HORTON, a township and a parish in Tynemouth district, Northumberland. The township lies on the river Blyth, 2 miles WNW of Newsham r. station, and 3 WSW of Blyth. Acres, 2, 365; of which 190 are water. Pop., 368. Houses, 82. The parish contains also the townships of East Hartford, West Hartford, Bebside, and Cowpen; the last of which has a head post office, designated Cowpen, Northumberland. Acres, 5, 550. Real property, £43, 563; of which £30, 000 are in mines and £100 in quarries. Pop. in 1851, 4, 449; in 1861, 6, 787. Houses, 1, 349. The increase of pop. was caused by the extension of collieries. The property is not much divided. An old castle of the Delavals stood here: and the ruins of it were destroyed in 1809. Coal is very extensively worked. The parish originally formed part of Woodhorn, and afterwards became a parochial chapelry. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Durham. Value, £150. Patron, the Vicar of Woodhorn. The church was rebuilt in 1827, and has a tower. There are chapels for Presbyterians, Independents, Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists, and Roman Catholics. There is also a national school.

(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))