Chester-le-Street

Chester-le-Street
Town
Aerial view of Chester-le-Street
Chester-le-Street
Location within County Durham
Population24,227 (2011)
OS grid referenceNZ270512
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCHESTER LE STREET
Postcode districtDH2, DH3
Dialling code0191
PoliceDurham
FireCounty Durham and Darlington
AmbulanceNorth East
UK Parliament

Chester-le-Street (/ˈɛstəlistrt/) is a market town in County Durham, England. It is located around 6 miles (10 kilometres) north of Durham and is close to Newcastle. The town holds markets on Saturdays. In 2021, the town had a population of 23,555.

The town's history is ancient; records date to a Roman-built fort called Concangis. The Roman fort is the Chester (from the Latin castra) of the town's name; the Street refers to the paved Roman road that ran north–south through the town. The parish church of St Mary and St Cuthbert is where the body of St Cuthbert remained for 112 years (from 883 to 995 AD), before being transferred to Durham Cathedral. An Old English translation of the Gospels was made in the 10th century: a word-for-word gloss of the Latin Vulgate text, inserted between the lines by Aldred the Scribe, who was Provost of Chester-le-Street.