Windy Nook, 1848

WINDY-NOOK, an ecclesiastical district, in the parish of Jarrow, union of Gateshead, E. division of Chester ward, N. division of the county of Durham, 2 miles (S.) from Gateshead; containing 2,009 inhabitants. This district, which was separated from the chapelry of Heworth in 1843, occupies an elevated situation, and abounds with wildly romantic scenery. The substratum is principally freestone of excellent quality, of which there are numerous quarries; the produce is chiefly formed into grindstones, for which the place has long been celebrated. An extensive pottery for common earthenware has been established; there are also two windmills, and a mill driven by water. The church (St. Alban's), consecrated on the 25th of August, 1842, was erected at an expense of £880, of which £200 were a grant from Her Majesty's Commissioners, £175 from the Incorporated Society, £75 from the Diocesan Society, and the remainder was raised by subscription; it is a neat structure in the early English style, with a campanile turret. The living is a perpetual curacy, in the patronage of the Incumbent of Heworth, with a net income of £150. A national school built also in 1842, is supported by subscription.