CHAPTER I. UNDERLAND, in the year 1820, was composed of five different Townships or Parishes, viz. :Sunderland, Bishopwearmouth, BishopwearmouthPanns, Monkwearmouth, and MonkwearmouthShore. Each Parish had its own Overseers, and each was separately rated to the poor. At that period it was said to be a very compact town, and contained 30,887 inhabitants. It was rather under one mile in length from East to West, and under half-a-mile in its then extreme breadth from North to South. There were three principal streets, viz. :-High Street, Low Street, and Coronation Street, (called the "Back Lonnin"). The communications or roads between the High Street and Low Street were called by the names of lanes, stairs, passages and banks; and between. the High Street and Coronation Street and the Moor, by the names of streets, lanes and alleys. The High Street ran the full length of the town, starting from the Low Row, then up a steep bank between the Church and the Rectory, and after passing a sharp narrow turning at the west of Crowtree Road, ran almost straight from west to east, till you came to a steep bank at the east end of the Fishermen's Cottages, where, at the left, two flights of stone steps led down to the Pier, whilst the road, turning sharp to the right, led down to the sands. The Low Street really began at the Hailing House, at the west end of the Pier, crossing the bridge at the high coble slipway over Thornhill's Wharf, and from Hardcastle Quay ran up to the foot of Beggars' Bank or Russell Street; entering Panns it then ran up to the public house known as the "Green Dragon," and, turning sharp to the southeast, joined what is now called West Wear Street; there was also a continuation of the road by the side of the bank up to the Bridge, crossing the Bridge Road to Pan Lane, which was the old road to the Panns. Coronation Street went west from Sunderland Church to the back of Norfolk Street, which formed almost the southern boundary of the town. There were also Zion Street, and a few houses in Nicholson's Square, the west side of Sans Street, Villiers Street, and Nile Street crossing it towards the south. Sunderland Town Moor and the Church Walk, up to Church Street, formed the southern boundary at the east end. Coxon's Fields stretched from Hendon Road to Sans Street; they were enclosed by a thorn hedge on the north, running from the foundry in Coronation Street to Sans Street, on the west by Sans Street, on the south by "Cutty Throat Lonnin," and on the east by Nicholson Street School and the farm buildings adjoining Hendon Road. From Norfolk Street to Waterloo Place was all gardens and fields, and from Sunniside a row of houses faced the High Street up to Union Street; from Waterloo Place and Union Street another stretch of green fields extended up to Crowtree Road, the whole being bounded on the south by what is now called the Borough Road. At the south-east corner of Crowtree Road were the high trees on which the crows used to build their nests, and to the north three or four two-storied houses, looking as though they were nestling under their shade. From Maritime Place to South Street ran a thorn hedge. South Street, as its name denotes, was the most southern street in Bishopwearmouth, and Middle Street is between it and High Street. West of Crowtree Road were Mr. Robert Fenwick's house and Mr. Nicholson's house, with a high stone wall running nearly the full length of the road, turning up in Vine Place, almost to what was said to be the oldest house in Bishopwearmouth. It was a "tee-fall” house, with the stairs inside going from one story to another, or from one room to the next; the gardens and vineries were enclosed by the wall as well as a clump of trees at the side of Vine Place-both houses faced the Green. Then there were the Green, Green Terrace, Low Row, and, at the east of the Church-Church Lane, Gibson's Alms Houses, and Littlegate. On the north side of the High Street, from Lambton Street westward, the Panns Fields stretched up to Bridge Street. The three-storied houses at the east side of Lambton Street looked upon green fields. There was no West Wear Street, Pratt's Buildings, nor Bedford Street. Bridge Street was not then built; there were two or three three-storied houses next the High Street, and a two-storied house on each side next the Bridge. The Register Buildings at the north side of the High Street occupy the site where Chapman's gardens and vineries used to be. Hutchinson's Buildings now occupy the site of Dr. Clanny's gardens; the house where the Doctor lived still stands facing Bridge Street. Pemberton's Buildings in Matlock Street were not then built, being erected as houses for the pitmen when the colliery was opened. There was also the open garth running between Cumberland Street and Queen Street from the back of the High Street to the north end of the streets. Messrs. Mounsey afterwards built their new furrier's factory at the south end, now occupied by E. C. Robson & Sons as a flour mill. West of Castle Street or Hopper Street were green fields, which ran further north than the street itself. A wall separated these fields from the Rector's park, which ran west up to the gill, and stretched from the road at the north end up to the rectory gardens on the south; a wall separating the gill from the park and gardens. West of the rectory and garden wall was a long strip of ground, rather narrow, sloping from the wall towards the open burn on the west. This parcel of ground was cultivated as a garden by the late Henry Gibson, who lived in a house or cottage facing the garden-the shop faced the High Street. On the rectory wall the small fern Wall Rue-or Ruta Muraria-grew and the Common Bracken grew in the gill. At the west of the burn, the road now called Silksworth Row, went to the Keelmen's Lonnin; all the ground to the west of this road was fields. The late Barnabas Sharp built a house up the bank to the west, almost facing what is now called Hind's Bridge; the garden in front ran down to the road. In the year 1719 Sunderland was made a separate Parish from Bishopwearmouth and covered about 220 acres of ground. The new parish, commencing at the sea beach, |