Sheriff Hill - Leisure and Recreation

Leisure and Recreation

Hodkin Park, at Sheriff's Highway, is one of many small parks in Gateshead. It is named in honour of Alderman Daniel Hodkin, Gateshead's deputy mayor in 1920 and a member of the Housing Committee which built council housing at Sheriff Hill. Hodkin Park was locally listed by Gateshead Council in 2004 in recognition of its significance to the local community. At the northern end of Sheriff's Highway there is a dene, shown as the "Quarry Plantation" on Ordnance Survey maps of 1858. In 2005, Gateshead Council carried out maintenance work on the dene, including the pruning of shrubbery and the installation of several sets of steps, to encourage residents to use the area.

Sheriff Hill contains several public houses because of its origin as a mining village with a population of tinkers, and because before Durham Road through Low Fell was opened in 1827, Sodhouse Bank (now Sheriff's Highway) was the route to the Great North Road. The Old Cannon, at the northern end of Sheriff's Highway, has existed since medieval times and its present name has been used since 1782, and possibly earlier. The Three Tuns, which is listed in trade directories in 1778, was the social hub of Sheriff Hill in the 19th century and used by miners and quarrymen, who engaged in cock fighting and cuddy races – informal races between pit donkeys where bets were placed – on open ground in Kells Lane. In 1867 it was the scene of a reception to celebrate the passing of Lord Russell's Reform Act, and reform meetings and benefit societies were subsequently held there. In recent times it has hosted a number of niche events, including an international pie festival in 2010 and an international sausage festival in 2011. Both the Old Cannon and The Three Tuns were locally listed by Gateshead Council in 2004. Other public houses in Sheriff Hill include the Queens Head, listed in trade directories since 1848, and the Travellers Rest, which was once called the "Golden Quiot".

Sheriff Hill Methodist Church plays an important social role in the community; it has hosted biannual jumble sales for many years and an annual Christmas Fayre is held at the church to mark the start of Christmas in Sheriff Hill.