YARM DETECTIVE TRAIL
​CLUES & FACTS

*** Please note : this page contains clues for the 'Cluedini Yarm Detective Trail' - if you don't have a copy of the trail it won't make any sense! Trails can be bought online or in branch.***
If you require help, or if you'd like extra info on the location you're at, take a look at the 'Evidence #' from your Detective Trail sheet and select the appropriate one from the list below.

​NOTE - in some instances, the 'Did You Know?' sections may provide spoilers, so be sure to check them out only once you have found the relevant evidence answer.

EVIDENCE #1

🔎 CLUE
The pub you're looking for would be one where a Taurean wouldn't feel out of place. A golden plaque adorns the outside of the building and holds the key to the answer you seek.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The name Yarm is derived from the Old English word 'gearum', or 'pool for catching fish'. For many centuries, the town was actually called 'Yarum' - the 'um' suffix indicating an Anglo-Saxon plural, hence to many 'fish pools' is how they referred to the town!

EVIDENCE #2

🔎 CLUE
A plaque on the exterior of the Town Hall will disclose the answer... alternatively raise your head skywards to check out the weather vane!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm Town Hall is one of the oldest buildings in the town. It was built on the site of a toll booth which collected revenues from the travellers heading through Yarm. The toll booth had a bell that was rung to warn locals of fire or flood - this bell was moved into the Town Hall upon completion of its construction and it is still operational to this day. The first floor of the Town Hall was formerly home to a courthouse for magistrates to hear cases, whilst on the ground floor were eight arches that were were originally open and housed an undercover market space - these have been gradually bricked up over the years with the final arches enclosed in the 1930's.

EVIDENCE #3

🔎 CLUE
If you've reached the Methodist Church itself, you've gone too far - the doorway can be found on the left hand side of the alleyway. There are a number of names that can be found on stones at floor level adjacent to the door - remember, it's the third stone to the right of the doorway you need.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
John Wesley was a founder of the Methodist movement in the Church of England and he oversaw the building of 14 octagonal chapels during his lifetime - albeit the one at Yarm is said to be his favourite of all. His preference for the octagonal style building was largely due to the acoustics they offered and the fact that "there are no corners for the devil to hide in".

EVIDENCE #4

🔎 CLUE
You will need to follow the path along then down to the slope to the right - on arrival be sure to count carefully! 
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
In the early 13th century, Yarm was the most prosperous port on the River Tees. Ships brought wine, flax and sheepskins for the tanneries situated along the river banks, and took with them salt, agricultural produce and lead from the mines in Swaledale on their return journeys.

EVIDENCE #5

🔎 CLUE
The answer can be found on the centre stone of the viaduct itself. If you can't make it out straight away, it does become easier to read the further you head along the path. 
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Officially opened in 1852, just 4 years after construction began and at a cost of just £44,500, Yarm Viaduct is a feat of structural engineering which was built using a horse and pulley system. Of the viaduct's 43 arches, 41 of them are made of red brick, with the two arches that straddle the River Tees constructed of stone. Designed by Thomas Grainger and John Bourne of Edinburgh, it was the last work completed by Grainger who died just two months after the viaduct opened in a railway accident at Stockton-on-Tees.

EVIDENCE #6

🔎 CLUE
The answer can be found on a blue plaque on one of the viaduct arches (don't panic - you won't need to get wet to read it!).
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm Railway Station was once situated at the Northern end of the viaduct. In 1855, a train travelling south overshot the station in the darkness and bad weather. Sadly, a passenger disembarked from the carriage that night and fell 74 feet to his death. Yarm Railway Station closed in 1960 and was replaced by a new station about 1 mile South of the High Street which opened in February 1996.

EVIDENCE #7

🔎 CLUE
Be sure to count carefully on both sides! Unless you began counting on both sides from the very moment you set foot on the bridge, you may need to double back and count again!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
In medieval times, Yarm was the most important town and port on the River Tees. Home to brewers, rope makers, tanners, clockmakers and a wide range of traditional craftsmen, wooden ships were even built in Yarm at a shipyard that could be found on the banks of the river by Yarm Bridge. The journey along the River Tees to Yarm was hazardous and difficult for larger ships, so as the downstream towns of Stockton and Middlesbrough grew in size, Yarm struggled to compete, trade moved away and eventually the shipyard closed.

