Burning Questions

A: THIS road can be traced through Durham and Yorkshire and runs from Brough on the Humber to Newcastle. The street is sometimes called Cade's Road after a 19th Century historian from Gainford, but has many local names. It is not as well known as Dere Street, the main Roman road in the north. Dere Street runs from York to Corbridge and has a number of Roman forts along its length. Cade's Road is intriguing because apart from Newcastle and Brough, only one fort can be found on its 140-mile length. This fort was called Conganium and is known today as Chester-le-Street.

Cade's Road is roughly parallel to Dere Street for much of its course, but is seven or eight miles to the east. The only known links between the two roads are near York, Durham City and between Corbridge and Newcastle. Cade's Road starts at Brough on the Humber where there was a fort and a ferry linking it to Ermine Street in Lincolnshire. From Brough it heads north towards the eastern side of York and crosses the River Derwent near Stamford Bridge. Just before Thirsk, it follows the course of the A19 and north of Thirsk is the A168, where it is recalled in the name of Thornton-le-Street.

The 'street' runs north-east of Northallerton, following the course of 'Long Lane' and can be traced between the villages of Deighton and Welbury before crossing the Tees at Middleton St George. Here there is a lane called Pountey's Lane, recalling the point where the Romans built 'Pons Tesie' or Tees Bridge.

North of the Tees, the road passes through Sadberge, following Middleton and Hill House Lanes and is remembered in the name of Street House Farm. Sadberge, strategically located on a hill, was a place of importance long after the Romans left Britain when it became the centre of a Tees-based Viking district stretching from Hartlepool to Teesdale. Its location on a Roman road may have been an important factor.

North of Sadberge, the road passes through Great Stainton, (formerly Stainton-le-Street) and then follows Elstob Lane towards Sedgefield where its course is less certain. Here it may have veered to the west of Sedgefield or passed through the centre of the town, although there is no evidence that Sedgefield has Roman origins.

From Sedgefield, the road follows the A177 north and is the Front Street in Coxhoe and Bowburn. It can be traced into High Shincliffe near the southern outskirts of Durham City. Here it is close to the site of a known Roman villa farmstead at Old Durham. In Durham City its course is not known but it may have crossed into Elvet, perhaps crossing the Wear three times. If the road avoided Elvet and Gilesgate it would only have to cross the Wear once, probably at Kepier near the Durham Sands. At some point in Durham Cade's Road was joined by a link from Dere Street. This enters Durham from Brancepeth via Nevilles Cross Bank and partly follows the A690.

North of Durham, Cade's road re-emerges north of the Newton Hall Housing Estate and in Chester-le-Street follows the Front Street, while in Birtley it is known as Durham Road or 'Long Bank' (the B1295). At Wrekenton, it was joined by the Roman Road from South Shields called Wrekendyke and then continued through Gateshead following the course of Old Durham Road.

It terminates at Newcastle upon Tyne, which the Romans knew as Pons Aelii meaning 'the Bridge of Hadrian's family'. Here it crossed the Tyne by a bridge located where the Swing Bridge is found today.

Published: Monday, July 17, 2001

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