port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...
city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
and
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distr ...
in
Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to the south, and the largest settlement is the city of Newcastle upon Tyne.
The county is ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. It is a port at the mouth of the
River Wear
The River Wear (, ) in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley t ...
on the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, approximately south-east of
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
. It is the most populous settlement in the
Wearside
Wearside () is a built-up area in County Durham and Tyne and Wear, England. It is named after the River Wear which flows through it and traditionally all in the County of Durham.
In the 2011 census, its official name was the Sunderland Built- ...
conurbation and the second most populous settlement in
North East England
North East England, commonly referred to simply as the North East within England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of County DurhamNorthumberland, , Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and part of northern North Yorkshire. ...
after Newcastle.
Sunderland was once known as 'the largest shipbuilding town in the world' and once made a quarter of all of the world's ships from its famous yards, which date back to 1346 on the River Wear.
The centre of the modern city is an amalgamation of three settlements founded in the Anglo-Saxon era:
Monkwearmouth
Monkwearmouth is an area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear in England. Monkwearmouth is located at the north side of the mouth of the River Wear. It was one of the three original settlements on the banks of the River Wear along with Bishopwearmouth ...
, on the north bank of the Wear, and Sunderland and
Bishopwearmouth
Bishopwearmouth () is a former village and parish which now constitutes the west side of Sunderland City Centre, in the county of Tyne and Wear, England, merging with the settlement as it expanded outwards in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is ...
on the south bank. Monkwearmouth contains St Peter's Church, which was founded in 674 and formed part of
Monkwearmouth–Jarrow Abbey
The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Monkwearmouth–Jarrow, known simply as Monkwearmouth–Jarrow Abbey (), was a Benedictine double monastery in the Kingdom of Northumbria, England.
Its first house was St Peter's, Monkwearmout ...
, a significant centre of learning in the seventh and eighth centuries. Sunderland was a fishing settlement and later a port, being granted a town charter in 1179. The city traded in
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal i ...
and
salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
, also developing shipbuilding industry in the fourteenth century and glassmaking industry in the seventeenth century. Following the decline of its traditional industries in the late 20th century, the area became an automotive building centre. In 1992, the borough of Sunderland was granted
city status
City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose.
Historically, ci ...
. Sunderland is historically part of
County Durham
County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...
, being incorporated to the ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear in 1974.
Locals are sometimes known as Mackems, a term which came into common use in the 1970s. Its use and acceptance by residents, particularly among the older generations, is not universal. The term is also applied to the Sunderland dialect, which shares similarities with the other North East England dialects.
Benedict Biscop
Benedict Biscop ( – 690), also known as Biscop Baducing, was an Anglo-Saxon abbot and founder of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Priory (where he also founded the famous library) and was considered a saint after his death.
It has been suggested that B ...
Jarrow
Jarrow ( or ) is a town in South Tyneside in the county of Tyne and Wear, England. Historically in County Durham, it is on the south bank of the River Tyne, about from the east coast. The 2011 census area classed Hebburn and the Boldons as ...
monastery. He had started his monastic career at Monkwearmouth monastery and later wrote that he was "ácenned on ''sundorlande'' þæs ylcan mynstres" (born in a ''separate land'' of this same monastery). This can be taken as "sundorlande" (being Old English for "separate land") or the settlement of Sunderland. The name may also be descriptive of the original settlement's location, being almost cut off (sundered) from the rest of the mainland by creeks and gullies from both the sea and the River Wear.
History
Early, ancient and Medieval
The earliest
inhabitants
In law and conflict of laws, domicile is relevant to an individual's "personal law", which includes the law that governs a person's status and their property. It is independent of a person's nationality. Although a domicile may change from time ...
of the Sunderland area were
Stone Age
The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...
hunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living in a community, or according to an ancestrally derived Lifestyle, lifestyle, in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local naturally occurring sources, esp ...
s. Artefacts from this era have been discovered, including
microliths
A microlith is a small Rock (geology), stone tool usually made of flint or chert and typically a centimetre or so in length and half a centimetre wide. They were made by humans from around 60,000 years ago, across Europe, Africa, Asia and Austral ...
Neolithic period
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wid ...
( BC), Hastings Hill, on the western outskirts of Sunderland, was a focal point of activity and a place of burial and ritual significance. Evidence includes the former presence of a
cursus
Cursuses are monumental Neolithic enclosure structures comprising parallel banks with external ditches or trenches. Found only in the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, relics within them indicate that they were built between 3400 and 3000 BC ...
Brigantes
The Brigantes were Ancient Britons who in pre-Roman times controlled the largest section of what would become Northern England. Their territory, often referred to as Brigantia, was centred in what was later known as Yorkshire. The Greek geog ...
inhabited the area around the
River Wear
The River Wear (, ) in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley t ...
in pre-
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410.
Julius Caes ...
. There is a long-standing local legend that there was a Roman settlement on the south bank of the River Wear on what is the site of the former Vaux Brewery, although no archaeological investigation has taken place.
Roman artefacts have been recovered in the River Wear at
North Hylton
North Hylton is a suburb of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to the south, and the largest se ...
, including four stone anchors, which may support the theory that there was a Roman dam or port on the River Wear.
Recorded settlements at the mouth of the Wear date to , when an
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
nobleman, Benedict Biscop, was granted land by King Ecgfrith and founded the Wearmouth–Jarrow (''St Peter's'')
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...
on the north bank of the river—an area that became known as Monkwearmouth. Biscop's monastery was the first built of stone in
Northumbria
Northumbria () was an early medieval Heptarchy, kingdom in what is now Northern England and Scottish Lowlands, South Scotland.
The name derives from the Old English meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", as opposed to the Sout ...
. He employed glaziers from
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and in doing so he re-established
glass making
Glass production involves two main methods – the float glass process that produces sheet glass, and glassblowing that produces bottles and other containers. It has been done in a variety of ways during the history of glass.
Glass container pr ...
in Britain. In 686, the community was taken over by
Ceolfrid
Saint Ceolfrid (or Ceolfrith, ; also Geoffrey, c. 642 – 716) was an Anglo-Saxon Christian abbot and saint. He is best known as the warden of Bede from the age of seven until his death in 716. He was the Abbot of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Abbey, an ...
, and Wearmouth–Jarrow became a major centre of learning and knowledge in
Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England or early medieval England covers the period from the end of Roman Empire, Roman imperial rule in Roman Britain, Britain in the 5th century until the Norman Conquest in 1066. Compared to modern England, the territory of the ...
with a library of around 300 volumes.
The
Codex Amiatinus
The Codex Amiatinus (also known as the Jarrow Codex) is considered the best-preserved manuscript of the Latin Vulgate version of the Christian Bible. It was produced around 700 in the northeast of England, at the Benedictine Monkwearmouth–Jarr ...
, described by biblical scholar
Henry Julian White
Henry Julian White (27 August 1859 – 16 July 1934) was an English biblical scholar.
White was born in Islington, north London, the second son of Henry John White. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, matriculating on 11 October 1878, gra ...
(1859–1934) as the 'finest book in the world', was created at the
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...
and was likely worked on by
Bede
Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most f ...
, who was born at Wearmouth in 673. This is one of the oldest monasteries still standing in England. While at the monastery, Bede completed the ''
Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum
The ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'' (), written by Bede in about AD 731, is a history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the growth of Christianity. It was composed in Latin, and ...
'' ''(The Ecclesiastical History of the English People)'' in 731, a feat which earned him the title ''The father of English history''.
In the late 8th century the
Vikings
Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...
raided the coast, and by the middle of the 9th century the monastery had been abandoned. Lands on the south side of the river were granted to the
Bishop of Durham
The bishop of Durham is head of the diocese of Durham in the province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler (bishop), Paul Butler was the most recent bishop of Durham u ...
by Athelstan of England in 930; these became known as Bishopwearmouth and included settlements such as
Ryhope
Ryhope ( ) is a coastal village along the southern boundary of the City of Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England. With a population of approximately 14,000, measured at 10.484 in the 2011 census, Ryhope is 2.9 miles to the centre of Sunderland ...
which fall within the modern boundary of Sunderland.
In 1100, Bishopwearmouth parish included a
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...
village at the southern mouth of the river (now the East End) known as 'Soender-land' (which evolved into 'Sunderland'). This settlement was granted a
charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...
in 1179 under the name of the borough of Wearmouth by Hugh Pudsey, then the
Bishop of Durham
The bishop of Durham is head of the diocese of Durham in the province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler (bishop), Paul Butler was the most recent bishop of Durham u ...
(who had quasi-
monarchical
A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, reigns as head of state for the rest of their life, or until abdication. The extent of the authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutio ...
power within the
County Palatine of Durham
The County Palatine of Durham was a jurisdiction in the North of England, within which the bishop of Durham had rights usually exclusive to the monarch. It developed from the Liberty of Durham, which emerged in the Anglo-Saxon period. The g ...
). The charter gave its merchants the same rights as those of
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
, but it nevertheless took time for Sunderland to develop as a
port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...
. Fishing was the main commercial activity at the time: mainly
herring
Herring are various species of forage fish, belonging to the Order (biology), order Clupeiformes.
Herring often move in large Shoaling and schooling, schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate wate ...
in the 13th century, then
salmon
Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
in the 14th and 15th centuries. From 1346 ships were built at Wearmouth, by a merchant named Thomas Menville, and by 1396 a small amount of coal was being exported.
Jamies and Black Cats
Rapid growth of the port was prompted by the salt trade. Salt exports from Sunderland are recorded from as early as the 13th century, by 1589 salt pans were laid at Bishopwearmouth Panns (the modern-day name of the area the pans occupied is Pann's Bank, on the river bank between the city centre and the East End). Large vats of
seawater
Seawater, or sea water, is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% (35 g/L, 35 ppt, 600 mM). This means that every kilogram (roughly one liter by volume) of seawater has approximat ...
were heated using coal; as the water evaporated, the salt remained. As coal was required to heat the salt pans, a
coal mining
Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...
community began to emerge. Only poor-quality coal was used in salt panning; better-quality coal was traded via the port, which subsequently began to grow.
Both salt and coal continued to be exported through the 17th century, with the coal trade growing significantly (2–3,000 tons of coal were exported from Sunderland in the year 1600; by 1680 this had increased to 180,000 tons). Difficulty for colliers trying to navigate the Wear's shallow waters meant coal mined further inland was loaded onto keels (large, flat-bottomed boats) and taken downriver to the waiting colliers. A close-knit group of workers manned the Keels as '
keelmen
The Keelmen of Tyne and Wear were a group of men who worked on the keels, large boats that carried the coal from the banks of both rivers to the waiting collier ships. Because of the shallowness of both rivers, it was difficult for ships of any s ...
'. In 1634 a market and yearly fair charter was granted by Bishop Thomas Morton. Morton's charter acknowledged that the borough had been called Wearmouth until then, but it incorporated the place under the name of Sunderland, by which it had become more generally known.
Before the outbreak of the
English civil war
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
, the North, with the exception of
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...
, declared for the King. In 1644 the North was captured by the Roundheads (Parliamentarians), the area around Sunderland itself being taken in March of that year. One artefact of the civil war in the area was the long trench; a tactic of later warfare. In the village of Offerton roughly three miles inland from the present city centre, skirmishes occurred. The Roundheads blockaded the
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden, Northumberland, Warden near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The ...
, crippling the Newcastle coal trade, which allowed a short period of flourishing coal trade on the Wear.
In 1669, after the Restoration, King Charles II granted
letters patent
Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...
to one Edward Andrew, Esq. to 'build a pier and erect a lighthouse or lighthouses and cleanse the harbour of Sunderland'. A
tonnage
Tonnage is a measure of the capacity of a ship, and is commonly used to assess fees on commercial shipping. The term derives from the taxation paid on '' tuns'' or casks of wine. In modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically refers to a cal ...
duty
A duty (from "due" meaning "that which is owing"; , past participle of ; , whence "debt") is a commitment or expectation to perform some action in general or if certain circumstances arise. A duty may arise from a system of ethics or morality, e ...
was levied on shipping in order to raise the necessary funds. There were a growing number of shipbuilders or boatbuilders active on the River Wear in the late 17th century.
