Author Mr Mike Norman visited the Council Offices on Saturday 17 January 2026 where he presented the Town Mayor Councillor David Bell with the brass lithograph plaque relating to Timothy Hackworth and his Royal George Locomotive built in 1827 and the No2 SansPareil locomotive which was the last one he built in 1849.
By request of Mr Mike Norman, the lithograph plaque is now hanging proudly in the Town Council chambers and is available to view by residents (appointment only) who can contact the Town Council or go to reception where arrangements will be made to see it.
Mr Norman gave a brief and interesting presentation on the life of Timothy Hackworth and his work in Shildon and indicated that in 2027 is the 200-year anniversary of the Royal George Locomotion and the innovative design of moving to 6 wheels from 4 and the first that exceeded the efficiency of horse power, and the first to which his invention – the Steam Blast – was applied.
At the end of the presentation, he signed a couple of copies of his book named –
Timothy Hackworth: The Man who moved the World
The book is available to buy online, or you can visit timothyhackworth.com and purchase either soft or hardback copies.
The Town Council wish to thank Mr Norman for his generous donation and giving up his time to visit Shildon.
Moving forward, and due to the significance of Royal George Locomotive to Shildon, the Town Council agreed at a recent meeting that the Fun4All event in 2027 will commemorate the bi centennial of this historic occasion. The Town Council are currently looking into securing extra funding and kindly ask anyone who would like to be part of the working party to help plan next years event to contact Shildon Town Council on 01388 772563 or email council[@]shildon[.]gov[.]uk.
Glenn Gibson
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.
