In the 17th and 18th centuries the carriage of heavy commodities brought chaos to North Durham’s roads. It was against this background that the world’s first commercially successful railway network was built to carry coal, lead and imported steel.  Discover more about the industries of the area based around coal, lead and iron abundant in the Derwent Valley.

John Hunter of the Land of Oak & Iron Trust tells the story of the North Durham wooden waggonways and illustrates his talk with interactive maps produced by Land of Oak & Iron volunteers.