By the start of the 18th century the banks of the Wear were described as being studded with small shipyards, as far as the tide flowed. After measures were taken in 1717 to increase the depth of the river, Sunderland's shipbuilding trade grew substantially, in parallel with its coal exports. A number of warships were built, along with many commercial sailing ships. By the middle of the century the town was probably the premier shipbuilding centre in Britain. Ships built in Sunderland were known as 'Jamies'. By 1788 Sunderland was Britain's fourth largest port by measure of tonnage, after London, Newcastle and Liverpool; among these it was the leading coal exporter (though it did not rival Newcastle in terms of home coal trade). Still further growth was driven across the region, towards the end of the century, by London's insatiable demand for coal during the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
.
Until 1719 the borough of Sunderland formed part of the wider parish of Bishopwearmouth. Following the completion of
Holy Trinity Church, Sunderland
Holy Trinity Church (sometimes Church of the Holy Trinity or Sunderland Parish Church) is an Anglicanism, Anglican church (building), church building in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear formerly the area's parish church. It wa ...
(today also known as Sunderland Old Parish Church) in 1719, the borough was made a separate parish called Sunderland. Later, in 1769, St John's Church was built as a
chapel of ease
A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...
within Holy Trinity parish; built by a local coal fitter, John Thornhill, it stood in Prospect Row to the north-east of the parish church. St John's was demolished in 1972. By 1720 the port area was completely built up, with large houses and gardens facing the Town Moor and the sea, and labourers' dwellings vying with manufactories alongside the river. The three original settlements - Bishopwearmouth, Monkwearmouth and Sunderland - had started to combine, driven by the success of the port of Sunderland, salt panning and shipbuilding along the banks of the river. Around this time, Sunderland was known as 'Sunderland-near-the-Sea'.
Sunderland's third-biggest export, after coal and salt, was glass. The town's first modern glassworks were established in the 1690s and the industry grew through the 17th century. Its flourishing was aided by trading ships bringing good-quality sand (as
ballast
Ballast is dense material used as a weight to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within ...
) from the Baltic and elsewhere which, together with locally available limestone (and coal to fire the furnaces) was a key ingredient in the
glassmaking
Glass production involves two main methods – the float glass process that produces sheet glass, and glassblowing that produces bottles and other containers. It has been done in a variety of ways during the history of glass.
Glass container ...
process. Other industries that developed alongside the river included
lime burning
A lime kiln is a kiln used for the calcination of limestone (calcium carbonate) to produce the form of lime called ''quicklime'' (calcium oxide). The chemical equation for this reaction is: CaCO3 + heat → CaO + CO2
This reaction can tak ...
and pottery making (the town's first commercial pottery manufactory, the Garrison Pottery, had opened in old Sunderland in 1750).
By 1770 Sunderland had spread westwards along its High Street to join up with Bishopwearmouth. In 1796 Bishopwearmouth in turn gained a physical link with Monkwearmouth following the construction of a bridge, the
Wearmouth Bridge
Wearmouth Bridge is a through arch bridge across the River Wear in Sunderland, England. It is the final bridge over the river before its mouth with the North Sea.
Original bridge
The original Wearmouth Bridge was designed by Thomas Paine a ...
, which was the world's second iron bridge (after the famous span at
Ironbridge
Ironbridge is a riverside village in the borough of Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire, England. Located on the bank of the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, it lies in the civil parish of The Gorge. Ironbridge developed beside, ...
County Durham
County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...
, and described by
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner (30 January 1902 – 18 August 1983) was a German-British art historian and architectural historian best known for his monumental 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, ''The Buildings of England'' (195 ...
as being 'a triumph of the new metallurgy and engineering ingenuity ..of superb elegance'. Spanning the river in a single sweep of , it was over twice the length of the earlier bridge at Ironbridge but only three-quarters the weight. At the time of building, it was the biggest single-span bridge in the world; and because Sunderland had developed on a plateau above the river, it never suffered from the problem of interrupting the passage of high-masted vessels.
During the
War of Jenkins' Ear
The War of Jenkins' Ear was fought by Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and History of Spain (1700–1808), Spain between 1739 and 1748. The majority of the fighting took place in Viceroyalty of New Granada, New Granada and the Caribbean ...
a pair of gun batteries were built (in 1742 and 1745) on the shoreline to the south of the South Pier, to defend the river from attack (a further battery was built on the cliff top in Roker, ten years later). One of the pair was washed away by the sea in 1780, but the other was expanded during the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
and became known as the Black Cat Battery. In 1794 Sunderland Barracks were built, behind the battery, close to what was then the tip of the headland.
The world's first steam
dredger
Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing dam ...
was built in Sunderland in 1796-7 and put to work on the river the following year. Designed by Stout's successor as Engineer, Jonathan Pickernell jr (in post from 1795 to 1804), it consisted of a set of 'bag and spoon' dredgers driven by a tailor-made 4-horsepower
Boulton & Watt
Boulton & Watt was an early British engineering and manufacturing firm in the business of designing and making marine and stationary steam engines. Founded in the English West Midlands around Birmingham in 1775 as a partnership between the Engl ...
beam engine. It was designed to dredge to a maximum depth of below the waterline and remained in operation until 1804, when its constituent parts were sold as separate lots. Onshore, numerous small industries supported the business of the burgeoning port. In 1797 the world's first patent ropery (producing machine-made
rope
A rope is a group of yarns, Plying, plies, fibres, or strands that are plying, twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have high tensile strength and can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger ...
, rather than using a
ropewalk
A ropewalk is a long straight narrow lane, or a covered pathway, where long strands of material are laid before being twisted into rope. Due to the length of some ropewalks, workers may use bicycles to get from one end to the other.
Many ropew ...
) was built in Sunderland, using a steam-powered hemp-spinning machine which had been devised by a local schoolmaster, Richard Fothergill, in 1793; the ropery building still stands, in the Deptford area of the city.
"The greatest shipbuilding port in the world"
Sunderland's shipbuilding industry continued to grow through most of the 19th century, becoming the town's dominant industry and a defining part of its identity. By 1815 it was 'the leading shipbuilding port for wooden trading vessels' with 600 ships constructed that year across 31 different yards. By 1840 the town had 76 shipyards and between 1820 and 1850 the number of ships being built on the Wear increased fivefold. From 1846 to 1854 almost a third of the UK's ships were built in Sunderland, and in 1850 the ''Sunderland Herald'' proclaimed the town to be the greatest shipbuilding port in the world.
The Durham & Sunderland Railway Co. built a railway line across the Town Moor and established a passenger terminus there in 1836. In 1847 the line was bought by
George Hudson
George Hudson (probably 10 March 1800 – 14 December 1871) was an English railway financier and politician who, because he controlled a significant part of the Railway Mania, railway network in the 1840s, became known as "The Railway King"—a ...
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...
and was already involved in a scheme to build a dock in the area. In 1846 he had formed the Sunderland Dock Company, which received parliamentary approval for the construction of a dock between the South Pier and Hendon Bay.
Increasing industrialisation had prompted residential expansion away from the old port area in the suburban terraces of the Fawcett Estate and
Mowbray Park
Mowbray Park is a municipal park in the centre of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, located a few hundred yards from the busy thoroughfares of Holmeside and Fawcett Street and bordered by Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens to the north, B ...
. The area around Fawcett Street itself increasingly functioned as the civic and commercial town centre.
Marine engineering works were established from the 1820s onwards, initially providing engines for
paddle steamers
A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine driving paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, whereby the first uses were wh ...
; in 1845 a ship named ''Experiment'' was the first of many to be converted to steam screw propulsion. Demand for steam-powered vessels increased during the
Crimean War
The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
; nonetheless, sailing ships continued to be built, including fast fully-rigged
composite
Composite or compositing may refer to:
Materials
* Composite material, a material that is made from several different substances
** Metal matrix composite, composed of metal and other parts
** Cermet, a composite of ceramic and metallic material ...
-built
clipper
A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century merchant sailing vessel, designed for speed. The term was also retrospectively applied to the Baltimore clipper, which originated in the late 18th century.
Clippers were generally narrow for their len ...
s, including the ''City of Adelaide'' in 1864 and ''Torrens'' (the last such vessel ever built), in 1875.
By the middle of the century glassmaking was at its height on Wearside. James Hartley & Co., established in Sunderland in 1836, grew to be the largest glassworks in the country and (having patented an innovative production technique for rolled plate glass) produced much of the glass used in the construction of
the Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around ...
in 1851. A third of all UK-manufactured plate glass was produced at Hartley's by this time. Other manufacturers included the Cornhill Flint Glassworks (established at Southwick in 1865), which went on to specialise in
pressed glass
Pressed glass (or pattern glass) is a form of glass made by pressing molten glass into a Mol ...
, as did the Wear Flint Glassworks (which had originally been established in 1697). In addition to the plate glass and pressed glass manufacturers there were 16 bottle works on the Wear in the 1850s, with the capacity to produce between 60 and 70,000 bottles a day.
In 1848 George Hudson's
York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway
The York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway (YN&BR) was an English railway company formed in 1847 by the amalgamation of the York and Newcastle Railway as well as the Newcastle and Berwick Railway. Both companies were part of the group of business i ...
built a passenger terminus, Monkwearmouth Station, just north of Wearmouth Bridge; and south of the river another passenger terminus, in Fawcett Street, in 1853. Later,
Thomas Elliot Harrison
Thomas Elliot Harrison (4 April 1808 – 20 March 1888) was an English engineer. Born in Fulham, London, he was raised in the north east of England, where his father was a promoter of early railway companies; after an apprenticeship under Willi ...
(chief engineer to the North Eastern Railway) made plans to carry the railway across the river; the Wearmouth Railway Bridge (reputedly 'the largest Hog-Back iron girder bridge in the world') opened in 1879.
In 1854 the Londonderry, Seaham & Sunderland Railway opened linking collieries to a separate set of staiths at Hudson Dock South, it also provided a passenger service from Sunderland to Seaham Harbour.
In 1886–90 Sunderland Town Hall was built in Fawcett Street, just to the east of the railway station, to a design by
Brightwen Binyon
Brightwen Binyon, FRIBA, (30 May 1846 – 21 September 1905) was a British architect.
Early life and education
Brightwen Binyon was born at Headley Grange, Victoria Park, Manchester, on 30 May 1846, to Jane née Brightwen (1805–1890) and Edw ...
. By 1889 two million tons of coal per year was passing through Hudson Dock, while to the south of Hendon Dock, the Wear Fuel Works distilled
coal tar
Coal tar is a thick dark liquid which is a by-product of the production of coke and coal gas from coal. It is a type of creosote. It has both medical and industrial uses. Medicinally it is a topical medication applied to skin to treat psoria ...
to produce pitch, oil and other products.
The 20th century saw
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Formed in 1879, the club has won si ...
established as the Wearside area's greatest claim to sporting fame. Founded in 1879 as Sunderland and District Teachers A.F.C. by
schoolmaster
A schoolmaster, or simply master, is a male school teacher. The usage first occurred in England in the Late Middle Ages and early modern period. At that time, most schools were one-room or two-room schools and had only one or two such teacher ...
The Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...
From 1900 to 1919, an electric tram system was built and was gradually replaced by buses during the 1940s before being ended in 1954. In 1909 the Queen Alexandra Bridge was built, linking Deptford and Southwick.
The First World War increased shipbuilding, leading to the town being a target in a 1916
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...
raid. Monkwearmouth was struck on 1 April 1916 and 22 people died. Over 25,000 men from a population of 151,000 served in the armed forces during the war.
Through the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
of the 1930s, shipbuilding dramatically declined: shipyards on the Wear went from 15 in 1921 to six in 1937. The small yards of J. Blumer & Son (at North Dock) and the Sunderland Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. (at Hudson Dock) both closed in the 1920s, and other yards were closed down by National Shipbuilders Securities in the 1930s.
By 1936 Sunderland AFC had been league champions on six occasions. They won their first
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
in
1937
Events
January
* January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua.
* January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Feb ...
.
