Posts by date: April 2012

Interesting personnel records uncovered by the Sunderland Shipbuilding Archives project

During the past month I’ve been cataloguing the administrative records of Austin & Pickersgill Ltd and its two predecessor companies, S.P. Austin & Son Ltd and William Pickersgill & Sons Ltd. These include an interesting set of personnel records, which… Read more

‘Young Anglers, Barras Bridge’, painted by Thomas Miles Richardson: a picture of old Barras Mill-pond?

Thomas Miles Richardson’s idyllic scene of ‘Young Anglers, Barras Bridge, depicts a scene in Pandon Dean. Now completely obliterated, the dean was known for its beauty in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The scene can be located at Barras Mill-pond opposite the present-day Civic Centre. The picture was painted by Newcastle’s leading artist of the time, TM Richardson, senior (1784-1848). Read more

Monkwearmouth Station Bombed!

When first built there was a roof over the lines between the main building at Monkwearmouth Station and the Goods Yard on the west side. This roof provided shelter for the passengers waiting for their trains. On the night of… Read more

barque Lota 1891 (2)

It is time for me to post again about the Sunderland-built barque Lota. There has been a surprising volume of traffic in response to the original posting. I am amazed at how our shared knowledge of the ship, her voyages… Read more