Heritage Strategy - Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council

Chapter 2: Knowing our <strong>Heritage</strong>
Principal Urban centres -
Thornaby
Thornaby is said to have come into its existence in about
800 A.D.when the land was given by Halfdene, King of
the Danes, to Thormod, one of his noblemen.
However, evidence from Thornaby indicates that there
was also much earlier activity in the area. A stone axe, 8"
long, dating back to the Mesolithic Period ( about 3000
B.C. ) has been discovered and in 1926 a dug out canoe
said to date from about 1600 - 1400 B.C. was found in
the mud under 8 feet of water opposite Thornaby High
Wood. An arrow head of the Neolithic Period (about
3000 B.C.) was found in a garden on the Thornaby
Village Green.
St Peter's church on Thornaby Green, dates back to the
11th & 12th Centuries.
The name Thornaby first appears in 1665 and refers to
old Thornaby village near the River Tees. In the 19th
century old Thornaby, centred on St Peters Church and
the old village green was gradually overshadowed by the
town of South <strong>Stockton</strong>. A wide variety of industries
including shipbuilding, iron and steel, heavy engineering,
sugar and flour milling, gave rise to a large new town.
Thornaby aerodrome was an important RAF base during
WWII and came into being in 1930, although the area
had been used for flying since 1919. The base was home
to the North Riding 608 Squadron.
Spitfire Roundabout, Thornaby
The aerodrome finally closed in 1958 with most of the
land being sold for redevelopment in 1963. For a short
time the site was used as a motor racing circuit, with the
delightful names of Hudson straight, Anson straight,
Hawker hairpin, Hurricane corner, Gladiator bends, and
Defiant corner.
Today, many of the aerodrome buildings survive but the
runways have vanished beneath the new Town Centre
and housing developments. However, some of the street
names reflect Thornaby’s aviation history.
Thornaby Green
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