Northumberland Coalfield

Guide Post is a village in South East Northumberland, England, about 17 miles (27 km) north of Newcastle upon Tyne. It lies south of the River Wansbeck along with Stakeford. About halfway between Ashington and Morpeth, it is part of the civil parish of Choppington, and has a population of 9,350.Guide Post is a mainly residential village. There are two pubs: the Anglers Arms and the Shakespeare Tavern, and a Social Club. It has several shops and three schools.

Sheepwash is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Ashington, in the county of Northumberland, England. It is adjacent to Stakeford and Guide Post and across the River Wansbeck from Ashington. In 1931 the parish had a population of 68.

Choppington railway station served the village of Choppington, Northumberland, England from 1858 to 1964 on the Blyth and Tyne Railway.

Choppington is a large village and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It is situated 5 miles to the south-east of Morpeth, and north of Bedlington. It was at one time part of the three big mid-Northumberland collieries (Ashington, Bomarsund and Choppington). The parish, which was until 1 July 2010 called North Bedlington, was created on 1 April 2009 also includes the settlements of Bomarsund, Guide Post, Stakeford, Sheepwash, Scotland Gate and West Sleekburn.

Stakeford is a large village in south east Northumberland, England. Its about 17 miles (27 km) north of Newcastle upon Tyne. It lies south of the River Wansbeck from Ashington, the nearest town. The village takes its name from the former river crossing to the north of the village, this was a crossing through the mudflats which was marked with stakes to give an idea of the water depth, hence the name Stakeford. The river crossing has long gone, but remains of the stakes can be seen in the river bed becoming visible whenever the dam downstream is opened. The old river crossing was replaced by a bridge in the early 20th century, which in itself was replaced by the new Stakeford Bridge in 1994. There is now no trace of the original ford due to the mudflats being used as a landfill site in the 1950s and 60s and the creation of a riverside country park in the 1970s. It is a mainly residential village. There are three pubs and a Social Club. There is also a miners' institute although it never had a mine as this was located in the adjacent village of Bomarsund. Stakeford has several shops and a primary school. Today Stakeford forms one built-up area, with neighbouring Guide Post and Sheepwash.

The A197 is a road in Northumberland, in the United Kingdom. It connects Morpeth, Pegswood, Ashington and Newbiggin by the Sea.

St. Benet Biscop Catholic Academy (formerly S. Benet Biscop Catholic High School) is a Roman Catholic high school in Bedlington, Northumberland, England. It is the only Catholic high school in the county.

Bothal is a village in Northumberland, in England. It is situated between Morpeth and Ashington. There is a castle, a church, a vicarage opposite the church gates, some stepping stones over the River Wansbeck, and a few houses. Bothal was the headquarters of the extensive Welbeck Estates in Northumberland. Half a mile upstream of the castle are the remains of a watermill that still had a working waterwheel up to about the First World War. It had a turbine for electricity production for the mill house from 1947 to 1980. Until 1866 Bothal was a civil parish, In 1831 the parish had a population of 1319. Bothal was also a drift mine ('Bothal Barns Drift') though this is something of a misnomer. Bothal Drift was merely another entrance to the Ashington colliery. Now, Bothal Barns Drift is the site of a private house with the old entrance to the drift mine being long disused. The Bothal Drift is situated on the top of the bank on the Ashington side. Further west ( a few hundred yards) from the church and castle, it is possible to walk along the river Wansbeck for some 30–45 minutes west towards Morpeth. The name Morpeth apparently means 'murder path' and was once the main thoroughfare along the river. Further along the footpath is the remains of an old chapel. The footpath starts near the site of the old mill. You can park your car near the gate (at the bridge) and then walk westwards past the weir.

Bothal Castle is a castle and stately home in the village of the same name near the River Wansbeck, between Morpeth and Ashington in the English county of Northumberland. Botl is Old English for a dwelling. Bothal could refer to a particular dwelling or hall. It was fortified before the Norman conquest, and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building. In 1095, Bothal was given by King William Rufus to Guy I de Balliol, whose daughter Alice married William Bertram, Baron of Mitford, who probably built a hall house. Several generations later, in 1343, Sir Robert Bertram was given permission to turn his manor house into a castle, including an impressive gatehouse. The gate tower and fragments of curtain wall are medieval, a good deal of which still survive to this day. Through the marriage of Bertram's daughter Hellen to Sir Robert Ogle (d. c.1363), the estate passed to the Ogle family in the 14th century. In August 1583 Cuthbert Ogle, 7th Baron Ogle, negotiated a marriage between his daughter Jane and Edward Talbot, a son of George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury. Shrewsbury's agents visited Bothal, and described the house as 'a castle battled, and not unlike to Nether Haddon where Master John Manners doth dwell.'In 1591 the estate passed to the Cavendish-Bentinck family (Dukes of Portland), through the marriage of Catherine, Countess of Ogle to Sir Charles Cavendish of Welbeck. King James visited on 5 May 1617 on his way to Scotland and stayed for two nights.Restoration was carried out in the 19th century. The building is used as a private residence of the Cavendish-Bentinck family and also houses the Welbeck Estate Office. The castle is in an excellent state of repair and is not accessible for the public.

Ashington Academy is a secondary school and sixth form located in Ashington in the English county of Northumberland.

Wansbeck was a local government district in south-east Northumberland, England. Its main population centres were Ashington, Bedlington and Newbiggin-by-the-Sea. The area which was bounded by the district is mostly urban, on the North Sea coast north of the Tyneside conurbation. It bordered Blyth Valley district to the south, the border being the River Blyth. It was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, by the merger of the urban districts of Ashington, Bedlingtonshire and Newbiggin-by-the-Sea. It is named after the River Wansbeck. The district council was abolished as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England effective from 1 April 2009 with responsibilities being transferred to Northumberland County Council, a unitary authority.

Bedlington is a town and former civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 18,470 measured at the 2011 Census.Bedlington is an ancient market town, with a rich history of industry and innovative residents. Located roughly 10 miles northeast of Newcastle and Newcastle Airport, Bedlington is roughly 10 minutes from the A1 road, in southeast Northumberland. Other nearby places include Morpeth to the northwest, Ashington to the northeast, Blyth to the east and Cramlington to the south. In 1961 the parish had a population of 29,403.The town has evidence of habitation from the Bronze Age, with a burial site being located just behind what is now the main Front Street. A cluster of Bronze Age cist burials were discovered during excavation of the site in the 1930s. St Cuthbert's Church is the longest standing building in the town, with parts of this dating back to the 11th century and recently celebrated being 1000 years old. The church is in the heart of the original sandstone conservation town centre. Most of the medieval town has disappeared with many of the historic buildings and factories being demolished over the years, but there are still nods to medieval street layouts. The main Front Street is currently made up of Georgian and Victorian buildings. Today Bedlington is probably best known for being the home of the Bedlington Terrier, a dog that has taken the name across the planet, not for the first time. At key points in history, before and during the Industrial Revolution, goods made in Bedlington made it to all corners of the globe through the distribution of nails and trains that were made in Bedlington from some 250 years ago. With large industry first being attracted to Bedlington over 250 years ago, in the form of its world-renowned iron works, mining became an intrinsic part of Bedlington from 1838. The coal industry remained at the heart of the town until the closure of the mines in the 1980s. Today Bedlington's Front Street is host to a number of well-established eating and drinking venues, and there is an emergence of new establishments and retailers entering the town. The parish of Bedlington constituted the historic exclave of County Durham called Bedlingtonshire. It is famous for giving its name to a breed of dog; the Bedlington Terrier.