Hartlepool in the context of "Magnesian Limestone"

County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne and Wear to the north, the North Sea to the east, North Yorkshire to the south, and Cumbria to the west. The largest settlement is Darlington.

The county has an area of 2,676 square kilometres (1,033 sq mi) and had a population of 894,025 in 2024. The centre and east of the county are more densely populated than the west, and the major settlements include Hartlepool on the south-east coast, Stockton-on-Tees in the south-east, Darlington in the south, and the city of Durham in the north-centre. Stockton-on-Tees is part of the Teesside conurbation, which extends into North Yorkshire. Barnard Castle is the largest town in the west of the county. For local government purposes the county comprises the unitary authority areas of County Durham, Darlington, Hartlepool, and part of Stockton-on-Tees. Durham County Council is part of the North East Combined Authority, and the councils of the other three areas are part of the Tees Valley Combined Authority. The part of Tyne and Wear south of the River Tyne was historically part of County Durham, and the part of Durham south of the River Tees was historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire.

North East England, often referred to as simply the North East within England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of County Durham, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and part of North Yorkshire. With 2.6 million residents in 2022, it is the least populous region of England. Its largest settlements include Newcastle upon Tyne, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Gateshead, Darlington and Hartlepool. The North East is covered by two mayoral combined authorities: North East Combined Authority and Tees Valley Combined Authority. It is one of three regions, the other two being North West England and Yorkshire and the Humber, that make up Northern England.

Newcastle (also known as Newcastle Central and locally as Central station) is a railway station in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a principal stop on the East Coast Main Line, around 268 miles (432 km) north of London King's Cross. It is the primary National Rail station serving the city and an interchange for local services provided by the Tyne and Wear Metro network, whose Central station is situated directly underground. The station is the busiest in Tyne & Wear and in North East England; it is the seventh busiest in Northern England.

Services on the East Coast Main Line run from London to Edinburgh, via York and Berwick. There is a frequent service across the Pennines to Manchester and Liverpool. Cross-country services connect the city with the West Midlands and South West of England. The station is also on the Durham Coast Line, with connections to Gateshead, Sunderland, Hartlepool, Stockton and Middlesbrough; and the Tyne Valley Line to Hexham and Carlisle. Additional direct destinations from the station include Aberdeen, Glasgow, Durham, Darlington, Leeds, Sheffield, Derby, Birmingham, Reading, Bristol, Exeter and Plymouth.