Old Ordnance Survey Maps of Hartlepool

Hartlepool was one of our early success stories. We first brought out a map for West Hartlepool in 1983 and it was an instant bestseller. A follow-up map for 'Old Hartlepool' or The Headland was just as popular, and sales were so good that we were able to issue the maps for 3 different dates, something we are normally only able to do in London. The maps remain in print today and still provide a fascinating picture of a town that seems constantly to be changing; looking at these maps side by side shows how the changes happened.

Hartlepool is reallly two towns. Hartlepool, based on the Headland, was the historic town, centred around its church, and important enough in the Middle Ages to send 145 sailors to Edward III's siege of Calais. However, in the 19th century the completely new town of West Hartlepool developed to the south, becoming one of the country's main coal ports, as well as a major shipbuilding centre; it was famously shelled by the German fleet in 1914. The town centre of West Hartlepool has progressively moved inland over the years, and many of the streets shown on our West Hartlepool map have disappeared - although some of the older streets at the Headland do survive.

Just to the south is Seaton Carew, a resort founded by Quakers from Darlington; ship-wrecked treasure is said to lie beneath its beach! The index right should give you an idea of the areas covered by these fascinating maps.