Welcome to Wylam, a thriving village about 10 miles west of Newcastle upon Tyne, just into the county of Northumberland. It is famous for being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early rail pioneers. He was born in 1781 in a house now known as George Stephenson's Birthplace, which can found three quarters of a mile east of the village centre on the north side of the Tyne. It is owned by the National Trust and is currently closed, except for occasional special openings. Stephenson left Wylam when he was eight years old and his engineering work happened elsewhere.

 But others who remained in the village actually beat him in terms of creating viable steam locomotives to haul coal. William Hedley, Timothy Hackworth and Jonathan Forster were the creators of Puffing Billy and Wylam Dilly for local mine owner Christopher Blackett in 1813-14. By the way, the Parish Council’s quarterly newsletter The Globe is named after the Globe newspaper published in London by Blackett. A leaflet,written by local historian Philip Brooks and published by the Parish Council, A Walk Around Wylam enables visitors to explore the village's industrial heritage in more detail. You can pick up a paper copy from the Library or look at a digital version on this website.

Wylam is well-served by a good selection of small shops, cafes, restaurants and public houses, the popular Wylam First School, churches, a branch Library, a doctors’ surgery, sports and community facilities.

Hadrian’s Cycleway, part of the National Cycle Network, passes through the village using in large part the line of the Scotswood to Wylam railway, sadly closed to passengers in 1968. Walkers can use that route too, and that route forms the backbone of the Tyne Riverside Country Park, which stretches from Ovingham in the west to Newburn in the east. The Wylam Haughs Local Nature Reserve and the Wylam Railway Museum, both managed by the Parish Council, also attract many visitors each year.

Wylam has a good bus service and has direct rail links to Newcastle, Hexham, Carlisle and stations in between. The attractions of Northumberland towns to the west and central Newcastle and Gateshead to the east, including the Sage Gateshead music complex and the Baltic Art Gallery, are therefore within easy reach. Newcastle Airport is only 30 minutes away by car.