With the outbreak of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in 1939, Sunderland was a key target of the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
Luftwaffe
The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
bombing. Luftwaffe raids resulted in the deaths of 267 people and destruction of local industry while 4,000 homes were also damaged or destroyed.
Many old buildings remain despite the bombing that occurred during World War II. Religious buildings include Holy Trinity Church, built in 1719 for an independent Sunderland, St Michael's Church, built as Bishopwearmouth Parish Church and now known as Sunderland Minster and St Peter's Church, Monkwearmouth, part of which dates from 674AD, and was the original monastery. St Andrew's Church, Roker, known as the "Cathedral of the
Arts and Crafts Movement
The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and America.
Initiat ...
", contains work by
William Morris
William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditiona ...
,
Ernest Gimson
Ernest William Gimson (; 21 December 1864 – 12 August 1919) was an English furniture designer and architect. Gimson was described by the art critic Nikolaus Pevsner as "the greatest of the English architect-designers". Today his reputat ...
and
Eric Gill
Arthur Eric Rowton Gill (22 February 1882 – 17 November 1940) was an English sculptor, letter cutter, typeface designer, and printmaker. Although the ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' describes Gill as "the greatest artist-craftsma ...
. St Mary's Catholic Church is the earliest surviving Gothic revival church in the city. After the war, more housing was built and the town's boundaries expanded in 1967 when neighbouring
Ryhope
Ryhope ( ) is a coastal village along the southern boundary of the City of Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England. With a population of approximately 14,000, measured at 10.484 in the 2011 census, Ryhope is 2.9 miles to the centre of Sunderland ...
Herrington
Herrington is an area in the south of Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England, Historic counties of England, historically in County Durham.
''The Herringtons'' are split into ''East & Middle'' and ''West'' and ''New'' villages. East and Middle He ...
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
major honour in 1973 when they won a second FA Cup.
Shipbuilding ended in 1988 and coal-mining in 1993 after a mid-1980s unemployment crisis with 20 per cent of the local workforce unemployed.
Electronic, chemical, paper and motor manufacturing as well as the service sector expanded during the 1980s and 1990s to fill unemployment from heavy industry. In 1986 Japanese car manufacturer
Nissan
is a Japanese multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the ''Nissan'' and ''Infiniti'' brands, and formerly the ''Datsun'' brand, with in-house ...
opened its Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK factory in Washington, which has since become the UK's largest car factory.
City status
Sunderland received city status in 1992. Like many cities, Sunderland comprises a number of areas with their own distinct histories, Fulwell, Monkwearmouth,
Roker
Roker ( ) is a seaside resort in Sunderland, city of Sunderland district, Tyne and Wear. England. It is located north of the River Wear and Monkwearmouth, east of the southern part of Fulwell with the coastal resort of Seaburn to its nort ...
, and Southwick on the northern side of the Wear, and Bishopwearmouth and
Hendon
Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...
to the south. From 1990, the Wear's riverbanks were regenerated with new housing, retail parks and business centres on former shipbuilding sites; the
National Glass Centre
The National Glass Centre is a cultural venue and visitor attraction located in Sunderland, North East England. It is part of the University of Sunderland.
Background
The National Glass Centre is located in Sunderland, on the north banks ...
a new
University of Sunderland
The University of Sunderland is a public research university located in Sunderland in the North East of England. Its predecessor, Sunderland Technical College, was established as a municipal training college in 1901. It gained university status ...
Vaux Breweries
Vaux Brewery was a major brewer and hotel owner based in Sunderland, England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was taken over by Whitbread in 2000.
History
The company was founded in 1806 by Cuthbert Vaux (1779–1850), p ...
site on the north west fringe of the city centre was cleared for further development opportunities.
After 99 years at the historic
Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...
stadium, the city's football club,
Sunderland AFC
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Formed in 187 ...
moved to the 42,000-seat
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
on the banks of the River Wear in 1997. At the time, it was the largest stadium built by an English football club since the 1920s, and has since been expanded to hold nearly 50,000 seated spectators.
On 24 March 2004, the city adopted Benedict Biscop as its
patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...
. In 2018 the city was ranked as the best to live and work in the UK by the finance firm OneFamily. In the same year, the city was ranked as one of the top 10 safest in the UK.
Government
Sunderland is a
metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distr ...
with
city status
City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose.
Historically, ci ...
, governed by
Sunderland City Council
Sunderland City Council is the local authority of City of Sunderland, Sunderland, a metropolitan borough with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in the ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear in North East England. It is one of five such ...
. There are three
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
Burdon
Burdon is a village and civil parish in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear, England. It is south of the city centre. The north-west of the parish includes part of the Doxford Park
Doxford Park (known locally as ''Doxy Park'') is a su ...
, and
Warden Law
Warden Law is a village and civil parish in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to ...
, which form an additional tier of local government for their areas. The rest of the city is an
unparished area
In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparis ...
.
The city council is based at
City Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
on Plater Way (formerly the site of the Vaux Brewery), which opened in 2021. Prior to that the council was based at the
Civic Centre
A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains of one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, ...
on Burdon Road, which had been built in 1970.
Administrative history
The original settlement of Sunderland was historically part of the
ancient parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
of Bishopwearmouth in County Durham. It was an
ancient borough
An ancient borough was a historic unit of lower-tier local government in England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the co ...
, having been granted a charter in 1179 under the name of 'Wearmouth'. The original borough covered a relatively small area in the north-east corner of the old Bishopwearmouth parish, lying on the south side of the mouth of the River Wear. The borough was granted a further charter in 1634 which gave it the right to appoint a mayor and incorporated the town under the name of Sunderland rather than Wearmouth. The area of the borough was made a separate parish from Bishopwearmouth by an act of parliament in 1719.
The ancient borough's powers were relatively modest. Unlike most such boroughs, it did not hold its own courts, nor did it have any meaningful municipal functions. A separate body of
improvement commissioners Boards of improvement commissioners were ''ad hoc'' urban local government boards created during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and its predecessors the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Irel ...
was established in 1810 with responsibilities to pave, light and clean the streets, provide a
watch
A watch is a timepiece carried or worn by a person. It is designed to maintain a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is worn around the wrist, attached by a watch strap or another type of ...
, and improve the market. In 1832 a
parliamentary borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
(constituency) of
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...
was created, covering the parishes or townships of Sunderland, Bishopwearmouth, Bishopwearmouth Panns, Monkwearmouth, Monkwearmouth Shore and Southwick.
In 1836 Sunderland was reformed to become a
municipal borough
A municipal borough was a type of local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state.
Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...
under the
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 ( 5 & 6 Will. 4. c. 76), sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales. The le ...
, which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country. The municipal boundaries were enlarged at the same time to match the constituency, although later that year the municipal boundaries were reduced to remove Southwick and the parts of Bishopwearmouth and Bishopwearmouth Panns which fell more than one mile from the centre of Wearmouth Bridge. The improvement commissioners were wound up in 1851 and their functions transferred to the council.
When elected county councils were established in 1889, Sunderland was considered large enough to provide its own county-level services, and so it was made a county borough, independent from the new
Durham County Council
Durham County Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of County Durham (district), County Durham in North East England. The council is a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority, bein ...
. The borough boundaries were enlarged on several occasions, notably in 1867, 1928 (when it gained areas including Fulwell, Southwick and the remainder of the old Bishopwearmouth parish), 1936, 1951, and 1967 (when it gained
North Hylton
North Hylton is a suburb of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to the south, and the largest se ...
Ryhope
Ryhope ( ) is a coastal village along the southern boundary of the City of Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England. With a population of approximately 14,000, measured at 10.484 in the 2011 census, Ryhope is 2.9 miles to the centre of Sunderland ...
, Silksworth, and Tunstall).
In 1974 the county borough was replaced by a larger metropolitan borough within the new county of Tyne and Wear. The borough gained
Hetton-le-Hole
Hetton-le-Hole is a town and civil parish in the City of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. It is in the historic county of Durham. The A182 road, A182 road runs through the town, between Houghton-le-Spring and Easington Lane (the latter bord ...
,
Houghton-le-Spring
Houghton-le-Spring ( ) is a town in the Sunderland district, in Tyne and Wear, England which has its recorded origins in Norman times. Historically in County Durham, it is now administered as part of the Tyne and Wear county.
It lies betw ...
,
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
,
Burdon
Burdon is a village and civil parish in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear, England. It is south of the city centre. The north-west of the parish includes part of the Doxford Park
Doxford Park (known locally as ''Doxy Park'') is a su ...
, and
Warden Law
Warden Law is a village and civil parish in the City of Sunderland in Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England. It borders Northumberland to the north and County Durham to ...
.
From 1974 until 1986 the borough council was a lower-tier district authority, with
Tyne and Wear County Council
Tyne and Wear County Council was the county council of the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear in northeast England. It came into its powers on 1 April 1974 and was abolished on 1 April 1986. The county council was based at Sandyford House in Ne ...
providing county-level services. The county council was abolished in 1986, with the borough council taking on county-level functions. Some functions are provided across Tyne and Wear by joint committees with the other districts. The county of Tyne and Wear continues to exist as a
ceremonial county
Ceremonial counties, formally known as ''counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies'', are areas of England to which lord-lieutenant, lord-lieutenants are appointed. A lord-lieutenant is the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarch's repres ...
for the purposes of lieutenancy, but has had no administrative functions since 1986. The borough of Sunderland was awarded city status in 1992.
Between 2014 and 2024, Sunderland was part of the
North East Combined Authority
The North East Combined Authority (NECA) is a combined authority in North East England. It has a directly-elected Mayor and seven member councils: two are unitary authorities ( Durham and Northumberland) and five are metropolitan borough counc ...
. Since 2024 the council has been a member of the
North East Mayoral Combined Authority
The North East Combined Authority (NECA) is a combined authority in North East England. It has a directly-elected Mayor and seven member councils: two are unitary authorities ( Durham and Northumberland) and five are metropolitan borough counc ...
, which replaced the previous combined authority.
UK Parliament
Sunderland is represented in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
in the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...
by three Labour Members of Parliament;
Bridget Phillipson
Bridget Maeve Phillipson (born 19 December 1983) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the Member of Parli ...
Sharon Hodgson
Sharon Hodgson (born 1 April 1966) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Washington and Gateshead South since 2024, and previously for Washington and Sunderland West and G ...
since 2005.
EU referendum
Sunderland voted for
Brexit
Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU).
Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...
New Statesman
''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
'' and ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
'' have described Sunderland as the poster city for Brexit.
Geography
Much of the city is located on a low range of hills running parallel to the coast. On average, it is around 80 metres
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...
. Sunderland is divided by the River Wear which passes through the middle of the city in a deeply incised valley, part of which is known as the Hylton gorge. Several smaller bodies of water, such as Hendon Burn and the Barnes Burn, run through the suburbs. The three road bridges connecting the north and south portions of the city are the Queen Alexandra Bridge at Pallion, the
Wearmouth Bridge
Wearmouth Bridge is a through arch bridge across the River Wear in Sunderland, England. It is the final bridge over the river before its mouth with the North Sea.
Original bridge
The original Wearmouth Bridge was designed by Thomas Paine a ...
just to the north of the city centre and most recently the Northern Spire Bridge between Castletown and Pallion. To the west of the city, the Hylton Viaduct carries the A19 dual-carriageway over the Wear (see map below).
The city has a number of public parks. Several of these are historic, including
Mowbray Park
Mowbray Park is a municipal park in the centre of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, located a few hundred yards from the busy thoroughfares of Holmeside and Fawcett Street and bordered by Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens to the north, B ...
,
Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...
Penshaw Monument
The Penshaw Monument (officially the Earl of Durham's Monument) is a memorial in the style of an ancient Greek temple on Penshaw Hill in the metropolitan borough of the City of Sunderland, North East England. It is located near the village of ...
. The city's parks have secured several awards for its commitment to preserving natural facilities, receiving the
Britain in Bloom
RHS Britain in Bloom is the largest horticultural campaign in the United Kingdom. It was first held in 1963, initiated by the British Tourist Board based on the example set by Fleurissement de France (now Conseil national de villes et villages ...
collective in 1993, 1997 and 2000.
