Chester-le-Street | |
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Front Street | |
Population | 23,946 (2001)[1] |
OS grid reference | NZ270512 |
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CHESTER LE STREET |
Postcode district | DH2, DH3 |
Dialling code | 0191 |
Police | Durham |
Fire | County Durham and Darlington |
Ambulance | North East |
UK Parliament |
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Chester-le-Street [2][3] is an ancient town in the northeast of England. It is in County Durham. Where it stands was a Roman fort called Concangis. This is the 'Chester' (from the Latin castra) of the town's name. 'Street' refers to the paved Roman road that ran north-south through the town. It is now called Front Street (shown at right).
Chester-le-Street is 7 miles (11 km) south of Newcastle upon Tyne and 8 miles (13 km) west of Sunderland. It is on the River Wear.
The parish church of St Mary and St Cuthbert is where the body of St Cuthbert lay for 112 years. Then it was taken to Durham Cathedral. The church is the site of the first translation of the Gospels into English. There Aldred wrote the Old English gloss between the lines of the Lindisfarne Gospels.[4]
This place is a market town.[5] Markets are held on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. Until 2009 the town had its own local government district. The status of the town has been changed several times by local government regulations.[6][7] The changes were controversial at the time.[8][9]