A weekend celebration for Nenthead200

The village of Nenthead was planned by the London Lead Company 200 years ago this year. A weekend-long event, to be held on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 August, is being planned to celebrate this anniversary by the North Pennines National Landscape team with volunteers from the local community.

The event is part of the Land of Lead and Silver project, run by the North Pennines National Landscape team and funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund (thanks to National Lottery players) and Historic England. The project aims to discover stories and features from the lead and silver mining history of the North Pennines National Landscape and UNESCO Global Geopark and offers opportunities for people to get involved.

Lead mining dominated the North Pennines from the mid-1700s to the early 1900s shaping the landscape, the villages and settlements, and the communities. The London Lead Company owned and leased many mines, primarily across Alston Moor and Teesdale, during the 19th century and was particularly influential in Nenthead, where they planned and built the village.

Helen Featherstone, Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “The lead mining industry was central in shaping the heritage of the North Pennines and the existence of Nenthead 200 years ago. We’re delighted to be able to support the celebration of that heritage and share it with new audiences, thanks to National Lottery players.”

Lianna Francis-Kelly, North East Partnerships Team Leader at Historic England, said: “The North Pennines landscape tells a powerful story of how mining transformed both the physical environment and the communities who lived there. Historic England’s funding for the Land of Lead and Silver project reflects our commitment to celebrating and protecting these special places and making their stories accessible to everyone. As Nenthead celebrates its 200th anniversary, we’re really pleased to see people connecting with their local heritage in such creative and engaging ways.”

In the lead up to the Nenthead200 celebration weekend, workshops and activities are taking place to uncover stories from the community, to share the history of Nenthead and the mines, and to create display objects for the weekend event.

The Hive in Nenthead is also hosting two talks on the history of Nenthead Mines with Pete Jackson on Saturday 7 June, 10.30am, and mine rescue and local botanicals with Gavin Stewart on Sunday 1 July, 6pm.

The key events, places and people in the village’s development are being commemorated in a timeline. People are welcome to join an historical research group, using archival and secondary material to chronicle the village’s history, which will be meeting on Sundays 8 June and 13 July at Alston Moor Historical Society at the Town Hall, Alston.

Felt artist, Anna Osborne, is leading a craft workshop on Monday 21 July at Nenthead Village Hall. Participants will learn how to felt with wool and create a ‘crystal geode’ – hollow ‘rocks’ from layers of coloured wool – inspired by the unique geology of the North Pennines.

Take afternoon ‘Tea on the Trail’ at Lovelady Shield Hotel on Saturday 2 August from 1pm to 3pm. Isaac’s Tea Trail, a circular walking route linking Alston with Allendale, celebrates Isaac Holden, an itinerant tea seller and energetic fund raiser, who became a familiar figure in the 1830s selling tea door to door to the mining communities, farmsteads and remote hamlets across the north of England from Carlisle to Newcastle.

The Nenthead 200 celebration weekend, on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 August, will be a traditional village fair with competitions, games, music, and activities alongside an evening dinner dance and a pub quiz.

There will be mine tours at Nenthead Mines (book via their website) and a mining display at the Nenthead Mines barracks building on both days over the weekend.

On Saturday 23 August, there will be a community performance by Alston Drama Group in collaboration with the Knotted Project, as well as craft demonstrations and local bands playing in the church.

Sunday 24 August will see the competition judging and winner announcements, and Stanhope Silver band will be playing.

The competitions are open for all to enter and include:
• Photography competition – recreating or reinterpreting an historical photo of Nenthead’s landscape or people. Entry forms will be available from St John’s Church, Nenthead and online, the deadline for entries is Monday 28 July with drop-off in the box at the church. The entries will be displayed for voting by visitors and the winners will be announced on Sunday 24 August.
• Scarecrow competition – mining/Nenthead history themed scarecrows to be displayed outside homes from Monday 4 August. Entries will be judged by the Leek Club and the winners announced on the afternoon of Sunday 24 August.
• Costume competition – dress up in mining or Nenthead inspired garb and meet at Nenthead Mines car park on Saturday 23 August, 10.30am, to process to the playing field for judging. There will be prizes for under 11s, 11-18 year olds, adults, and the best mining costume.

The dinner and folk dance will be held on Saturday 23 August, 6-11pm, at Nenthead Village Hall. Tickets £20 per person (including a three-course dinner).

The pub quiz will take place at The Hive on Sunday 24 August starts at 5.30pm (doors open 5pm) and is free.

A children’s treasure hunt will be run through the summer holidays with goody bags for those who successfully complete the trail.

Rebecca Cadbury-Simmons, Community Engagement and Interpretation Officer with the North Pennines National Landscape team, said: “We are delighted to be developing this event and all the fun activities with so many members of the Nenthead and wider Alston Moor community. We look forward to welcoming everyone to what is shaping up to be a really exciting weekend.”

More information can be found at: northpennines.org.uk/what_we_do/historic-environment/land-of-lead-and-silver/nenthead200-celebration/ ‎

Please note: all events are subject to change.

ENDS

Notes for editors

Contact the North Pennines National Landscape communications team for further information – communications@northpennines.org.uk

The Land of Lead and Silver project has been awarded funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Historic England and will run to December 2027, working with volunteers and local communities to unearth the stories of lead and silver mining in the North Pennines National Landscape and UNESCO Global Geopark.

About The National Lottery Heritage Fund
As the largest dedicated funder of the UK’s heritage, The National Lottery Heritage Fund’s vision is for heritage to be valued, cared for and sustained for everyone, now and in the future as set out in our strategic plan, Heritage 2033.

Over the next ten years, the Heritage Fund aims to invest £3.6billion raised for good causes by National Lottery players to bring about benefits for people, places and the natural environment.

The Heritage Fund helps protect, transform and share the things from the past that people care about, from popular museums and historic places, our natural environment and fragile species, to the languages and cultural traditions that celebrate who we are.

The Heritage Fund is passionate about heritage and committed to driving innovation and collaboration to make a positive difference to people’s lives today, while leaving a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy.

Follow @HeritageFundUK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and use #NationalLotteryHeritageFund  www.heritagefund.org.uk.

About Historic England
We are Historic England, the public body that protects and brings life to the heritage that matters to us all, so it lives on and is loved for longer. From the extraordinary to the everyday, our historic places and spaces matter. From community centres to cathedrals, homes to high streets, markets to mills – there are special places we all choose to hold onto, the legacy we want to pass on and the stories we continue to tell. That’s why we work together with people across England to discover, protect and bring new life to our shared historic environment, providing advice, knowledge, support and services. Follow us on social media @HistoricEngland.