Approximately 70% of the population of the built-up area lives on the south side of the river and 30% on the north side. The built-up area extends to the seafront at Hendon and Ryhope in the south and
Seaburn
Seaburn is a seaside resort and northeastern suburb of Sunderland, North East England. The village of Whitburn borders the area to the north. To the west and south-west is Fulwell and to the south the coastal resort of Roker.
Virtually all of ...
in the north.
Green belt
The built-up area is surrounded by the Tyne and Wear Green Belt, with its portion in much of its surrounding rural area of the borough. It is a part of the local
development plan
A development plan sets out a local authority's policies and proposals for land use in their area. The term is usually used in the United Kingdom. A local plan is one type of development plan. The development plan guides and shapes day-to-day de ...
, of which its stated aims are as follows:
In the Sunderland borough boundary, as well as the aforementioned areas, landscape features and facilities such as much of the River Don and Wear basins, the George Washington Hotel Golf and Spa complex, Sharpley Golf Course, Herrington Country Park, Houghton Quarry and Penshaw Hill are within the green belt area.
Climate
Sunderland has a temperate
oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Cfb''). Its location in the
rain shadow
A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side.
Evaporated moisture from body of water, bodies of water (such as oceans and larg ...
of the
Pennines
The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of highland, uplands mainly located in Northern England. Commonly described as the "Vertebral column, backbone of England" because of its length and position, the ra ...
, as well as other mountain ranges to the west, such as those of the
Lake District
The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...
and southwestern Scotland, make Sunderland one of the least rainy cities of Northern England. The climate is heavily moderated by the adjacent
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, giving it cool summers, and winters that are mild considering its latitude. The closest weather station is in
Tynemouth
Tynemouth () is a coastal town in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, in Tyne and Wear, England. It is located on the north side of the mouth of the River Tyne, England, River Tyne, hence its name. It is east-northeast of Newcastle up ...
, about north of Sunderland. As a result, Sunderland's coastline is likely slightly milder given the more southerly position. Another relatively nearby weather station in
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England
**County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States
Durham may also refer to:
Places
...
has warmer summer days and colder winter nights courtesy of its inland position.
Demography
2021 census
At the 2021 census, the built-up area of Sunderland had a population of 168,315, and the wider borough had a population of 274,200. The 2011 census had defined a much larger Sunderland built-up area covering all the built-up areas in the borough and some areas beyond it, notably including
Chester-le-Street
Chester-le-Street () is a market town in County Durham, England. It is located around north of Durham and is close to Newcastle. The town holds markets on Saturdays. In 2021, the town had a population of 23,555.
The town's history is ancient; ...
.
The table below compares Sunderland's ethnic make up to the
North East England
North East England, commonly referred to simply as the North East within England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of County DurhamNorthumberland, , Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and part of northern North Yorkshire. ...
region.
The majority of the
BAME
A number of different systems of classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom exist. These schemata have been the subject of debate, including about the nature of ethnicity, how or whether it can be categorised, and the relationship betwe ...
population live in Sunderland East – more specifically Hendon and Millfield where there is a larger population of Bangladeshi/Bangladeshi British and Indian/Indian British than elsewhere. There is also a significant Chinese population in these areas. Sunderland West has a population of Indian, Pakistani and other Asian ethnicities. Sunderland North has a substantial Chinese population, notably in St.Peter's. This is believed to be influenced by the student
population in which:
* 147 nationalities are represented
* 51.27% students are White, 13.92% Asian, 12.78% Asian Other and 5.12% Black African, with other ethnicities in much smaller numbers
While BAME populations are more concentrated in some areas within Sunderland, ethnic diversity is too low in the city to determine if any groups are particularly segregated.
Religion
The 2011 census recorded that 70.2% of the population identified as Christian, 1.32% as Muslim, 0.29% as Sikh, 0.22% as Hindu, 0.19% as Buddhist, 0.02% as Jewish, and 21.90% as having no religion.
The Stake Center for the Sunderland Stake of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
is in Sunderland.
Jewish heritage in the city, once part of a thriving community, can be dated back to around 1750, when a number of Jewish merchants from across the UK and Europe settled in Sunderland, eventually forming a congregation in 1768. A
rabbi
A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
from
Holland
Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...
was established in the city in 1790. After a rapid growth in numbers during the latter half of the nineteenth century, the Jewish community in Sunderland reached its height in the mid-1930s, when around 2,000 Jews were recorded to be living in the town. The community has been in slow decline since the mid-20th century. Many Sunderland Jews left for stronger Jewish communities in Britain, including Gateshead, or to Israel. The Jewish primary school, the Menorah School, closed in July 1983, and the
yeshiva
A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are studied in parallel. The stu ...
moved to Gateshead in June 1988. The
synagogue
A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...
on Ryhope Road, opened in 1928, closed at the end of March 2006. (See also History of the Jews in North East England.) The Jewish population of the Sunderland Metropolitan Borough is continually diminishing, as the Jewish population fell from 114 people in 2001, to 87 people in 2021.
In 1998, following the grant of city status to Sunderland, the erstwhile
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
of Bishopwearmouth (St Michael's) was redesignated as Sunderland Minster with a city-wide role. It was believed to have been the first creation of a
minster church
Minster is an honorific title given to particular churches in England and Wales, most notably York Minster in Yorkshire, Westminster Abbey in London and Southwell Minster in Nottinghamshire.
The term ''minster'' is first found in royal fou ...
in England since the
Reformation
The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...
1904–1905 Welsh revival
The 1904–1905 Welsh revival was the largest Christian revival in Wales during the 20th century. It was one of the most dramatic in terms of its effect on the population, and triggered revivals in several other countries. The movement kept the c ...
and also by the British-born Norwegian preacher Thomas Ball Barratt. In the early years of the 20th century All Saints, Monkwearmouth became an important centre for the development of the Pentecostal Movement in Britain.
Economy
Following the industrial decline of the 1970s to early 1980s and collapse of the local shipbuilding industry, Sunderland's mid-1980s economic situation began to improve. Japanese car manufacturer
Nissan
is a Japanese multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the ''Nissan'' and ''Infiniti'' brands, and formerly the ''Datsun'' brand, with in-house ...
Nissan Bluebird
The is a compact car produced between 1955 and 2007 with a model name introduced in 1957. It was Nissan's most internationally recognized sedan, known for its dependability and durability in multiple body styles. The Bluebird originated from N ...
car was produced later that year. The factory and its supplier companies remain the largest employers in the region, with current cars produced there including the Nissan Qashqai, the
Nissan Juke
The is a subcompact crossover SUV ( B-segment) produced by the Japanese car manufacturer Nissan since 2010. Debuted as a production vehicle at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show in March, it was introduced to North America at the 2010 New York Int ...
and the electric
Nissan LEAF
The is a battery-electric car manufactured by Nissan, produced since 2010. It was offered exclusively as a 5-door hatchback until 2025, which since then has become a crossover SUV model. The term "LEAF" serves as a backronym to ''leading envir ...
. As of 2012 over 500,000 cars are produced annually, and it is the UK's largest car factory.
Also in the late 1980s, new
service industries
Service industries are those not directly concerned with the production of physical goods (such as agriculture and manufacturing).
Some service industries, including transportation, wholesale trade and retail trade are part of the supply chai ...
moved into sites such as the
Doxford International Business Park
Doxford International is a business park located at the A19 / A690 interchange on the outskirts of Sunderland, in the North East of England. Previously it was a greenfield site, it was designated as an Enterprise Zone in 1990 in response to t ...
in the south west of the city, attracting national and international companies. Sunderland was named in the shortlist of the top seven "intelligent cities" in the world for the use of
information technology
Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...
, in 2004 and 2005.
Regeneration
Since the mid-1980s Sunderland has undergone massive regeneration, particularly around the
City Centre
A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...
shopping centre
A shopping center in American English, shopping centre in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, spelling differences), shopping complex, shopping arcade, ...
was extended towards Crowtree Road and the former Central
Bus Station
A bus station, bus depot, or bus interchange is a structure where city buses or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. A bus station is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can st ...
, attracting national
chain store
A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate many retail markets, dining markets, and service categories in many p ...
s. This was followed by adjacent redevelopments on Park Lane.
The former shipyards along the Wear were transformed with a mixture of residential, commercial and leisure facilities including St Peter's Campus of the University of Sunderland, university accommodation along the Fish Quay on the South side of the river, the North Haven housing and marina development, the
National Glass Centre
The National Glass Centre is a cultural venue and visitor attraction located in Sunderland, North East England. It is part of the University of Sunderland.
Background
The National Glass Centre is located in Sunderland, on the north banks ...
, the
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
and Hylton Riverside Retail Park. Also in 2007, the Echo 24 luxury apartments opened on Pann's Bank overlooking the river.
Sunderland Corporation's massive post-war housing estate developments at Farringdon, Pennywell and Grindon have all passed into the ownership of Gentoo Group (previously 'Sunderland Housing Group'), a private company and a Registered Social Landlord.
The Port of Sunderland, owned by the city council, has been allocated for medium-term redevelopment with a focus on mixed-use industry.
Sunderland City Council's Unitary Development Plan (UDP) outlines a number of sites around the city for regeneration. The plans are supported by Sunderland Arc, an urban regeneration company funded by the City council,
One NorthEast
One North East was the regional development agency for the North East England
North East England, commonly referred to simply as the North East within England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of County DurhamNorth ...
(defunct) and the
Homes and Communities Agency
Homes England is the non-departmental public body that funds new affordable housing in England. It was founded on 1 January 2018 to replace the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).
HCA in turn was established by the Housing and Regeneration Act ...
.
; Sunniside
In 2004, redevelopment work began in the Sunniside area in the east-end of the city centre, including a
multiplex cinema
A multiplex is a movie theater complex with multiple screens or auditoriums within a single complex. They are usually housed in a specially designed building. Sometimes, an existing venue undergoes a renovation where the existing auditoriums a ...
, a
multi-storey car park
A multistorey car park (Commonwealth English) or parking garage (American English), also called a multistorey, parking building, parking structure, parkade (Canadian), parking ramp, parking deck, or indoor parking, is a building designed fo ...
, restaurants, a
casino
A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...
and
tenpin bowling
Tenpin bowling is a type of bowling in which a bowler bowling form, rolls a bowling ball down a wood or synthetic lane toward ten pins positioned Tetractys, evenly in four rows in an equilateral triangle. The goal is to knock down all ten Bowlin ...
. Originally the River Quarter, the site was renamed Limelight in 2005, and renamed in 2008, when it became Sunniside Leisure. Sunniside Gardens were landscaped, and a number of new cafes, bars and restaurants were opened. Up-market residential apartments were developed, including the Echo 24 building.
;Vaux development and Keel Square
Following the closure of the
Vaux brewery
Vaux Brewery was a major brewer and hotel owner based in Sunderland, England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was taken over by Whitbread in 2000.
History
The company was founded in 1806 by Cuthbert Vaux (1779–1850), p ...
in 1999, a
brownfield site
Brownfield is previously-developed land that has been abandoned or underused, and which may carry pollution, or a risk of pollution, from industrial use. The specific definition of brownfield land varies and is decided by policy makers and l ...
lay dormant in the centre of Sunderland. The land was subject to dispute between supermarket chain
Tesco
Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...
, who bought the site in 2001, and Sunderland arc, who submitted plans for its redevelopment in 2002. During formal negotiations, Tesco stated they would be willing to sell the land to arc, if an alternative city centre site could be found. Possibilities include Holmeside Triangle, and the Sunderland Retail Park in Roker. Arc originally hoped to begin development in 2010. Arc's plans for the site were approved by the Secretary of State in 2007, and included extensive office space,
hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
s, leisure and retail units, residential apartments and a new £50 m
Crown
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...
and
Magistrates' court
A magistrates' court is a lower court where, in several Jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions, all criminal proceedings start. Also some civil matters may be dealt with here, such as family proceedings.
Courts
* Magistrates' court (England and Wales) ...
, along with a central public arcade located under an expansive glass canopy. It was hoped an " evening economy" could be encouraged, to complement the city's nightlife. In 2013 in the area opposite the Vaux site, Sunderland City Council announced the Keel Square project, a new public space designed to commemorate Sunderand's maritime heritage, which was completed in May 2015. Construction commenced in 2014.
