Rothbury
The Village
Business & Organisation Directory
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Whilst every effort has been made to minimise errors the publisher of these pages can not be held responsible for any inaccuracies or omissions. Where such errors exist an e-mail to the coordinator will swiftly rectify the situation. All
inclusions are free to
businesses and organisations in or around Rothbury. Much of the information has been sourced verbally but special thanks must be given to the authors of additional sources: Upper Coquetdale - David
Dippie Dixon Jack Phillips, Helen Stewart, Gordon Cummings _ |
Portrait of Rothbury
Rothbury is a small market town which straddles the River Coquet. The town has a pleasant mix of old stone and newer brick-built properties. Although technically a town with a proposal a year or so back to install a town mayor (defeated) everyone still tends to call it a village and it has a village feel about it. Shops, hotels and houses are clustered on the sloping banks of the river which bisects the village with the majority of the commercial properties situated on the north side.
From all sides the views are magnificent - Cragside, Blaeberry Hill, Simonside, and in the far distance, the Cheviots.
Rothbury and Coquetdale have something to offer everyone; even in the depths of winter. In spring the clear fresh air, fast flowing streams and river have a refreshing cleanliness. In summer the town is sheltered and warm, and there are a variety of small specialist shops - many people returning every year to shop.
Autumn is as
pleasant as spring and summer: the trees change their
colour and whilst livestock auctions are a thing of the past, village
shows and competitions provide an opportunity to meet farmers from up the valley
and mull over the important things of life: the quality of the sheep, the state
of farming and who won the sheepdog trials.
Rothbury has had a turbulent and bloody history. In the fifteenth and sixteenth
centuries the Coquet Valley was a pillaging ground for bands of Reivers who
attacked and burned the town with terrifying frequency. Near the town's impressive
All Saints' Parish Church stands the doorway and site of the seventeenth century Three Half
Moons Inn, where the Earl of Derwentwater stayed with his followers in 1715
prior to
marching into a heavy defeat in battle, at Preston.
Lord Armstrong's Home (Cragside, now in the ownership of the National Trust) was the first
house in the world to be lit by hydro electricity. The Hall and its majestic grounds
are situated two miles east of the town. Travelling
west you pass through some of the
most exquisite and peaceful countryside in Northumberland.
Walkers, mountain bikers, fishermen and sports people are all catered for: artists,
photographers and nature-lovers find it a haven.
Situated in the centre of the county, Rothbury is the ideal base for exploring historic
Northumberland. Within 30 minutes you can reach the Cheviots, the beach or another
country town. The coast, just twenty miles east, is a designated
"Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" and holds such treasures as castles, golden beaches and
Holy Island, (Lindisfarne). Hadrian's Wall, the Cheviots and the Scottish Border are all
within easy travelling distance.
The road network is excellent for commuters:
Newcastle upon Tyne and the Newcastle International Airport can be reached within 40
minutes. There are main line rail stations at Alnmouth and Morpeth both of which can be reached within 35 minutes.
Older inhabitants look back with fond memories to the days when Rothbury
had a railway line, a cinema in the Jubilee Hall and full employment. These
are now mostly gone, but Rothbury remains a progressive and bustling residential and commercial
centre with excellent first and second schools, a hospital, library, football team,
recreation club catering for tennis, bowls and five-a-side
football, excellent shops and an abundance of good places to eat.
It may be a peaceful, beautiful and quiet rural oasis today, but
it is occupied by a very forward-looking and active community who ensure that the town
remains in a strong position to go forward into the future.
Coquetdale is steeped in folklore and history. Cup and ring marks at Lordenshaws are pointers to a long forgotten past. The Saxon warrior Hrotha is also better known in legend than by the scattered stones which mark the first Rothbury. The great battle of Brunnaburg - fought between Athelstan and Analf - is said to have taken place at nearby Brinkburn in AD 935. Good evidence for this is as capricious as sightings of Simonside's cave-dwelling Deugar - a fearsome yeti-like creature who lures walkers to their doom before roasting their corpses over a peat fire. Hill farming has been a mainstay of the local economy for many generations. Famous names, such as Armstrong, Charleton and Robson, remain well-represented in the farming community. Their forebears, members of the reiver 'clans', were in constant conflict with their Scots counterpart. The many fortified farms (or bastles) are reminders of troubled times which lasted until the unification of the kingdoms.
It was the industrialist, Lord Armstrong ( 1810 - 1900 ), who helped shape modern Rothbury. Many local buildings reflect his Victorian style and prosperity. At the same time the planting of more than six million trees and shrubs transformed the surrounding landscape. His magnificent home at Cragside, now in the care of the National Trust, is visited by more than 150,000 people annually.
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