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The town that likes to be a village
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Sorry no picture of the village . Thought you would like this picture. Maybe in the past they did fly in Sedgefield!
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Way back in the dim and distant past,Christianity came to the North of England, and with it came the birth of Ceddesfeld, as my home village of Sedgefield used to be called. The area was selected because it was high land surrounded by marshes, and here the early Christians built a wooden church, naming it after a minor Saint of the South of England called Edmund. Later this early church gave way to an impressive stone church, with a fine tower from which you can see much of County Duirham. Throughout the centuries the church has been the focal point of the village, and has seen many happy and some unpleasant times. Among the latter the killing of villagers loyal to Rome at the time of the Reformation. Only recently work on the outskirts of the church cemetery has unearthed skeletons dating back to the mid-16th Century. Could they be some of those killed? Now we have happier times with the village's three churches, St Edmund's. St John Fisher Roman Catholic Church and the Methodist Church working in harmony.
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No picture but a plea for information on any other Sedgefields in the world.
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What about this remark that it is a Town that likes to be a Village. Well this came about when in a local government re-organisation, there was the opportunity to form its own council, and it was decide to have a Town Council and a Mayor. This sits uneasily on the shoulders of many residents, who prefer the title village, and refuse to call it a town.
GOVERNMENT
Sedgefield has given its name to the Parliamentary constituency, of which TONY BLAIR, the British Prime Minister, is the Local Member of Parliament, and to the local Borough Council.
There are three tiers of local government - Durham County Council, Sedgefield Borough Council and Sedgefield Town Council.
The village has had a Mayor for many years, and recently the newly-formed Borough Council also decided to have a Mayor, which proves very confusing, as does the fact that the Borough headquarters are actually in Spennymoor, miles from Sedgefield village.,
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HOSTELRIES OF GOOD CHEER
Once at the crossroad of the routes from York to Durham and from the Durham Dales to the Tees estuary, this turnpike village, became a stopping off point for the travellers, and as a result abounds in hostelries of good cheer - Hardwick Arms, which still retains the cobbled stones and archway, through which stagecoaches trunded; Nags Head, Golden Lion, Hope Inn, Dun Cow, Crosshill Hotel, Hardwick Hall Hotel, and there is also a Travelodge
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LOCAL ORGANISATIONS
There are various local organisations, with many linked to Sedgefield Community Association which uses the former Rectory - Ceddesfeld Hall - as its headquarters. These include the Sedgefield Players, considered one of the best in the country, with many national awards to its name. Sedgefield Lyric Singers is another popular group. Rotary and Round Table have branches in the village, and there are the usual uniformed organisations, a Twinning Association linked with Hamminkeln Germany, and a CrimeWatch Panel, which helps to keep crime low.
Sporting tastes are catered for with an excellent Squash Club, Knotty Hill Golf Centre, a Cricket Club,and football and rugby cluibs, and indoor bowls. The village has also a National Hunt racecourse, an annual agricultural show, a medieval fayre, and its famous Shrove Tuesday Ball Game, when mayhem is let loose throughout the village.
Education for the 11 to 18 year old is catered for at Sedgefield Community College, and there are two Primary Schools, Hardwick and County.
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