The Black Path

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The almost legendary Black Path is much talked about on this forum but did you know its origins go way back into the ancient history of these islands?
The Black Path runs from the Navigation along through the industry south of the Tees. It is now the final section of the Teesdale Way long distance footpath and has recently been adorned with artwork on the sections around South Bank.
In his Smell of Water blog, Gavin Parry talks about the historic, prehistoric even, origins of The Black Path. Then about it becoming a trod and a workers path.
This is Gavin's final blog for Local History Month.
The Black Path
 

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We were hosting a guided walk as part of the original Local History Month - Christine Corbett from Teesside Archives was the guide and the recent artwork and industry would no doubt have featured heavily as well.
Hope this gives your dad a few new angles for his walk.
We have been building up to this blog as last week Gavin talked about the other sailors trods around Middlesbrough - setting the scene for the Black Path.
Am sure Gavin will be pleased you have enjoyed his work and found it useful too.
 
Brill. I did a gig 2-3 years ago in Huddersfield, where I was talking to the audience about our area and its history. Afterwards, a woman of about my age approached me and said, "I've never been to Middlesbrough but my dad came from there and it was apparently where I was conceived. No one I meet ever gets the relevance of my first name, but I'll bet you do - I'm called Deira."

Funny how local names and words can stick around and still crop up after nearly two millennia. I'll have to ask Bandy if his surname has the same roots.
 
When I was young we used to call the path that runs alongside the beck at the top of Ormesby School field the black path. Is that part of the same old footpath?
 
Interesting. I always thought the black path was the one that led from bottom of South Bank up to Normanby and ran alongside the back of Teesville?
 
It runs between The Navigation and what was Cargo Fleet station, We used to ride along it as kids and the rumour was that it went all the way to Redcar. We never got that far because I think at one point it ran into the steelworks.
 
The almost legendary Black Path is much talked about on this forum but did you know its origins go way back into the ancient history of these islands?
The Black Path runs from the Navigation along through the industry south of the Tees. It is now the final section of the Teesdale Way long distance footpath and has recently been adorned with artwork on the sections around South Bank.
In his Smell of Water blog, Gavin Parry talks about the historic, prehistoric even, origins of The Black Path. Then about it becoming a trod and a workers path.
This is Gavin's final blog for Local History Month.
The Black Path

It reads like something off game of thrones
 
It starts at the exit to Cargo Fleet Station and was between the railway line and the big open sewer that flowed into the Tees. It followed the route of the trainline passing all the iron and steel works at least as far as Grangetown. We lived in Cargo Fleet in 50s/60s and my dad used to go to work at Dorman Long in Grangetown that way on his bike. Used to cycle on it myself to South Bank sometimes.
 
A friend walked it today - Teesdale Way from Yarm along the Tees, eventually on to the Black Path at the Navi then all the way to the Fire Station on the Trunk Road.
It took him 6 hours to walk the 22 miles. And he got very burnt.
 
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