STOCKTON WARD 



STOCKTON ON TEES 



of the dues to Rowland Wetherilt, but afterwards the 

 Corporation held the leasc,^* and this system has con- 

 tinued to the present time. At some time before 

 1796 the market tolls, which had been reserved to the 

 bishop in the latest charter (1666), passed to the 

 Corporation, which seems also to have leased the bur- 

 gage rents. ^'' The town officials were at that date the 

 mayor, aldermen and recorder, the recorder being 

 steward also of the bishop's court Icet and court baron. 

 ' Alderman ' was merely a name given to the ex- 

 mayors. There was no limit to their number, but there 

 were only five in 1795 ; they remained aldermen as 

 long as they held burgage property. There was no 

 select borough council ; the mayor and the whole body 

 of burgesses managed the affairs of the town. The 

 mayor was elected annually by the burgesses^' on the 

 Tuesday after Michaelmas (29 September) ; an allow- 

 ance of j^30 a year was made to him, and he was a 

 justice of the peace and a justice in the Durham court 

 of pleas ex officio. The borough court was held at 

 the town-hall or town-house ; two courts were held 

 each year for the trial of petty causes within the 

 borough. The town's scrjeant was the constable of 

 the borough.''^ There were 122 holders of burgage 

 tenements, the number of tenements being probably 

 seventy-two, as in the reign of Elizabeth.''^ 



An Improvement Act for Stociiton was passed in 

 1820, under which a board of ninety-four commis- 

 sioners were appointed, the mayor and aldermen being 

 included ex officio.'^ This seems to have given the 

 aldermen for the first time a definite function. 



The report of 1835 shows little change from 1796. 

 The title of the corporation was ' M.-iyor, Aldermen, 

 Burgesses and Commonalty.' There were fifty-three 

 burgesses and seventy-one burg.igc tenements, com- 

 prising about one-fourth of the town. The number 

 of aldermen was now said to be limited to eight. 

 Courts baron, over which the mayor presided, were 

 held eight times in the year for the recovery of debts 

 under 40/. All the officers of the town, including 

 collectors of river dues, testers of weights and measures, 

 &c., were appointed by the mayor, except the 

 recorder, who, as already stated, was the bishop's 

 nominee, and three auditors, who were elected by the 

 burgesses.'' Freedom of the corporation was con- 

 ferred by ownership of the burgage tenements. 



Under the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835 the 

 borough area remained unchanged, but was divided 

 into two wards with nine councillors to each, and the 

 first election took place on 26 December 1835.'- 

 At the same time a Commission of the Peace was 

 granted for the borough, the recordership being 



abolished. In 1852 the borough boundaries were 

 extended to cover a larger part of the township, Lus- 

 tram Beck being the boundary, and the area was 

 divided into four wards '^ — North-East, North-West, 

 South-East and South- West — by High Street and the 

 cross streets at the town-hall (Dovecot Street and 

 Bishop Street). Each ward had two aldermen and 

 six councillors. Part of the township outside the 

 borough was in the South Stockton local government 

 district. In 1889 a further extension was made. The 

 borough is now conterminous with the township,'^ 

 and is divided into ten wards, each with an alderman 

 and three councillors, named Central, Exchange, 

 South-East, South-West, North-West, West End, 

 Parkfield, Victoria, Tilery and Portrack. In 191 3 

 parts of East Hartburn and Norton were brought 

 within the township and borough. Two wards, 

 Hartburn and Norton, were added and Portrack and 

 Tilery wards amalgamated. The number of aldermen 

 and councillors was correspondingly increased. '^^ 



The borough police was in 185 I merged in the 

 county force.'' Petty sessions for the borough are 

 held daily at the police-court ; the county magistrates 

 meet fortnightly. A school board was formed in 

 1870."'^ Stockton is also the seat of a rural district 

 council and poor law union. 



By the Act of 1867 Stockton, in conjunction with 

 Thornaby and part of Norton, became a Parliamen- 

 tary borough, returning one member. 



The market day under the charter of 13 10 was 

 Wednesday, while the fair was held on the feast of the 

 Translation of St. Thomas of Canterbury (7 July) and 

 the week following. The same da)'s were appointed 

 in the charters reviving the market and fair which 

 were granted by Bishop Matthew in 1602 and Bishop 

 Cosin in 1666.'' In 1720 the market day was said 

 to be Saturday,'" in 1808 it was Wednesday, and fairs 

 were held on 27 January, 18 July and the Monday 

 after I 3 October.^'* In 1 849, as at the present day, 

 there were both Wednesday and Saturday markets. 

 Fairs were then held on the Wednesday before 

 13 May and on 23 November.**" These still remain 

 as hiring fairs. There are besides cattle fairs in 

 April and October. Cattle markets were established 

 in I 8 1 1 monthly at first and weekly later.*' By the 

 Stockton Improvement and Extension Act of 1 869 

 the corporation was empowered to regulate the markets 

 and fairs and take the profits. In 1876 they obtained 

 an Act enabling them to purchase The Green on the 

 east side of the churchyard for a new market-place.**'^ 



Stockton as a port first comes into notice in 1228, 

 when a certain ship which had been arrested at 



^^ Ibid. 66. British s!iip3 paid ii. loJ. 

 for anchorage and plaiikage and foreign 

 ones paid double. The Cinque Ports were 

 exempt. Various goods paid dues also, 



*^' Brewster, op. cit. 80. 



*' The 'borough rights* were not of 

 equal size, and if one were subdivided each 

 owner exercised his burgess right in turn 

 (Mackenzie and Ross, op. cit. ii, 21-2). 



"^ Brewster, op. cit. 77-84 ; Surtees, 

 op. cit. iii, 175. 



*■'■' Brewster, op. cit. ;^9-40. There is an 

 engraving of the borough seal (ibid. 148) ; 

 it shows castle with anchor and the legend 

 Sig, Corp. de Stockton in Com. Pal. 

 Dunclm. In the second edition of the 

 same work there is a list of the borough 



holders of 1829 (p. 473) and a plan of 

 the town in 1828 (p. 22). 



™ Mimic. Corp. Com. R{f>. (1S35). 



"' Fordyce, op. cit. ii, 157 ; Local and 

 Pers. Act, i Geo. IV, cap. 62. This Act 

 was repealed in 1S52, when the powers of 

 the Commissioners were transferred to 

 the council of the enlarged borough. 



^'^ Fordyce, op. cit. 177. 



" Local and Pcrs. Act, 15 & 16 Vict, 

 cap. 18. 



'' Ibid. ^2 & 55 Vict. cap. 92. 



"a Local Act, 3 <St 4 Geo. V, cap. 143. 

 The part of East Hartburn which was 

 not included in the borough was amal- 

 gamated with the parish of Elton. 



" Fordyce, op. cit. ii, 178. 



355 



'* LonJ. Gaz. 7 Nov. iS-i, p. 4543 j 

 for the then municipal borough. 



" Brt'wster, op. cit. ^o~z, 



^^ A/jf. Brit. (1720-31), i, 610. 



^» Carlisle, Topog. Diet. 



*"* Lewis, Tof>og. Diet. 



^' Fordyce, op. cit. ii, 179. 



^*a Local Act, 39 &40 Vict. cap. 1 18. 

 The Green, formerly waste land of the 

 manor, had been fenced in iSo$ and in 

 iS^S was acquired from the Ecclesiastical 

 Commissioners for pleasure grounds for 

 the inhabitants. The corporation bought 

 it from the vicar and the other trustcet, 

 and also purchased the vicarage house 

 and two dwellinj-housei adjoining on 

 3 December 1875. 



