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Dunston - Farming
Thinking about Dunston certainly doesn't conjure up images of lush pastures, yet on the 1858 Ordnance Survey Map no fewer than nine farms are shown on the area now covered by Dunston.
Seven farms have all disappeared without trace.
Mount Hooley Farm lives on in name only as a housing estate.
Low Glebe Farm on Carr's Bank was on church ground.
Cowheel Farm was built at the Duncow end of Ravensworth Road and took its name from the small hamlet which grew up around the crossroads.
Jacks Leazes, Market Lane and Baldwin Flat are all gone the latter lives on as Rochester and Elsdon Gardens.
Whitegate Farm was built in the eighteenth century and was one of the area's first listed buildings. It formed part of the Bute Hall Estate but had gone downhill in the seventies. In 1983 a local firm, Holly Construction, restored the farmhouse as the centre of a small local housing development.
Whickham Thorns Farm on Market Lane was restored as an Inner City Farm Project and is the focal point for school visits and local history studies. It was once known as Geordie Cairns farm.
Comments
Re Baldwin Flatts farm:
The actual farm house was actually opposite the junction of Douglas with the bottom end of Knightside,where Youens' dairy was situated from the mid 1930s to 60s.
Posted by: a. craggs at December 29, 2007 10:48 AM
Thanks for your comment re Baldwin Flatts farm.
Posted by: Whickham Web Wanderers at December 29, 2007 12:24 PM
I used to live in Beech Drive,there was a farm before you got to the school.
The farmer was called "Dawson", as was the farm, he kept a few pigs but mainly bullocks as I recall, he harvested in the summer that would feed the animals, but little else.
The Farm was destroyed when they started the western bypass.
All the kids (from Beech Drive) used to play football etc in his fields (bullock in the farm-yard of course!), and,the farmer used to set his dogs (two collies), to clear us off his land. They never did catch up to us!, we were out of the field pretty quick!
We would often get up, open the Back door for coal,and have a bullock looking straight at us, this would happen up until the western bypass was built!
My old man used to complain to Dawson the farmer but nothing used to come of it plus he'd use us as an excuse, saying we used to tear down fencing when footballing!(which we never).
Dave Bell
Posted by: dave bell at July 23, 2008 4:04 PM