;Stadium Village
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Formed in 1879, the club has won si ...
has been a major symbol of the area and a contributor to the local economy since the late 19th century. The club was one of the most successful and best supported clubs in the English game during this era, with its home at
Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...
holding more than 70,000 spectators at its peak. However, the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
triumph of 1973 would prove to be the club's only postwar major trophy to date, and after its relegation in 1958 the club frequently bounced between the top two divisions of English football, and in 1987 and again in 2018 suffered relegation to the third tier of English football. The club played at Roker Park for 99 years until the completion of the new
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
at
Monkwearmouth
Monkwearmouth is an area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear in England. Monkwearmouth is located at the north side of the mouth of the River Wear. It was one of the three original settlements on the banks of the River Wear along with Bishopwearmouth ...
on the banks of the
River Wear
The River Wear (, ) in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley t ...
in 1997. The new stadium seated more than 42,000 on its completion, and has since been expanded to hold some 49,000 spectators. Sunderland's relatively high attendances have been a major boost to the local economy – averaging at more than 30,000 even during the club's most recent spell in the third tier of English football.
Redevelopment of the Monkwearmouth Colliery site, which sits on the north bank of the river Wear opposite the Vaux site, began in the mid-1990s with the creation of the
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
. In 2008 the Sunderland Aquatic Centre opened adjacent to the Stadium of Light, containing the only
Olympic-size swimming pool
An Olympic-size swimming pool is a swimming pool which conforms to the regulations for length, breadth, and depth made by World Aquatics (formerly FINA) for swimming at the Summer Olympics and the swimming events at the World Aquatics Champions ...
between
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
and
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
. The Sheepfolds industrial estate occupies a large area of land between the Stadium and the
Wearmouth Bridge
Wearmouth Bridge is a through arch bridge across the River Wear in Sunderland, England. It is the final bridge over the river before its mouth with the North Sea.
Original bridge
The original Wearmouth Bridge was designed by Thomas Paine a ...
. Sunderland Arc were in the process of purchasing land in the Sheepfolds, with a view to relocate the businesses and redevelop the site. The emphasis of development plans included further sporting facilities, in order to create a ''Sports Village''. Other plans included a hotel, residential accommodation, and a
footbridge
A footbridge (also a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian overcrossing) is a bridge designed solely for pedestrians.''Oxford English Dictionary'' While the primary meaning for a bridge is a structure which links "two points at a ...
linking the site with the Vaux development.
;Grove and Transport Corridor
The Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor (SSTC) is a proposed transport link from the A19, through the city centre, to the port. A major phase of the plan was the creation of a new bridge, the Northern Spire Bridge, which links the A1231 Wessington Way on the north of the river with the Grove site in Pallion, on the south of the river. In 2008, Sunderland City Council offered the residents of Sunderland the opportunity to vote on the design of the bridge. The choices were a iconic
cable-stayed bridge
A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which wire rope, cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or wikt:stay#Etymology 3, stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, norm ...
, which would result in a temporary increase in council tax, or a simple box structure which would be within the council's budget. The results of the consultation were inconclusive, with residents keen to have an iconic bridge, but reluctant to have a subsequent increase in tax to fund it. Regardless of the ultimate design of the new bridge, the landing point will be the former Grove Cranes site in
Pallion
Pallion is a suburb and electoral ward in North West Sunderland, in Tyne and Wear, England. Most of the buildings in the area were built during the Victorian Era and consist of large terraced houses built for shipbuilders, but also smaller one- ...
. Plans for this site focus around the creation of a new residential area, with homes, community buildings, commercial and retail space.
Former
Major
Once hailed as the "Largest Shipbuilding Town in the World", ships were built on the Wear from at least 1346 onwards and by the mid-18th century Sunderland was one of the chief shipbuilding towns in the country. Sunderland Docks was the home of operations for the
shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...
industry on
Wearside
Wearside () is a built-up area in County Durham and Tyne and Wear, England. It is named after the River Wear which flows through it and traditionally all in the County of Durham.
In the 2011 census, its official name was the Sunderland Built- ...
. The Port of Sunderland was significantly expanded in the 1850s with the construction of Hudson Dock to designs by River Wear Commissioner's Engineer John Murray, with consultancy by
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson , (honoris causa, Hon. causa) (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of hi ...
. One famous vessel was the ''Torrens'', the clipper in which
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, ; 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924) was a Poles in the United Kingdom#19th century, Polish-British novelist and story writer. He is regarded as one of the greatest writers in the Eng ...
sailed, and on which he began his first novel. She was one of the most famous ships of her time and can claim to be the finest ship ever launched from a Sunderland yard.
Between 1939 and 1945 the Wear yards launched 245 merchant ships totalling 1.5 million tons, a quarter of the merchant tonnage produced in the UK at this period. Competition from overseas caused a downturn in demand for Sunderland built ships toward the end of the 20th century. The last shipyard in Sunderland closed on 7 December 1988.
Sunderland, part of the Durham coalfield, has a coal-mining heritage that dates back centuries. At its peak in 1923, 170,000 miners were employed in County Durham alone, as labourers from all over Britain, including many from
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
and
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
, entered the region. As demand for coal slipped following
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, mines began to close across the region, causing mass unemployment. The last
coal mine
Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...
closed in 1994. The site of the last coal mine,
Wearmouth Colliery
Monkwearmouth Colliery (or Wearmouth Colliery) was a major North Sea coal mine on the north bank of the River Wear in Sunderland, England, United Kingdom. It was the largest mine in Sunderland and one of the most important in County Durham in no ...
, is now occupied by the
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
, and a miner's
Davy lamp
The Davy lamp is a safety lamp used in flammable atmospheres, invented in 1815 by Sir Humphry Davy.North East England Mining Archive and Resource Centre (NEEMARC).
Minor
As with the coal-mining and shipbuilding, overseas competition has forced the closure of all of Sunderland's glass-making factories.
Corning Glass Works
Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company specializing in glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The company was name ...
, in Sunderland for 120 years, closed on 31 March 2007 and in January 2007, the
Pyrex
Pyrex (trademarked as ''PYREX'' and ''pyrex'') is a brand introduced by Corning Inc. in 1915, initially for a line of clear, low-thermal-expansion borosilicate glass used for laboratory glassware and kitchenware. It was later expanded in the 1 ...
manufacturing site also closed, bringing to an end commercial glass-making in the city. However, there has been a modest rejuvenation with the opening of the
National Glass Centre
The National Glass Centre is a cultural venue and visitor attraction located in Sunderland, North East England. It is part of the University of Sunderland.
Background
The National Glass Centre is located in Sunderland, on the north banks ...
which, amongst other things, provides international glass makers with working facilities and a shop to showcase their work, predominantly in the artistic rather than functional field.
In 1855, John Candlish opened a bottleworks, producing glass bottles, with 6 sites at nearby
Seaham
Seaham ( ) is a seaside town in County Durham (district), County Durham, England. Located on the Durham Coast, Seaham is situated south of Sunderland and east of Durham, England, Durham. The town grew from the late 19th century onwards as ...
and at Diamond Hall, Sunderland.
Vaux Breweries
Vaux Brewery was a major brewer and hotel owner based in Sunderland, England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was taken over by Whitbread in 2000.
History
The company was founded in 1806 by Cuthbert Vaux (1779–1850), p ...
was established in the town centre in the 1880s and for 110 years was a major employer. Following a series of consolidations in the British
Brewing industry
Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the gr ...
, however, the brewery was finally closed in July 1999. Vaux in Sunderland and Wards in
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...
had been part of the Vaux Group, but with the closure of both breweries it was re-branded The Swallow Group, concentrating on the hotel side of the business. This was subject to a successful take-over by Whitbread PLC in the autumn of 2000. It is now a brownfield site and this is a derelict site in an urban area.
Education
Sunderland Polytechnic was founded in 1969, becoming the
University of Sunderland
The University of Sunderland is a public research university located in Sunderland in the North East of England. Its predecessor, Sunderland Technical College, was established as a municipal training college in 1901. It gained university status ...
in 1992. The institution currently has over 17,000 students. The university is split into two campuses; the City Campus (site of the original Polytechnic) is just to the west of the city centre, as is the main university library and the main administrative buildings. The 'Award-Winning' St Peter's Riverside Campus is located on the north banks of the river Wear, next to the National Glass Centre and houses the School of Business, Law and Psychology, as well as Computing and Technology and The Media Centre. The University of Sunderland was named the top university in England for providing the best student experience by ''
The Times Higher Education Supplement
''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The THES''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education.
Ownership
TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...
'' (THES) in 2006. Since 2001 Sunderland has been named the best new university in England by ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' and Government performance indicators showed Sunderland as the best new university in England for the quality, range and quantity of its research.
Sunderland College
Sunderland College, officially City of Sunderland College, is a further education and higher education college based in Sunderland, North East England. The enrolment includes around 6,300 part-time learners and approximately 4,800 full-time stu ...
is a
further education
Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is additional education to that received at secondary school that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. It ...
establishment with campuses located at the Bede centre on Durham Road, Hylton, Doxford International Business Park and 'Phoenix House' in the city centre. It has over 14,000 students, and based on exam results is one of the most successful colleges. St Peter's Sixth Form College, next to St Peter's Church and the university, opened in September 2008. The college is a partnership between the three Sunderland North schools and City of Sunderland College.
There are eighteen
secondary school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
s in the Sunderland area, predominantly comprehensives. According to exam results, the most successful was
St Robert of Newminster Catholic School
St Robert of Newminster Catholic School is a Mixed-sex education, co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Washington, Tyne and Wear, Washington in the City of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The school is named after Rober ...
, a coeducational secondary school and sixth form in Washington. However, comprehensive schools also thrive, notably the Roman Catholic single-sex schools St Anthony's (for girls) and
St Aidan's
St Aidan's is a 355 hectare (877 acres) nature park located between Leeds and Castleford in West Yorkshire, England. The land was formerly an opencast coal mining area that was flooded in 1988, after the riverbank collapsed. Repairs and remedia ...
(for boys). Both continue to attain high exam results.
There are seventy-six
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...
s in Sunderland. According to the 'Value Added' measure, the most successful is Mill Hill Primary School, in
Doxford Park
Doxford Park (known locally as ''Doxy Park'') is a suburb of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, located to the south-west of the city centre. Once part of the historical township of Silksworth in the Middle Ages, Doxford Park consisted of agrarian lan ...
.
Transport
Heavy and light rail
Sunderland station
Sunderland is a railway and metro station in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the Durham Coast Line, which runs between and , via . It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains. Since 31 March 2002, the station has als ...
is served by four
train operating companies
In the railway system of Great Britain, a train operating company (TOC) is a railway undertaking operating passenger trains under the collective National Rail brand. TOCs have existed since the privatisation of the network under the Railways ...
:
* Grand Central operates five direct inter-city trains to London King's Cross Monday-Saturday, with four on Sunday, taking about 3 hours 30 minutes.
*
Northern Trains
Northern Trains, Trade name, trading as Northern, is a British train operating company that operates Commuter rail, commuter and Inter-city rail, medium-distance intercity services in the North of England. It is owned by DfT Operator for the Dep ...
provides services between , , , and .
*
London North Eastern Railway
London North Eastern Railway (LNER) is a British train operating company which operates most services on the East Coast Main Line. It is owned by DfT Operator for the Department for Transport (DfT). The company's name echoes that of the Londo ...
operates a daily inter-city return service to London King's Cross, via Newcastle and
*
Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive
The Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive, branded as Nexus, is an executive body of the North East Combined Authority and is best known for owning and operating the Tyne and Wear Metro. It replaced the Tyneside PTE on 1 April 1974.
O ...
owns and operates the
Tyne & Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro is an overground and underground light rail rapid transit system serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and the City of Sunderland (together forming Tyne and Wear). The owners Nexus have ...
