Birtley is an area in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, in Tyne and Wear, England. It is situated to the south of Gateshead town and is physically linked to Chester-le-Street across the County boundary in County Durham. Until 1974 Birtley and the adjoining areas of Barley Mow, Vigo and Portobello were part of the old Chester-le-Street Rural District. Since 1974 these neighbouring areas have been considered part of 'greater' Birtley. Birtley was a civil parish with a parish council (which also covered the adjoining neighbourhoods) until April 1, 2006 after a local referendum agreed to abolish it. Birtley lies within the historic county boundaries of County Durham and uniquely among settlements in Gateshead, Birtley forms part of the Chester-le-Street post town, which is associated with Durham. Antony Gormley's famous Angel of the North is situated on high ground on the site of the baths of the old 'Betty Ann Pit' to the north of Birtley and overlooks the area. The main road through Birtley is the non-primary A167 which runs from Topcliffe, North Yorkshire through to the north of Newcastle upon Tyne, and is the same road which runs across the Tyne Bridge. This was an original route for the Great North Road and the A1 until a bypass was built in the 1930s. Birtley is the home of the Royal Ordnance factory and the Komatsu Heavy Engineering Company which operates from the previous premises Birtley Iron Works (1827-, which became premises of the Caterpillar Company in the mid 20th century). A 'CarCraft Hypermarket' has been recently built on the site of an old factory in south west Birtley, reclaiming much wasted brown field site land. The main East Coast railway line is used as a county border to the west of the town. Mainline trains did used to stop at the towns long dismantled station. Just near to the site of the station, is where the well known Birtley Brick Works was located. Once employing most of the town's workforce, it is a shadow of its former self. The town itself, has been host to major housing developments since the 1950's. Several council estates were created to replace the old squatters camps, taken over at the end of the second world war and also the village created to house Belgian refugees. In the 1960's and 70's - private housing was built on the Vigo Estate. Modern housing has continued in the North West of the Town until recently. More on Birtley