café, shop, and events field for festivals and events, as well as onsite partners including the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, NELPG, and Darlington Railway Preservation Society. Hopetown Darlington opens to the public in summer 2024.

Locomotives

Prior to 2021, the museum currently had five locomotives on display. Two were owned by the museum, while three were on long-term loan from the National Railway Museum. In 2021, Locomotion No. 1 moved to Locomotion Museum in Shildon.

More information Number & Name, Year ...

Model railway

The museum holds a large model of the Stockton & Darlington Railway which can be seen in the images below.

References

  1. [1]
    "Head of Steam - Darlington Railway Museum | Culture24". www.culture24.org.uk.
  2. [2]
    "Keeping in mind railmen who gave lives to support war effort | The North-East At War".
  3. [3]
    "- Home Page". Head of Steam Railway Museum. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  4. [4]
    "Our Collections". Head of Steam Railway Museum. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  5. [5]
    Barnard, Ashley (26 March 2022). "Plans updated for ambitious Darlington Head of Steam Museum". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  6. [6]
    "Why is Darlington's £35m railway centre being renamed Hopetown?". Darlington and Stockton Times. 29 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  7. [7]
    "Shildon's Locomotion museum: New £5.9m building to house 45 attractions". BBC News. 15 January 2022.
  8. [8]
    Lloyd, Chris (11 March 2021). "Darlington to have replica Locomotion No 1 on display". The Northern Echo. Newsquest Media Group. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  9. [9]
    "Decision - Locomotion No 1 and Replica". Darlington Borough Council. 17 April 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  10. [10]
    "Head of Steam Darlington Railway Museum – ERIH".
  11. [11]
    Edgar, Bill (12 August 2021). "Historic Class 37 locomotive rolls back into Darlington". The Northern Echo. Newsquest. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
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