The River

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In the early years Sunderland was made up of three parishes, Monkwearmouth on the north bank and Bishopwearmouth and Sunderland on the south bank of the river. The River Wear begins at Alston and flows down through Durham City to Sunderland and into the sea. It was near the mouth of the river that early settlements sprang up in Sunderland. The river was one of the main sources of income for many of the inhabitants of Sunderland during the 18th and 19th century.

The harbour saw many ships sailing in and out of the port. Ships would take coal and lime from the mines and foreign ships would bring in their goods. Many pictures of the river during these centuries show how busy the port was. It was not until the late 20th century that the port went into decline with the abolishment of the coal and shipbuilding industries. The banks of the river have now been landscaped, a university erected and a marina created where once large ships were built and sailed.

Until 1796 there was no bridge over the river to connect the three parishes, so people had to cross the river by ferry. The original bridge was the brainchild of Rowland Burdon, but the plan was abandoned because of the cost and the inconvenience to shipping. It was not until the ferry disaster of 1777 that the people of Sunderland deemed the need for a permanent link essential. A public fund was set up to build the bridge and Rowland Burdon kindly donated Ł20,000. The foundation stone was laid in 1793 and the bridge officially opened on 9th August 1796. It was estimated that 80,000 people attended the ceremony. My own ancestor John Heskett was one of the officiating clergymen. Tolls were levied on the bridge for goods, animals and people, but were abolished in 1885. The bridge lasted until 1928, although widened in 1859, when the Duke of York opened the present Wearmouth Bridge.

ALEXANDER BRIDGE 1908

This picture shows how even further up the river it was still busy. Shipyards were springing up all along the river banks. A new bridge was built up the river about a mile from the Wearmouth Bridge. The building of the bridge named "Queen Alexander" was started about 1908.This bridge was to connect Southwick on the north and Deptford and Pallion on the south bank of the Wear.William Doxford's shipyard was at the south bank of the river where many men in Sunderland were employed. The bridge was completed in 1909 and the opening ceremony was performed by Lord Durham who put the final rivet in place. This bridge is still in use today and very busy with traffic.

FISH QUAY 1890

Along the river there were many quaysides some of which were used by the local fishermen bringing home their catch. The fish was then sold from the quayside. My ancestor Isabella Heskett (formerly Greenwood)was a fish hawker, selling fish from the north quay at Monkwearmouth. The picture shows Low Quay which was on the Sunderland side of the river. There are still a few fishermen who go from Low quay today and fish is sold from the quayside but the trade is fast declining in Sunderland. My uncle Richard Heskett a grandson of Isabella had a small cobble in the 1940's and would go out fishing as a hobby.