Middlesbrough was founded in 1830 as a port for the export of [[coal]] from the coalfields of [[County Durham]], brought to the Tees by the [[Stockton and Darlington Railway|Stockton & Darlington Railway]], the earliest steam-powered public [[railway]] in the world. The town began to grow rapidly after iron ore was discovered in commercial quantities in the nearby Cleveland Hills in 1850; numerous ironworks were established in Middlesbrough and neighbouring settlements, and Middlesbrough itself was nicknamed Ironopolis and was described by Prime Minister [[William Gladstone]] as "an infant Hercules". In the late 19th century the discovery of salt reserves nearby brought the migration of much of the British chemical industry to the district; steel and chemicals, though no longer manufactured within the boundaries of Middlesbrough, remain staples of the economy of the [[Teesside]] conurbation. | Middlesbrough was founded in 1830 as a port for the export of [[coal]] from the coalfields of [[County Durham]], brought to the Tees by the [[Stockton and Darlington Railway|Stockton & Darlington Railway]], the earliest steam-powered public [[railway]] in the world. The town began to grow rapidly after iron ore was discovered in commercial quantities in the nearby Cleveland Hills in 1850; numerous ironworks were established in Middlesbrough and neighbouring settlements, and Middlesbrough itself was nicknamed Ironopolis and was described by Prime Minister [[William Gladstone]] as "an infant Hercules". In the late 19th century the discovery of salt reserves nearby brought the migration of much of the British chemical industry to the district; steel and chemicals, though no longer manufactured within the boundaries of Middlesbrough, remain staples of the economy of the [[Teesside]] conurbation. |