, under the ''Nexus'' brand. The city has several stops on the Green line between and , including at , and before the city's main station with the Park Lane Interchange, , and . Trains run every 12–15 minutes, depending on the time of day, at each of the nine stations.
is a 30-minute Metro or train ride from Sunderland city centre, which facilitates connecting services to London King's Cross every half hour that take approximately 2 hours 45 minutes. It also provides regular services to , , ,
Manchester Piccadilly
Manchester Piccadilly is the main railway station of the city of Manchester, in the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, England. Opened originally as Store Street in 1842, it was renamed Manchester London Road in 1847 and became Manchest ...
, , and beyond.
Sunderland station opened in 1879 and completely redesigned for England's
1966 World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup was the eighth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in England from 11 to 30 July 1966. England defeated West Germany 4–2 in the final to win their first ever ...
footfall to get to
Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...
. It is underground and became part of the
Tyne & Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear Metro is an overground and underground light rail rapid transit system serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and the City of Sunderland (together forming Tyne and Wear). The owners Nexus have ...
in 2002.
In March 2014, Metro owner Nexus proposed an extension of the network by an 'on-street' tram link which would connect north to
South Shields
South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England; it is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. The town was once known in Roman Britain, Roman times as ''Arbeia'' and as ''Caer Urfa'' by the Early Middle Ag ...
and Doxford Park to the west.
Roads
There are five main roads which connect the city:
*The city's main road is the A19, which is a dual carriageway running north-to-south west of the city, crossing the River Wear at Hylton. The road goes links
Doncaster
Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...
with the north of
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
; it passes
Hartlepool
Hartlepool ( ) is a seaside resort, seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough Borough of Hartlepool, named after the town. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area with an estimat ...
,
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in County Durham, England, with a population of 84,815 at the 2021 UK census. It gives its name to and is the largest settlement in the wider Borough of Stockton-on-Tees. It is part of Teesside and the Tees Val ...
,
Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
and
York
York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
to A168 and the A1M. The A19 originally ran through Sunderland city centre until a bypass was built in the 1970s, renaming the old route to the A1018.
*The A690 ''Durham Road'' terminates in the city centre and runs to
Crook, County Durham
Crook is a market town in the Durham County Council unitary authority and ceremonial county of County Durham, England. It is located on the edge of Weardale and sometimes referred to as the "Gateway to Weardale".
Crook lies about south-west ...
, via the city of Durham.
*The A1231 (Sunderland Highway) begins in the city centre, crosses the Queen Alexandra Bridge and runs west through
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
national speed limit
A speed limit is the limit of speed allowed by law for road vehicles, usually the maximum speed allowed. Occasionally, there is a minimum speed limit. Advisory speed limits also exist, which are recommended but not mandatory speeds. Speed limi ...
dual carriageway.
*The A1018 and A183 roads both start in the centre of South Shields and enter Sunderland from the north, before merging to cross the Wearmouth Bridge. The A1018 follows a direct route from Shields to Sunderland, the A183 follows the coast. After crossing the bridge, the A1018 follows a relatively straight path to the south of Sunderland where it merges with the A19. The A183 becomes ''Chester Road'' and heads west out of the city to the A1 at
Chester-le-Street
Chester-le-Street () is a market town in County Durham, England. It is located around north of Durham and is close to Newcastle. The town holds markets on Saturdays. In 2021, the town had a population of 23,555.
The town's history is ancient; ...
. In Autumn 2007, the ''Southern Radial Route'' was opened. This is a bypass of the A1018 through Grangetown and Ryhope – a stretch that commonly suffered from congestion, especially during
rush hour
A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English, Indian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice e ...
. The bypass starts just south of Ryhope and runs parallel to the cliff tops into Hendon, largely avoiding residential areas.
The Sunderland strategic transport corridor project is an ongoing investment to the city's road infrastructure. The scheme improves transport links around the city, ensuring continuous dual carriageway between the A19 road and the port of Sunderland, as well as the
Northern Spire
The Northern Spire Bridge is a bridge over the River Wear in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The crossing opened to pedestrians on 28 August 2018, before opening to traffic the next day. A two span cable-stayed bridge, cable-stayed structure, ...
bridge built over the Wear between Pallion (south) and Castletown (north).
Go North East
Go North East is a bus operator running both local and regional bus services in County Durham, Cumbria, Northumberland, North Yorkshire and Tyne and Wear, England. It was previously known as the Northern General Transport Company and Go-Ahead No ...
, with a handful of services provided by
Arriva North East
Arriva North East operates both local and regional bus services in County Durham, Northumberland, North Yorkshire and Tyne and Wear, England. It is a subsidiary of Arriva UK Bus, which operates bus and coach services across the United Kingdom.
...
. Cross-country and inter-city routes are operated mainly by
National Express
Mobico Group, formerly National Express Group, is a British multinational public transport company with headquarters in Birmingham, England. Domestically it currently operates bus and coach services under brands including National Express. Th ...
transport interchange
A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between mode of transport, transport modes. Public transport hubs include train station, railway stations, metro station, rapid transit stations, bus ...
at
Park Lane
Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park to ...
was opened on 2 May 1999 by the then ''
Brookside Brookside may refer to:
Geography Canada
* Brookside, Edmonton
* Brookside, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Brookside, Nova Scotia
United Kingdom
* Brookside, Berkshire, England
* Brookside, Telford, an area of Telford, England
United States
* Bro ...
'' actor Michael Starke. With 750,000 passengers per year, it is the busiest bus and coach station in Britain after
Victoria Coach Station
Victoria Coach Station in the City of Westminster is the largest bus station, coach station in London, and a bus terminus, terminus for medium and long distance Coach transport in the United Kingdom, coach services in the United Kingdom. It is ...
in
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning the City of London and several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local gove ...
and has won several awards for innovative design.
A new Metro station was built underneath the bus concourse to provide a direct interchange as part of the extension to South Hylton in 2002.
Cycling
There are a number of cycle routes that run through and around Sunderland. The
National Cycle Network
The National Cycle Network (NCN) was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout the United Kingdom, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million N ...
National Route 1 runs from Ryhope in the south, through the centre of the city and then along the coast towards South Shields. Britain's most popular long-distance
cycle route
Cycle, cycles, or cyclic may refer to:
Anthropology and social sciences
* Cyclic history, a theory of history
* Cyclical theory, a theory of American political history associated with Arthur Schlesinger, Sr.
* Social cycle, various cycles in ...
– The 'C2C'
Sea to Sea Cycle Route
The Coast to Coast or Sea to Sea Cycle Route (C2C) is a cycle route opened in 1994. Combining sections of National Cycle Route 7, 14, 71 and 72; it runs from Whitehaven or Workington on the west coast of Cumbria, and then crosses the Lak ...
– traditionally starts or ends when the cyclist dips their wheel in the sea on Roker beach. The ' W2W' 'Wear-to- Walney' route and the 'Two-Rivers' (Tyne and Wear) route also terminate in Sunderland.
Airports
Newcastle Airport is a 55-minute Metro ride from Sunderland city centre; there is a Metro train connecting with the airport every 12–15minutes in both directions until about 11pm, Monday-Sunday.
Teesside International Airport
Teesside International Airport , formerly Durham Tees Valley Airport, is a small international airport in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It primarily serves Teesside (including Middlesbrough and Stockton-on-Tees), south and ...
can be reached in less than one hour by car.
Up until 2022, the city hosted the
Sunderland International Airshow
The Sunderland International Airshow was the biggest free annual airshow in Europe, held at the Roker and Seaburn seafronts. It took place over the course of three days, usually the final weekend in July (Friday to Sunday), and attracted hundred ...
. It took place along the sea front at Roker and Seaburn.
Port
The Port of Sunderland is the second largest municipally-owned port in the United Kingdom. The port offers a total of 17 quays, which handle cargoes including forest products, non-ferrous metals, steel, aggregates and refined oil products, limestone, chemicals and maritime cranes. It also handles offshore supply vessels and has ship repair and
drydock
A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
ing facilities.
The river berths are deepwater and tidal, while the South Docks are entered via a lock with an beam restriction.
Culture
Dialect and accent
The dialect of Sunderland is known as
Mackem
Mackem, Makem or Mak'em is a nickname for residents of and people from Sunderland, a city in North East England. It is also a name for the local dialect and accent (not to be confused with Geordie); and for a fan, of whatever origin, of Sunder ...
, and contains a large amount of vocabulary and distinctive words and pronunciations not used in other parts of the United Kingdom. The Mackem dialect has much of its origins in the language spoken by the
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
population. Although the accent has much in common with
Geordie
Geordie ( ), sometimes known in linguistics as Tyneside English or Newcastle English, is an English dialect and accent spoken in the Tyneside area of North East England. It developed as a variety of the old Northumbrian dialect and became espe ...
, the dialect spoken in Newcastle, there are some distinctive differences.
A few Sunderland dialect words:
*Nee – No
*Bosh – Problem
*Marra – Mate
*Ha'way – Come on (Not to be confused with Geordie's Howay)
*Knack – Hurt
*Git – Very (Used to emphasize something so 'very good' becomes 'git good')
*Claes – Clothes
Attractions and events
Notable attractions for visitors to Sunderland include the 14th century
Hylton Castle
Hylton Castle ( ) is a stone castle in the North Hylton area of City of Sunderland, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. Originally built from wood by the Baron Hylton, Hilton (later Hylton) family shortly after the Norman conquest of England, ...
and the beaches of Roker and Seaburn. The
National Glass Centre
The National Glass Centre is a cultural venue and visitor attraction located in Sunderland, North East England. It is part of the University of Sunderland.
Background
The National Glass Centre is located in Sunderland, on the north banks ...
opened in 1998, reflecting Sunderland's distinguished history of glass-making.
Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens
Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a municipal museum in Sunderland, England. It contains the only known British example of a gliding reptile, the oldest known vertebrate capable of gliding flight. The exhibit was discovered in Eppleton qua ...
, on Borough Road, was the first municipally funded museum in the country outside London. It houses a comprehensive collection of the locally produced Sunderland Lustreware pottery. The City Library Arts Centre, on Fawcett Street, housed the Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art until the library was closed in January 2017. The library service was relocated to the Museum and Winter Gardens and the Gallery for Contemporary Art transferred to Sunderland University.
Every year the city hosts a large
Remembrance Day
Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces me ...
memorial service, the largest in the UK outside
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
in 2006.
Sunderland celebrates an annual Restaurant week, where city centre restaurants provide some of the best plates at low costs.
Literature and art
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...
was a frequent visitor to the area. He wrote most of ''
Jabberwocky
"Jabberwocky" is a Nonsense verse, nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll about the killing of a creature named "the Jabberwock". It was included in his 1871 novel ''Through the Looking-Glass'', the sequel to ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' ...
The Walrus and the Carpenter
"The Walrus and the Carpenter" is a narrative poem by Lewis Carroll that appears in his book ''Through the Looking-Glass'', published in December 1871. The poem is recited in chapter four, by Tweedledum and Tweedledee to Alice.
Summary
The ...
". Some parts of the area are also widely believed to be the inspiration for his Alice in Wonderland stories, such as Hylton Castle and Backhouse Park. There is a statue to Carroll in Whitburn library. Lewis Carroll was also a visitor to the Rectory of Holy Trinity Church, Southwick; then a township independent of Sunderland. Carroll's connection with Sunderland, and the area's history, is documented in
Bryan Talbot
Bryan Talbot (born 24 February 1952) is a British comics artist and writer, best known as the creator of '' The Adventures of Luther Arkwright'' and its sequels '' Heart of Empire'' and '' The Legend of Luther Arkwright'', as well as the ''Gra ...
's 2007 graphic novel '' Alice in Sunderland''. More recently, Sunderland-born
Terry Deary
William Terence Deary (born 3 January 1946) is a British children's author of 351 books, selling over 38 million copies in over 45 languages, best known as the writer of the ''Horrible Histories'' series. Since 1994 he has been one of Britain's b ...
, writer of the series of ''
Horrible Histories
''Horrible Histories'' is an educational entertainment franchise encompassing many media including books, magazines, audio books, stage shows, TV shows, and more.
In 2013, Lisa Edwards, UK publishing and commercial director of Scholastic Corpo ...
'' books, has achieved fame and success, and many others such as thriller writer
Sheila Quigley
Sheila Quigley ( ) was a British author of thrillers.
