A COUNCIL has been accused of being "ashamed of its town" after failing to create a suitable landmark to commemorate the area's glorious past.

Despite being the birthplace of the world's first railway line, Stockton has virtually no memorial to its illustrious history.

Stockton has only a small plaque on the town hall and an old steam engine located in the centre of a roundabout to remind visitors of the part the town played in the development of rail travel.

This is in stark contrast to nearby Darlington - the other destination on the famous 1825 Stockton to Darlington train line - which has a rail museum and a £750,000 brick sculpture of a locomotive.

Local amateur historian Bob Harbron said the failure to create a proper memorial showed a lack of pride in the town by the local authority.

Mr Harbron, 77, who edits the Norton Heritage Magazine, said: "It really is disgraceful, anyone would think they were ashamed of their town.

"Stockton has a unique place in railway history, but you'd hardly know anything had gone on here at all if you visited the town. A few years ago at the time of the 175th anniversary we were being promised all sorts but it ended up being just hot air."

Mr Harbron, from Norton, compared the local council's failure to act with the success of heritage projects in other North-East towns.

The historic quay in Hartlepool has brought about 3,000 jobs and put £70m back into the town's economy.

In Shildon, in County Durham, the Locomotion railway museum has attracted 100,000 visitors in its first nine months of opening.

He said: "We should be using our historic past as a selling point to put the town on the map rather than hiding from it."

Jane Hubbard, museums manager for Stockton Borough Council, said the council was reviewing its museum and heritage strategy.

She said: "During the next few months we will be publishing a new museum strategy.

"This will acknowledge the importance of railway heritage to the area and outline future plans, which will include raising the profile of railway heritage within the borough, both of museum collections and also of the history of Stockton-on-Tees."