MUSEUM chiefs in the region are hoping to bring part of the North-East's history home.

A document which sheds light on the site of the Stockton and Darlington Railway before it became a rail line is going up for auction next week.

The vellum manuscript, which dates back to 1750, details the sale of the Stockton to Darlington Turnpike Road, the very route which was superseded 75 years later by the world famous railway line.

Dominic Winter Book Auctions, in Swindon, Wiltshire, will put the document under the hammer next Wednesday, October 4, with an estimated value of £150 to £200.

"This document provides details of the sale of the road to trustees, and the requirement for them to provide suitable upkeep of the road surface, take sufficient tolls from road users and also to establish tollhouses along the route," said auctioneer Dominic Winter.

"This is a very rare document because it provides so much detail of the extremely difficult transport conditions which existed in Britain before the birth of the railways.

"It is remarkable also for providing detailed information on the very route which gave birth to the railways."

Darlington and Stockton borough councils have both shown an interest in bringing the document back to the region, after The Northern Echo brought the auction to their attention on the 175th anniversary of the opening of the line.

A spokesman for Darlington council said: "It is without a doubt a part of the region's social and economic history and we will be talking to the auctioneers with a view to making a bid for it.

"It would be a welcome addition to our museum."

Stockton council's museums and heritage officer Mark Rowland-Jones said: "It is good to see that things like this are still turning up, teaching us more about our history.

"It would be good for a manuscript of this nature to remain in the public domain, in a museum, a library or an archive."

Earlier this year, The Northern Echo launched its Treasuring Our Railway Heritage campaign in an effort to preserve the region's history as the birthplace and cradle of the railways.

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