Darlington Through Time by Paul Chrystal
Darlington is rightly famous for its involvement in the introduction and subsequent development of the railways in the UK. As such, it carries responsibility for shaping not just regional change on a huge scale in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries but, even more importantly, social, commercial and industrial change in the country as a whole. The railways have left the biggest mark on the town and the impact locally of the Stockton & Darlington Railway and of its subsequent developments is covered, from its opening in 1825 to todays celebration of the towns railway heritage at Head of Steam, the former Darlington Railway Centre and Museum. Through a selection of old and new photographs and an incisive and informative text, Darlington Through Time traces the development of the town, from its importance as a medieval market centre through to its IT and engineering prowess in the twenty-first century, and is essential reading for anybody who knows and loves this historic town.