Stanhope, County Durham


Stanhope is a small market town in County Durham, England, situated on the River Wear between Eastgate and Frosterley on the north-east side of Weardale. The A689 road meets the B6278 road from Barnard Castle to Shotley Bridge in the town.

Description

The civil parish of Stanhope had an estimated population of 4489 in 2017. It includes Rookhope, Westgate, St John's Chapel, Ireshopeburn, Wearhead, Cowshill, Cornriggs, Eastgate, Frosterley all on the A689 road, along with Crawleyside, Hill End and White Kirkley. The parish area is England's largest at 221 km². It shares some land in common with the neighbouring Wolsingham civil parish.
Stanhope is surrounded by moorland in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty – the second largest of the current 40 AONBs in England and Wales.
Features of interest include:
Stanhope Agricultural Show is held on the second weekend of September each year. It has been held annually since 1834, with the exception of the war years, the foot and mouth crisis and times of bad weather.

Weardale Railway

Stanhope is the current terminus of the Weardale Railway, a heritage railway operating primarily at weekends. It runs from Bishop Auckland, with stations at Frosterley, Wolsingham and Witton-le-Wear.

Notable residents