Career
In 2003, Sheila Quigley became a national news story when Random House acquired her first novel, ''Run For Home'', with major coverage throughout the press and television. A document ...
, are following his lead.
The Salford-born painter L. S. Lowry was a frequent visitor, staying in the Seaburn Hotel in Sunderland. Many of his paintings of seascapes and shipbuilding are based on Wearside scenes. The Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art on Fawcett Street and
Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens
Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens is a municipal museum in Sunderland, England. It contains the only known British example of a gliding reptile, the oldest known vertebrate capable of gliding flight. The exhibit was discovered in Eppleton qua ...
showcase exhibitions and installations from up-and-coming and established artists alike, with the latter holding an extensive collection of Lowry. The National Glass Centre on Liberty Way also exhibits a number of glass sculptures.
Media, film and television
Sunderland has a local newspaper: the daily tabloid ''The
Sunderland Echo
The ''Sunderland Echo'' is a daily newspaper serving the City of Sunderland, Sunderland, South Tyneside and Easington (district), East Durham areas of North East England. The newspaper was founded by Samuel Storey (Liberal politician), Samuel ...
'', founded in 1873.
It also has its own commercial station,
Nation Radio North East
Nation Radio North East is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting from studios in Sunderland to across the North East region of England which includes Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham, Teesside and parts of North Yorkshir ...
, formerly known as Sun FM, an independent station but now owned by
Nation Broadcasting
Nation Broadcasting is a British media company headquartered in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It currently owns and operates twelve Independent Local Radio stations across the United Kingdom.
History
Originally known as Town and Country Broad ...
who acquired the station from the
UKRD Group
The UKRD Group Ltd was a British media company that owned 15 commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. The name originates from UK Radio Developments. Since its acquisition in March 2019, it has been run as a subsidiary of Bauer Radio.
H ...
Greatest Hits Radio North East
Greatest Hits Radio North East is an Independent Local Radio station, based in Newcastle, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to North East England.
History
Great North Radio (a ...
,
Capital North East
Capital North East is a regional radio station owned and operated by Global as part of the Capital network. It broadcasts to North East England.
The station launched on 1 June 1999 as Galaxy 105–106, renamed in 2006 as Galaxy North East and ...
,
Smooth North East
Smooth North East is a regional radio station owned by Communicorp and operated by Global as part of the Smooth network. It broadcasts to North East England.
Overview
GMG Radio ownership
The licence for the station was originally awarded to ...
and
Heart North East
Heart North East is a regional radio broadcasting, radio station owned and operated by Global Group, Global as part of the Heart (radio network), Heart network. It broadcasts to North East England.
History Century Radio
Century Radio was the ...
. The regional BBC radio station is
BBC Radio Newcastle
BBC Radio Newcastle is the Local BBC Radio, BBC's local radio station serving Newcastle upon Tyne, the neighbouring metropolitan boroughs, Northumberland and north east County Durham.
It broadcasts on frequency modulation, FM, Digital Audio Br ...
. The city is covered by
BBC North East and Cumbria
BBC North East and Cumbria is one of the BBC's BBC English Regions, English regions covering Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, Gateshead, South Tyneside, City of Sunderland, County Durham, Northumberland, north and mid Cumbria and parts of N ...
and ITV's Tyne Tees franchise, which has a regional office in the university's media centre.
Sunderland's inaugural film festival took place in December 2003 at the Bonded Warehouse building on Sunderland riverside, in spite of the lack of any cinema facilities in the city at that time, featuring the films of local and aspiring directors as well as re-showings of acclaimed works, such as
Alan Bleasdale
Alan George Bleasdale (born 23 March 1946) is an English screenwriter, best known for social realist drama serials based on the lives of ordinary people. A former teacher, he has written for radio, stage and screen, and has also written novels ...
's '' The Monocled Mutineer'', accompanied by analysis. By the time of the second festival commencing on 21 January 2005, a new cinema multiplex had opened in Sunderland to provide a venue which allowed the festival to showcase over twenty films.
In March 2024, Crown Works Studios was given government backing to pave the way to create thousands of jobs across the north-east of England. The development forms part of a major regeneration scheme taking place in Wearside. Planning firm Lichfields said the studios would put the North East "on the map" as an international centre for broadcast and film production.
Music, dance and kites
In January 2025, Sunderland Music City announced that its bid to join the Music Cities Network has been successful, with Sunderland now a fully fledged member of the global collective. The accreditation will make Sunderland only the second city in the UK to join the network, following in the footsteps of Manchester. The Music Cities Network, established in 2016, connects cities worldwide to promote the music industry's growth, economic development, and cultural exchange. Internationally, Sunderland now sits alongside legendary music spots like Sydney and Berlin. Sunderland's place among the roster of international Music Cities is an acknowledgement of Wearside's amazing musical heritage and marks the ongoing commitment to nurturing the city's dynamic music scene and fostering a robust creative economy in the area. Inclusion in the network gives members access to collaborative opportunities, resources, and advocacy that will help the city build on its music ecosystem and support cultural, social, and economic development.
In 2013, local band Frankie and The Heartstrings opened a temporary pop up record store in the city, Pop Recs Ltd. Initially only intended to remain open for a fortnight, the store remains open and has hosted live performances from acts including
the Cribs
The Cribs are a British indie rock band originally from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, that formed in 2001. The band consists of twins Gary Jarman, Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross Jarman. They were subsequently joined by ex-The ...
,
the Vaccines
The Vaccines are an English indie rock band, formed in West London in 2010 by Justin Hayward-Young and Freddie Cowan. The band currently consists of Young (lead vocals, guitars), Árni Árnason (bass, vocals), Timothy Lanham (guitars, keys, ...
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
, home to
Sunderland AFC
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Formed in 187 ...
, is recognised internationally as a major stadium concert venue. Headlining acts have included
Oasis
In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environmentTake That
Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer ...
,
Pink
Pink is a pale tint of red, the color of the Dianthus plumarius, pink flower. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, p ...
,
Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, in 1999. The band includes brothers Caleb, Nathan, and Jared Followill and their cousin Matthew Followill.
The band's early music was a blend of Southern roc ...
,
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...
,
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...
,
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
The E Street Band is an American rock band that has been the primary backing band for rock musician Bruce Springsteen since 1972. In 2014, the E Street Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the bulk of Springsteen's recording ...
,
Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...
,
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...
,
One Direction
One Direction, often shortened to 1D, were an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group consisted of Niall Horan, Zayn Malik (until his departure in 2015), Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson. The group sold o ...
,
Foo Fighters
The Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, gu ...
and
Beyoncé
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...
. The Empire Theatre and Firestation play host to music acts. Venues such as Independent, a city-centre
nightclub
A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...
/music venue, satisfy music lovers need ecletic tastes and need to hear the next generation of bands.
Since 2009, Sunderland: Live in the city has played host to a series of free and ticketed live music events throughout venues in the city centre.
In May 2005, Sunderland played host to
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
's
Big Weekend
BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend (R1BW) (previously known as One Big Weekend, for 2012 as Radio 1's Hackney Weekend, and for 2018 as BBC Music's Biggest Weekend) is a British music festival run by BBC Radio 1. It is held once a year, in a different l ...
Foo Fighters
The Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, gu ...
,
Kasabian
Kasabian ( ) are an English rock band formed in Leicester in 1997 by lead vocalist Tom Meighan, guitarist and second vocalist Sergio Pizzorno, guitarist Chris Karloff and bassist Chris Edwards. Drummer Ian Matthews joined in 2004. Karloff ...
,
KT Tunstall
Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained attention with a 2004 live solo performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on ''Later... with Jools Holland'', and h ...
,
Chemical Brothers
The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Ed Simons and Tom Rowlands in Manchester in 1992. They were pioneers in bringing the big beat genre to the forefront of pop culture.
Originally known as The Dust Brothers, th ...
and
the Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...
.
The Manor Quay' the students' union nightclub on St Peter's Riverside at the
University of Sunderland
The University of Sunderland is a public research university located in Sunderland in the North East of England. Its predecessor, Sunderland Technical College, was established as a municipal training college in 1901. It gained university status ...
, has hosted the
Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. They comprise lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. The co-founder and original bassist Andy Nicholson ...
,
Maxïmo Park
Maxïmo Park are an English alternative rock band formed in 2000 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band currently consists of Paul Smith (English singer), Paul Smith (lead vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals), and Tom Engli ...
,
911
911, 9/11 or Nine Eleven may refer to:
Dates
* AD 911
* 911 BC
* September 11
** The 2001 September 11 attacks on the United States by al-Qaeda, commonly referred to as 9/11
** 11 de Septiembre, Chilean coup d'état in 1973 that ousted the ...
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop music, pop girl group that was created through the ITV (TV network), ITV talent show ''Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl (singer), Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, N ...
. In 2009, the club was taken into private ownership under the name Campus and hosted
N-Dubz
N-Dubz are an English hip-hop trio from Camden Town, London, England, consisting of cousins Dappy and Tulisa, and their friend Fazer. After winning a MOBO Award for Best Newcomer in 2007, N-Dubz briefly signed with Polydor Records before j ...
,
Ocean Colour Scene
Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) is an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums, including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 singles to d ...
,
Little Boots
Victoria Christina Hesketh (born 4 May 1984), known professionally as Little Boots, is an English singer-songwriter and DJ. She was previously a member of the band Dead Disco. Since performing as a solo artist, she has released four albums: ''H ...
,
Gary Numan
Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the New wave music, new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two st ...
and
Showaddywaddy
Showaddywaddy are a rock and roll group from Leicester, England. They specialise in revivals of hit songs from the 1950s and early 1960s, while also issuing original material. They have spent 209 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, and have had 10 ...
but has since been returned to the university where it has become the Interfaith Chaplaincy Centre.
The former students' union Wearmouth Hall hosted Voice of the Beehive,
Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Wales, Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, in 1986. The band consists of Nicky Wire (bass guitar, lyrics) and cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, le ...
, The Primitives and Radiohead before closing in 1992.
Sunderland musicians that have gone on to reach international fame include Dave Stewart of the
Eurythmics
Eurythmics were a British New wave music, new wave duo formed in 1980, consisting of Scottish vocalist Annie Lennox and English musician and producer Dave Stewart (Eurythmics), Dave Stewart. They were both previously in the Tourists, a band t ...
and all four members of
Kenickie
Kenickie were an English four-piece pop punk band from Sunderland. The band was formed in 1994 and consisted of lead vocalist, guitarist, and lyricist Lauren Laverne (b. Lauren Gofton), drummer Johnny X (real name Pete Gofton, Lauren's brothe ...
, whose vocalist
Lauren Laverne
Lauren Cecilia Fisher (née Gofton; born 28 April 1978), known professionally as Lauren Laverne, is an English radio DJ, model, television presenter, author and singer. She was the lead singer and guitarist in the alternative rock band Kenicki ...
later became known as a TV presenter. In recent years, the
underground music
Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, Popular music, mainstream popular music culture. Underground styles lack the commercial success of popular music movements, and may involve the use of avant-g ...
the Futureheads
The Futureheads are an English post-punk band from Sunderland, formed in 2000. The band consists of Ross Millard (vocals and guitar), David "Jaff" Craig (vocals and bass guitar) and brothers Barry Hyde (vocals and guitar) and Dave Hyde (drums) ...
,
the Golden Virgins
The Golden Virgins were an English four-piece pop and rock group from Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England.
The members of the band were Lucas Renney (singer/guitarist), Neil Bassett (drums), Dave Younger (synth/keyboards) and Allan Burnup (bass). ...
and
Field Music
Field Music are an English rock band from Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, that formed in 2004. The band's core consists of brothers David Brewis and Peter Brewis. Andrew Moore was the original keyboard player. Their line-up has at times fe ...
. Other Mackem musicians include punk rockers the Toy Dolls ("Nellie the Elephant", December 1984); oi! punk band
Red Alert
Red Alert or red alert may refer to:
Alert states
* Red alert, a high alert state
* Red Alert, the "attack imminent" alert signal for the US civil defense siren
* Red alert state, the most serious alert state in the UK BIKINI state system
* Red ...
