Yarm
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Template:Infobox England place with map UA Image:Yarm Viaduct.jpg Yarm is a small town which for ceremonial purposes is in North Yorkshire in England. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, and marked the end of the tidal section of the River Tees until the Tees Barrage was built in Stockton. It is situated in a loop of the river.
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Administration
Administratively, the town is in the borough of Stockton-on-Tees, made a unitary authority in 1996, before which Yarm was in the non-metropolitan county of Cleveland, a creation of the Local Government Act 1972 which abolished the Stokesley Rural District in the North Riding of Yorkshire.
The Yarm ward (which includes Kirklevington) has three local councillors sitting on Stockton borough council all of which are Conservatives. As of 2005 they are: Jennifer Beaumont, Brian Jones, and Andrew Sherris.
Geography
Yarm is divided into five estates, and the peninsular area where the town centre is situated. The estates are Willey Flatts, Layfield Farm, The Kebbell (or Spitalfields), Leven Park, and Levendale (or Ingleby Grange). Image:Yarmmap.png
Rivers
Yarm is bordered by two rivers. The River Tees is located to the north, and the Leven to the east. The Leven is a tributary of the Tees. The name of the town is probably derived from the old norse word yarum meaning an enclosure to catch fish. In the past, Yarm was the highest port on the river Tees, with merchant vessels travelling up the tidal river to Yarm from the North Sea to unload their cargo.
Viaduct and railway stations
The imposing 2,280 ft long railway viaduct was constructed between 1849 and 1851 for the Leeds Northern Railway company. Its designers were Thomas Grainger and John Bourne. The structure comprises 7 million bricks, and has 43 arches. The original Yarm railway station, now closed, used to be situated on the Eaglescliffe side of the river at the north end of the viaduct. The un-manned modern station, opened in 1996, is now located to the south of Yarm.
Location
- Grid reference: NZ421124*
- Latitude and longitude: Template:Coor dm (54.50, −1.35)
- Road access: A67 from north and south, B1264 from west, A1044 from east.
- Rail access: Yarm Station
- Nearest airport: Durham Tees Valley Airport
Events
Template:Expandsect Many events are held in the town each year such as a fair and a 5 km fun run.
Fair
A fair is held on the Tuesday evening to Saturday night of the third week in October in the High Street. It was once a commercial fair that traded in cheese and livestock, but has become a fun fair, although travellers still attend the fair, and ride horses up and down the street on the Saturday. The travellers have to wait outside the town until 6:00PM on the Tuesday, at which point they are allowed to cross the bridge over the River Tees into the town.
Fun Run
Yarm has an annual fun run. The 5KM run starts at Conyers School, and ends on Snaiths Field.
Charities Fair
Yarm and district Lions club run a charities fair on the high street each year. This mostly takes a market like approach.
Lighting of the Christmas tree
A ceromony takes place each advent to light up the town's Christmas tree. Carols are sung, and the high street is temporarily closed for the event.
Schools
Yarm has five schools. Three state primary, and one state secondary, as well as the private Yarm School.
State
There are three primary schools (Levendale, Yarm, and Layfield) in the town and Conyers secondary school.
Public
The town is home to Yarm School, the senior school being situated at the Friarage and the Preparatory School, Pre-Prep and Nursery at the old Yarm Grammar School (the school was formed after the close of the grammar school).
The school is due to re-locate sometime in the coming years, to a site near to the Green Lane playing fields that are already owned by the school. It is not known exactly when this will happen.
People
People associated with the town include John Wesley, founder of Methodism, Tom Brown, hero in the Battle of Dettingen.
Twinned towns
Yarm is twinned with two other European towns:
- Schwalbach in Germany
- Vernouillet in France
On 2 July 2005, two trees were planted to the north of the town hall to mark the 20th anniversary of the twinning between Yarm and the two towns. The trees are marked with plaques.