Plaque marking Durham river walk found on litter pick

A plaque marking the 1883 creation of a city riverwalk has been found beneath overgrown ivy.

Volunteers from Durham City Riverscape Community made the discovery on a wall near Elvet Bridge during a litter pick last weekend.

Group co-founder Adam Shanley said unearthing the plaque had been “incredible” and the name of the walk, which is on it, was news to the volunteers.

“When we realised that beneath the overgrown vegetation there was a story from 1883 waiting to be retold, it was just astonishing,” he said.

The plaque marks the creation of the walk between Elvet Bridge and Bow Lane, which was made with the help of the Reverend William Andrewes Fearon.

Fearon was Durham School’s headmaster from 1882 to 1884 and the walk bears his name – Fearon Walk.

He is credited with introducing the three-term system at the school and building an open-air swimming school.