; melodic hardcore punk band
Leatherface
Leatherface is a character from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (franchise), ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' series. He first appeared in ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' (1974) as the mentally disabled member of a family of deranged Human cannibalis ...
; the lead singer of dance outfit
Olive
The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...
, Ruth Ann Boyle ("You're Not Alone", May 1997); and A Tribe of Toffs (" John Kettley is a Weatherman", December 1988).
Sunderland has also hosted a free International Festival of Kites, Music and Dance, which attracted kite-makers from around the world to Northumbria Playing Fields, Washington.
Theatres and performance venues
The
Sunderland Empire Theatre
The Sunderland Empire Theatre is a large theatre venue located in High Street West in Sunderland, North East England. The theatre, which opened in 1907, is owned by City of Sunderland Council and operated by Ambassador Theatre Group Ltd, on be ...
opened in 1907 on High Street West in the city centre. It is the largest theatre in between
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
and
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
, and completed a comprehensive refurbishment in 2004. Operated by international entertainment group
Live Nation
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. is an American multinational Entertainment industry, entertainment company that was founded in 2010 following the Mergers and acquisitions, merger of Live Nation (events promoter), Live Nation and Ticketmaster. It ...
, the Empire is the only theatre between
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
and
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
with sufficient capacity to accommodate large West End productions. It is where British comic actor
Sid James
Sidney James (born Solomon Joel Cohen; 8 May 1913 – 26 April 1976) was a South African–British actor and comedian whose career encompassed radio, television, stage and screen. Noted for his distinctive laugh, he was best known for numerou ...
died of a heart attack whilst on stage in 1976.
The Bunker is the only venue in Sunderland where you can rehearse, record, learn and perform, all in one location. Born as a youth project in 1980, finally settling in its current home in 1983, new music talent can practice and perform in the same building that has hosted gigs by
The Clash
The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...
Chumbawamba
Chumbawamba () was a British anarcho-punk band who formed in 1982 and disbanded in 2012. They are best known for their 1997 single "Tubthumping", which was nominated for Best British Single at the Brit Awards 1998. Other singles include "Amnes ...
and
Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, author and political activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic th ...
. The Bunker has a history synonymous with the development of music making in the North East.
Independent is popular grass roots music venue in Sunderland, nurturing young talent, supporting bands and giving people a stage to play their first ever show. Open since the early 2000s it has played host to not only a range of up-and coming talent, but acts such as
The Zutons
The Zutons are an English indie rock band formed in Liverpool, in 2002. The band currently consists of Dave McCabe (vocals, guitar), Abi Harding (saxophone), Jay Lewis (guitar), Neil Bradley (keyboards) and Tim Cunningham (bass).
The band's ...
Klaxons
Klaxons were an English Rock music, rock band, based in London. Following the release of several Gramophone record, 7-inch singles on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles "Magick (Klaxons song), Magick ...
as well as local heroes such as
The Futureheads
The Futureheads are an English post-punk band from Sunderland, formed in 2000. The band consists of Ross Millard (vocals and guitar), David "Jaff" Craig (vocals and bass guitar) and brothers Barry Hyde (vocals and guitar) and Dave Hyde (drums) ...
and
Field Music
Field Music are an English rock band from Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England, that formed in 2004. The band's core consists of brothers David Brewis and Peter Brewis. Andrew Moore was the original keyboard player. Their line-up has at times fe ...
.
The Fire Station is a live music and performance auditorium that complements its Edwardian neighbour, the Empire Theatre. It is operated by Sunderland Culture. In 2017 the Sunderland MAC Trust restored Sunderland's 1908 Central Fire Station, vacant since 1992, and converted it into a cultural hub with dance and literacy studios, teaching rooms and a bar/restaurant. The Fire Station auditorium is a 500 seat/800 standing venue attached to the restored building which opened in December 2021.
The Royalty Theatre on Chester Road is the home to the amateur Royalty Theatre Group who also put on a number of low-budget productions throughout the year. Film producer David Parfitt belonged to this company and is now a patron of the theatre.
The Sunniside area plays host to a number of smaller theatrical workshops and production houses.
Harbin
Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...
, China
*
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France, in traditional Brittany.
The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Oc ...
, France
*
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, United States
*
Essen
Essen () is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and Dortmund, as well as ...
, Germany
Sunderland is the only non-capital city that is twinned with Washington, D.C., as it includes the town of
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
, the ancestral home of George Washington's family.
Sport
Football
The city is well known for its passion for football.
The
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
team,
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system.
Formed in 1879, the club has won si ...
was elected to the
Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...
in 1890. Sunderland supporters are one of the oldest fan bases in England: in 2019 it was reported that despite being in League One, Sunderland's average gates were higher than those of such teams as
Lyon
Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
,
Napoli
Naples ( ; ; ) is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its province-level municipality is the thir ...
,
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
People, characters, figures, names
* Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas.
* Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun
* Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...
,
Valencia
Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
,
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
, and
Porto
Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
. After relegations from the
FA Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football ...
and the
EFL Championship
The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...
, documented in the streaming series Sunderland 'Til I Die the club played four consecutive seasons in
EFL League One
The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...
. It played in the
EFL Championship
The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...
since the 2022–23 season until the 2024–2025 season, in which it was promoted back to the
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
through the
play-offs
The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...
for the first time in eight years. It is based at the 49,000-seat
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England, and the eighth and current home to Sunderland. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light is the ninth largest football stadium in England. The ...
, which was opened in 1997.
Sunderland AFC's longest stadium occupancy so far was of
Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; it h ...
for 99 years beginning in 1898, with relocation taking place due to the stadium's confined location and the need to build an all-seater stadium.
Sunderland A.F.C. Women is one of the north-east's top women's football teams. They currently play in the 2nd tier of English women's football –
Women's Championship (England)
The Women's Super League 2, also known as Barclays Women's Super League 2 for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in England, operated by WSL Football. It is the second-highest division of women's football in England. The div ...
Wearside League
The Wearside Football League is a non-league football competition based in northern England. It consists of three divisions which sits at steps 7 to 9 of the National League System (levels 11 to 13 of the Football pyramid) and is a feeder to the ...
, who play at the Ford Quarry Complex.
Rugby and Cricket
The Ashbrooke ground was opened on 30 May 1887. Sunderland's amateur
Rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby union: 15 players per side
*** American flag rugby
*** Beach rugby
*** Mini rugby
*** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side
*** Rugby tens, 10 players per side
*** Snow rugby
*** Tou ...
and
Cricket
Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
clubs are both based in
Ashbrooke
Ashbrooke is a residential area of Sunderland, North East England directly south and south-west of the city centre.
Ashbrooke developed through the Victorian era as Sunderland's first suburb. Originally occupied by large middle-class familie ...
.
Boxing & MMA
Sunderland has a vibrant combat sports community with a number of active clubs such as Sunderland Amateur Boxing Club, Lambton Street ABC and Roker Rough House.
Kiaran MacDonald picked up a silver at both the 2022
European Championships
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
and
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...
. Other talented boxers from Sunderland include former Olympians
Tony Jeffries
Tony David Jeffries (born Tony David Bryce; 2 March 1985) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2009 to 2011. As an amateur, he won the light-heavyweight bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics. In 2012, Jeffries was forced to re ...
, Josh Kelly, and Billy Hardy, and Layla Straughan.
Notable Mixed Martial Artists who have competed out of Sunderland are Andy Ogle,
Ian Freeman
Ian William Freeman (born 11 October 1966) is a retired English mixed martial artist who was the Cage Rage World Heavyweight Champion and the final Cage Rage British Light Heavyweight Champion. He was the first British person to fight in ...
,
Phil De Fries
Philip De Fries (born 21 April 1986) is a British mixed martial artist currently competing in the Heavyweight division of Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki, where he is the current KSW Heavyweight Champion. He holds the record for the most title defenc ...
Ross Pearson
Ross Pearson (born 26 September 1984) is a retired English mixed martial artist and professional boxer. A 26-fight veteran of the UFC, he was a three-time "Fight of the Night" winner and was the lightweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter 9.
B ...
.
Swimming
On 18 April 2008, the Sunderland Aquatic Centre was opened. Constructed at a cost of £20 million, it is the only Olympic sized 50 m pool between
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
and
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
and has six diving boards, which stand at 1 m, 3 m and 5 m.
The Crowtree Leisure Centre has also played host to a number of important boxing matches and snooker championships including the 2003 Snooker World Trickshot and Premier League Final. In September 2005,
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
TV cameras captured international boxing bouts featuring local boxers David Dolan, Stuart Kennedy and
Tony Jeffries
Tony David Jeffries (born Tony David Bryce; 2 March 1985) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2009 to 2011. As an amateur, he won the light-heavyweight bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics. In 2012, Jeffries was forced to re ...
. The latter became Sunderland's first Olympic medallist when he won a
bronze medal
A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receives ...
2008 Beijing Olympic Games
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fr ...
.
Athletics
In 2023, the British leg of the 2023 World Triathlon Championship Series was hosted in Sunderland, bringing elite swim, bike, run to Sunderland. The beach front at
Roker
Roker ( ) is a seaside resort in Sunderland, city of Sunderland district, Tyne and Wear. England. It is located north of the River Wear and Monkwearmouth, east of the southern part of Fulwell with the coastal resort of Seaburn to its nort ...
welcomed the triathletes from around the world as well as thousands of amateur participants over the weekend of 29–30 July 2023 for a festival of swim, bike, and run.
Sunderland Harriers Athletics Club based at Silksworth Sports Complex. 800 m runner Gavin Massingham represented the club at the AAA Championships in 2005.
The first Sunderland city 10 km was held in 2011, with just over 1500 taking part. By 2021 the Sunderland City Runs welcomed 4000 participants to the city streets in a celebration of running across a range of distances. Entrants can choose the flat and fast 10K, a spring Half-Marathon, or the Active Sunderland Big 3K.
On 25 June 2006, the first Great Women's Run took place along Sunderland's coastline. Among the field which lined up to start the race were Olympic silver medallists Sonia O'Sullivan of the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...
and
Gete Wami
Getenesh "Gete" Wami Degife (Amharic: ጌጤነሽ 'ጌጤ' ዋሚ ደግፌ born January 28th 1974 in Debre Berhan) is an Ethiopian former long-distance runner who competed in cross country, track, and road events.
Her brother, Mulugeta Wa ...
of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
, who eventually won the race. The race quickly became an annual fixture in the city's sporting schedule, with races in 2007 and 2008. In 2009, the race was relaunched as the
Great North 10K
The Great North 10K, styled as the Simplyhealth Great North 10K for sponsorship purposes, is a 10K run, 10K road running, road run, which has been called "the North East's biggest 10K running event", with over 5,000 people taking part. It is part o ...
Run, allowing male competitors to take part for the first time, on 12 July.
*
*
{{Navboxes , list1=
{{Geographic location
, Centre = Sunderland
, North =
South Tyneside
South Tyneside is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, England. It is bordered by all four other boroughs in Tyne and Wear: Gateshead to the west, Sunderland in the south, North Tyneside to the north and Newcastl ...
, Northeast =
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, East =
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, Southeast =
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, South =
Seaham
Seaham ( ) is a seaside town in County Durham (district), County Durham, England. Located on the Durham Coast, Seaham is situated south of Sunderland and east of Durham, England, Durham. The town grew from the late 19th century onwards as ...
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England
**County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States
Durham may also refer to:
Places
...
,
Chester-le-street
Chester-le-Street () is a market town in County Durham, England. It is located around north of Durham and is close to Newcastle. The town holds markets on Saturdays. In 2021, the town had a population of 23,555.
The town's history is ancient; ...
.
, West =
Gateshead
Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...
,
Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
, Northwest =
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
{{City of Sunderland
{{Tyne and wear
{{Coastal settlements
, place = Tyne and Wear
, settlement = Wearmouth, Sunderland
, anticlockwise =
Roker
Roker ( ) is a seaside resort in Sunderland, city of Sunderland district, Tyne and Wear. England. It is located north of the River Wear and Monkwearmouth, east of the southern part of Fulwell with the coastal resort of Seaburn to its nort ...
, clockwise =
Hendon
Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...