Ludworth is a pit village in County Durham, England situated between Durham and Peterlee. Ludworth is 6.2 miles from Durham City Centre and 5.4 miles from Peterlee.
It consists of just over 350 houses in three main housing estates (Barnard Avenue, Moor Crescent and Springfield Meadows) and a few smaller streets.
Ludworth has a combined post office and community shop, a primary school, a community centre, a small park and a printers.
The village used to have a church, two Methodist chapels and a fish shop, most of which were destroyed in a fire. The last public house in Ludworth, The Queen's Head, has been closed since before 2009. The nearest pubs are now in Shadforth and Thornley.
There are no supermarkets in Ludworth although most supermarkets that offer a delivery service will deliver to resident's homes.
Residents who need anything more than the small Post Office and village shop offers, when shopping locally, rely on Peterlee, Dragonville Industrial Estate (near to Sherburn, County Durham), Durham City Centre, Hartlepool or smaller shops in neighbouring villages such as Sherburn and Wheatley Hill.
The 24 Arriva bus service runs, in both directions, half hourly during the day between Durham City Centre and Hartlepool, except on Sundays when it runs hourly. There are no late evening services in either direction on Sundays. There is no railway station.
Ludworth Tower was originally a medieval manor house, founded by the de Ludworth family. In 1422, Thomas Holden added a rectangular pele tower, when he was granted licence to crenellate his manorial complex, by Cardinal Langley. The only surviving remains are the barrel-vaulted basement, the three storey west wall and fragments of a first floor spiral stair in the south wall. The remains can be seen on the left as you come into the village from Shadforth and are contained within Tower Farm.
Economy
Ludworth used to be a mining community. The "Low Main" and the "Main Coal" were the seams worked at Ludworth, giving an output at one time of 400 tons per day, and where employment was given to over 300 hands.
Coal mining accidents
34 people have been named as having died while working in the colliery:
Addison, Matthew, 03 Mar 1859, aged 10, Trapper, crushed by tub and pony
Anderson, Irvine, 24 Dec 1844, aged 29, who, with two others, was ascending Ludworth Pit in a corf. When it was about seven fathoms from the bottom of the shaft, it struck against the side and he was thrown out. He was recovered from the bottom of the shaft and taken home, but died three hours later from a fractured skull. The inquest into his death was held on Tuesday, 24 December
Arkley, Thomas, 26 Dec 1899, aged 64, Screenman, fell down dead from heart disease while at his work.
Atkin, Richard, 07 Aug 1924, aged 32, Pumpman, fell down shaft, Buried: St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Shadforth
Berry, James, 12 Dec 1855, thrown down the shaft
Brown, William Michael, 21 Feb 1902, aged 57, Master Shifter, deceased signalled to the winding engineman to take the cage from the 5/4 to main coal seam and then attempted to get into the cage, but the engineman, not knowing there was no onsetter there, dropped the cage at once, and Brown was caught and killed
Craig, William, 6 May 1880, aged 40, Deputy, while attempting to draw a set of chocks in longwall he knocked out a wedge, and immediately a fall took place; he neglected to set a prop, although told by another deputy to do so, as the stone was found to be bad
Elsdon, Joseph, 10 Jan 1845, aged 26, Sinker, fell down shaft
Farrow, Joseph, 01 Mar 1848, Deputy Overman, he was crushed to death when part of the roof fell on him
Ferry, Joseph, Feb 1848, killed by a fall of stone from the roof
Fletcher, John, 20 Mar 1883, aged 31, Hewer, fall of stone while working in a jud, a stone fell out next to goaf
Gibson, George, 23 Apr 1852, aged 35, in cage which fell down the North Pit shaft [The Durham Chronicle - 02/04/1852], Buried: St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Shadforth
Haddick, Craik, 10 Jan 1845, aged 33, Sinker, fell down shaft
Hedley, Thomas, 23 Apr 1852, aged 20, in cage which fell down the North Pit shaft [The Durham Chronicle - 02/04/1852], Buried: St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Shadforth
Hedley, William, 23 Apr 1852, aged 24, in cage which fell down the North Pit shaft [The Durham Chronicle - 02/04/1852], Buried: St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Shadforth
Hunter, John, 10 Jan 1845, aged 28, Sinker, fell down shaft
Iley, William, 22 Feb 1878, (accident: 14 Feb 1878), aged 30, Heap Keeper, leg badly crushed between waggons while passing between them