EVIDENCE #8

🔎 CLUE
The answer can be found on a blue plaque on one of the viaduct arches (don't panic - you won't need to get wet to read it!).
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm Railway Station was once situated at the Northern end of the viaduct. In 1855, a train travelling south overshot the station in the darkness and bad weather. Sadly, a passenger disembarked from the carriage that night and fell 74 feet to his death. Yarm Railway Station closed in 1960 and was replaced by a new station about 1 mile South of the High Street which opened in February 1996.

EVIDENCE #9

🔎 CLUE
Broadly opposite the Church is the entrance to the Parish Hall - be sure to count all the steps from the path to the entrance.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The village of Egglescliffe is said to take its name from the Latin, Welsh or Anglo Saxon word for Church and the old English word 'clif' meaning a steep slope. Legend has it that the adjoining town of Eaglescliffe was named so after the railway was moved and the signwriter in London, upon receiving instruction to make a sign for 'Egglescliffe', thought the name was so strange that there must have been a mistake - as such, he made and delivered a sign that read 'Eaglescliffe' instead.

EVIDENCE #10

🔎 CLUE
The War Memorial is at the very end of the path and there is only one '2nd LIEUT' that can be found on it - he valiantly lost his life in WW1.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The Egglescliffe War Memorial can be found just outside the grounds to the parish church of St John the Baptist. There has been a church on the site since the 12th Century, and it is claimed that there is an escape tunnel running from the church to The Friarage which can be found in the grounds Yarm School at the far end of Yarm High Street.

EVIDENCE #11

🔎 CLUE
The handful of recesses along the path over the bridge are 'passing places' - the stones near the floor of one of these passing places holds the info you require.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm Bridge was commissioned around the year 1400 and has seen much work and renovation over the years. A drawbridge could be found on site and was only removed in 1785 and just 20 short years later, the whole bridge itself was decommissioned when a new iron structure was opened alongside it. Sadly, after being in use for less than a year, the iron bridge became unusable when one of its arches collapsed. Luckily, the old stone bridge had not yet been demolished so it was widened, brought back into use in 1806, and has remained so to this day.

EVIDENCE #12

🔎 CLUE
The answer can be found on a blue plaque on a building just above head height - 'Mr. Bow Not' is an anagram of the man you seek.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The Battle of Dettingen proved a significant victory for the British Army, being the only time in modern history that a British Force has been led into battle by a reigning monarch, King George II.​ During the Battle, one of the regiment's standards fell but, aware of its importance, Tom Brown bravely charged the French troops taking back the flag. During the recovery mission, Tom received many wounds, including the loss of two fingers and his nose. For his bravery he was immediately made a knight on the battlefield and later had a silver nose made to replace his real one.
Tom returned to Yarm a hero, and with his £30 a year pension, he bought a public inn at 116 High Street.

EVIDENCE #13

🔎 CLUE
If you've reached the Town Hall you've gone too far. The answer can be found on the outside of one of the public houses you have passed since your last answer.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
On January 29, 1820, King George III died and all incomplete legislature died with him - one in particular, a railway Bill was lost... or so people thought. Just a few weeks later, the pioneers behind the Bill met at The George and Dragon pub in Yarm to discuss their plans. Rather than rushing their Bill back before Parliament, they instead agreed to bide their time, strengthen their case and re-submit the Bill at a later date. Towards the end of 1820 they were able to present a watertight Bill to Parliament which went on to become law on April 19, 1821. This Bill enabled construction of the railway to begin which later went on to become the world's first passenger railway service.

EVIDENCE #14

🔎 CLUE
The commemorative plaque you seek is between two of the Town Hall's arches.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Each October, Yarm welcomes travellers from across the country to the annual Yarm Fair. The fair dates back to the 13th Century when King John granted the original charter. Commencing on a Thursday evening, the official "Blessing of the Fair' taking place on the Saturday morning, with dignitaries riding the length of the high street to the Town Hall where the charter and proclamation is performed.

