Wearhead

Wearhead is a village in the civil parish of Stanhope, in County Durham, England. It is situated at the top of Weardale between Cowshill and Ireshopeburn. It is named after the nearby source of the River Wear which runs eastwards for approx 40 miles (64 km) to Sunderland. In the 2001 census Wearhead had a population of 210. The first settlement at Wearhead may have been a farmstead, possibly a summer base for the Bishop's cattle which would have been taken to lower ground in winter. East of the village lies a steep hillside, which has evidence of shallow shafts and hushes which were the early methods used to extract lead and iron. In County Durham there were rich deposits of lead lying within a circle of about 10 miles' radius drawn around Wearhead, hence the lead-mining industry of Weardale and Teesdale. In 1858 the Post Office Directory listed: Beer Retailer, Grocer/Draper, Tailor/Draper, Grocer, Joiner/Postmaster, Grocer and Draper's/Joiner. In 1915 the Post Office Directory listed only The Bank of Liverpool. In 1971 Barclays Bank (formerly Martins Bank) was sold and the property became a butcher's shop, which has since closed. Wearhead stands 1,104 feet (336 m) above sea level and has some of the highest peaks in County Durham, namely Killhope Law at 2,208 feet (673 m) and Burnhope Seat at 2,452 feet (747 m). Burnhope Reservoir is approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) from Wearhead. In the construction six farms were submerged when water rose to fill the man-made reservoir in 1937.