Largely rural in nature, Greenside was built upon coal mining and agriculture. However, it was not until the creation of Greenside colliery, along with nearby collieries of Emma, Clara and Stargate, that Greenside and the surrounding area truly grew in importance and its coal industry became extensive. By the early 20th century Greenside had the largest colliery in the district. The colliery closed in July 1966 - the last shift being worked on Saturday 23 July. In 2016 Banner Tales - an organisation dedicated to researching and maintaining the village's mining and industrial heritage - instituted the "Last Shift Festival" and this has now, under the title "Greenside Banner Festival",become an annual event. Each year the Greenside Miner's Lodge Banner is marched through the village accompanied by a Brass Band before joining the many other banners at Durham Miner's Gala. Banner Tales also organise the annual Greenside Community Picnic in the spirit of the miners' picnics of the past. The old wagonways used to transport coal, present in both Greenside and Crawcrook, provide a reminder of the area's importance in the coal trade. Although these wagonways and routes are not used to transport coal anymore, they are maintained as public footpaths, taking walkers around the surrounding countryside. Greenside has many residents of Irish descent, who can trace their heritage back to the influx of Irish miners into the town in the 19th century.
Local politics
In local government, Greenside is located in the 'Crawcrook, Greenside and Clara Vale ward'. The ward is at the far west of Gateshead and borders part of Northumberland. The Crawcrook and Greenside ward is served by three Labour councillors Helen Haran, Kath MacCartney and Jack Graham. Gateshead Council is Labour controlled. Greenside is located within the parliamentary constituency of Blaydon. Its current MP is Labour's Liz Twist.
Economy
After the decline of the coal-industry Greenside has not suffered the great deprivation that many other former mining areas have. One of the least deprived of Gateshead's wards, it is used increasingly as a commuter village for professionals travelling into the more urban areas of Tyneside. Employment is usually in manufacturingretail and rapping industry, although the Crawcrook and Greenside ward as a whole includes a significant number of Gateshead's managerial-level employees. Although it is a village that has not suffered the decline that many provincial villages have nationally in terms of local services, Greenside offers only a small selection of shops and business. These are enough to meet basic local need on a daily basis. For further groceries and high value white goods residents can travel to the MetroCentre, Europe's largest shopping centre around four miles further into Gateshead, as well as the well developed shopping areas of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. There is an adequate, although declining, public transport service to meet thebasic needs of residents. Bus services operate to Crawcrook, Ryton, Blaydon, the MetroCentre and Newcastle. Residents wishing to travel west, past the county border into Northumberland and its towns such as Prudhoe, Stocksfield, Corbridge and Hexham can do so on one of a number of Go North East buses that depart from Crawcrook.