EVIDENCE #15

🔎 CLUE
About half way along High Church Wynd, you're looking for a garage on the left hand aide with a marker line above it.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm has a long history of flooding, but perhaps the greatest flood took place on the 16th/17th November 1771, when a sudden ice thaw alongside heavy rain caused the River Tees to burst its banks and submerge stretches of the High Street in up to 20 feet of water. Six houses were completely destroyed, many more left uninhabitable and nine locals lost their lives. A plaque on the Town Hall commemorates the height of the flood, but has the month wrong... stating September 1771 as when it all happened!

EVIDENCE #16

🔎 CLUE
The answer can be found at two possible places at the Church - one just outside the grounds, one just inside - bonus points if you can find both!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
There is evidence to suggest that a church devoted to Christian worship has stood on the site of St. Mary Magdalene for many centuries. Following a fire in 1728, the church was re-built in 1730 with the graveyard extended in 1884 when the grammar school built by Thomas Conyers was demolished and moved to the outer boundaries of Yarm. Within the Churchyard many interesting graves can be found, including that of Tom Brown, Hero of the Battle of Dettingen.

EVIDENCE #17

🔎 CLUE
If you've yet to spot the castle, chances are that you're looking for something full size. Yarm Castle, impressive though it is, given its size won't be able to defend the town should it come under attack in years to come.​
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Yarm Castle was built by David Doughty who lived in the house in the 1880s and has individual windows originally lit by gas light. The Town Hall was later added by his son Henry Doughty and the whole folly has built up a cult following attracting visitors from far and wide - how many expect to find something significantly bigger is open to debate!

EVIDENCE #18

🔎 CLUE
The house you seek is on the left hand side and on the corner of High Church Wynd.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Thought to have been built in the early 1600s, thus making it the oldest home in Yarm, Hope House is still a residential property to this day. With an original footprint twice the size, Hope House was effectively sliced in half to make way for the viaduct which was built in the mid-19th century. It has since been increased in size vertically and now has accommodation set across three floors rather than the original two.

EVIDENCE #19

🔎 CLUE
Another blue plaque holds the answer - this time it is visible the moment you emerge from under the viaduct on a building opposite.
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
Engineering works, flour mills, skin yards, paper mills and vinegar factories form just some of Yarm's industrial heritage, but did you know that Yarm was also once home to a Dominican Friary? Founded around 1266, the site was operational as both a Friary and hospital until the Dissolution of the monasteries by King Henry VIII in 1539. 'The Friarage' was built on top of its Friary's cellars in 1770 and to this day forms part of Yarm School.

EVIDENCE #20

🔎 CLUE
A tricky one this... Roman numeral based plaques have been added in recent times but these do not tally with the original 'N.R.Y. Police Station' stone which displays the true date of the Police Station construction - you'll need to peer upwards if you want to find the answer!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
This may be the Old Police Station in Yarm, but there have been two more since. After closing on Bentley Wynd, the police relocated to a property on High Church Wynd and finally to 14 High Street in Yarm. There is no longer a police station in Yarm itself, with 14 High Street now home to several businesses - including, ironically, an escape room you may be familiar with! 

EVIDENCE #21

🔎 CLUE
The blue plaque isn't too hard to spot, but you'll need to check near to the roof if you want to find the sun in question... remember it's 'skywards' you need to look so you're after the uppermost sun!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The metal sun plaque is from the 'Sun Fire Office' - the oldest documented insurance company in the world (nowadays merged with Royal Insurance to form the Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group). The metal plaque signified that the building was insured with the Sun Fire Office and thus when they dispatched one of their fire brigades to the building they were allowed to tackle the blaze - if the fire wasn’t in one of their properties then they would either leave, put it out for a hefty fee, or would simply stand and watch it burn!

EVIDENCE #22

🔎 CLUE
The black plaques surround the bottom part of the War Memorial, but it can be easy to miscount them so double check just to be sure!
🗣 DID YOU KNOW?
The War Memorial is one of a number of commemorative structures that can be found at the Town Hall. Each year, on Remembrance Sunday, the town plays host to one of the regions biggest Remembrance Day services - vehicle access to the High Street is restricted as locals gather to pay respect to those who lost their lives serving the country they loved.