Locating Our Libraries: Number One, Wylam
Parking is easy at the Tyne Riverside Country Park in Wylam and from there it’s a short walk to the old Waggonway, with the River Tyne to the South and the gentle uplands of the valley to the north. Soon you came to the cottage where George Stephenson was born in 1781. From here it is a lovely walk on to Newburn and beyond but if you retrace your steps to the car park and head west into Wylam village you come to the unmistakable shape of an Edwardian school (1910) built to replace the Colliery School (1850). Repurposed now as the Falcon Centre since the school closed in the 1970s it is a little unsettling to see the padlocked gates and the weeds growing through the tarmac playground. Is this some sort of rural blight? Up a little lane there is an open gate and, in a corner, an open door to the building. Suddenly, warm and bright you are in the Falcon Centre. Friendly faces come and go to the welcoming space of an attractive small library where a comfortable seating area offers the opportunity to make a cuppa and ‘take the weight off.
Gearge Stephenson’s birthplace
The Falcon Centre
Welcome to Wylam Library
‘Take the weight off’ - ‘Cuppa?’
The sound of chatter drifted from community spaces available to book and what does this door lead to…? ‘This is the Railway Museum’ the librarian told me, unlocking the door and turning on the lights, ‘always happy to open up on request’.
It is a little gem of a museum celebrating the extraordinary place of Wylam in the history of steam locomotion.
Subsequently I’ve been saddened to hear that despite strong local support for investment in the centre, Wylam PC and Northumberland Council have identified the site as potential for development. It will be very sad if this significant, warm and friendly community asset is lost.
Puffing Billy - a model at Wylam Library Museum
(Meanwhile the original Puffing Billy, built, designed and used in Wylam can be seen at the Science Museum – in South Kensington, London. Open 10-6, booking required).
Jamie Thompson