The Greatest Shipbuilding Port in the World


Status
Not open for further replies.
Tonnage is the answer. Sunderland were the most prolific shipbuilders in the U.K. in the 18th century, 19th century and arguably the first half of the 20th century (the Clyde sometimes produced slightly more but that was spread over numerous towns along the Clyde). We produced 28% of the UK’s output during the Second World War and significantly more than the whole of Japan, who later went on to dominate shipbuilding until Korea and China got into the market.

We were the biggest shipbuilding town (or city) in the world.

The tyne was famous for warships and the Mauritania…even then their biggest shipyard was run/owned by a Mackem as were a lot of the shipyards on the tees.
The Liberty ships were based on a Thompson design as well.
 
Wherever this has come from, it doesn't appear to have come from Bede himself, who was humble enough not to produce anything autobiographical, as far as I can see. He describes the Wearmouth monastery in his Lives of the Holy Abbots of Weremouth and Jarrow (a translation can be found here Internet History Sourcebooks), but his main aim is to describe the lives of the first four abbots. With texts from this period, there is a big problem with apparent copies made in the Middle Ages; many of them are actually forgeries (particularly where land grants by kings are concerned) to provide false evidence in later disputes. The technology for deep mining of coal simply didn't exist in the 8th century when Bede was writing, so anything there was could only have been open cast or drift mining (tunnelling straight into the side of a hill).
It was an article about someone from Durham University who was trying to find out where the word "geordie" came from. He claimed to have found the sentence "the miners from the Parishes of Wearmouth and Jarrow who call (name) themselves Geordie" written by Bede. But then couldn't find the word used again until the 18th century.
And as you say the miners of the time would just be be digging coal out of cliffs or digging up seams just below the surface.
I remember when the A19 was being constructed past Townend Farm there was a 6 inch seam of coal unearthed just below the surface, all the locals were over there at night with their bikes and sacks digging it up.
 
Areet so I should have been a bit more thorough in my research. However I stand by my initial point that we were renowned throughout the world for shipbuilding and not coal. Couldn't care less where the stadium was built.
 
Davy lamp is for obvious reasons because the stadium is built on a pit. Also Bob Murray has a big affinity with the miners of County Durham, I think his dad might have been one, and for people growing up in the mining villages.
I had a long conversation with him about how he loved meeting people who had succeeded in life from that background.
He also loved having the miners banner half way up the stairs in the corporate bit of the west stand
His Dad worked at Silksworth pit.
 
We built ships to transport the coal. Without the coalfield it's doubtful we'd have been such an important port.
Pretty much this - having coal and iron in the same relatively small area and a river to move the stuff made it the ideal location - an accident of geology / geography. The meanders in the river also helped.
 
Genuine question, did the NE pits not use the Geordie lamp (invented by George Stephenson) rather than the Davy lamp
They did but it’s possible that it has more to do with William Clanny who was concerned about the effect of the Felling disaster ( I think 1812) he started on his own safety lamp. There were problems with Clanny and Stephenson about certain features of Clanny’s lamp that may have been copied, same with Davy and Stephenson. Clanny gained fame for his part in the cholera epidemic of 1831. He wasn’t born in Sunderland but in Bangor on the west coast of Ireland but his best work was done in Sunderland.
 
It was an article about someone from Durham University who was trying to find out where the word "geordie" came from. He claimed to have found the sentence "the miners from the Parishes of Wearmouth and Jarrow who call (name) themselves Geordie" written by Bede. But then couldn't find the word used again until the 18th century.
And as you say the miners of the time would just be be digging coal out of cliffs or digging up seams just below the surface.
I remember when the A19 was being constructed past Townend Farm there was a 6 inch seam of coal unearthed just below the surface, all the locals were over there at night with their bikes and sacks digging it up.
They also found shallow coal seams when cutting the A1 near Lumley on the way north to Chester Le Street.
Monks dug into the hillsides of the Wear, for coal near Finchale Abbey over a thousand years ago.
The earliest records of shipments of coal in UK were from Sunderland to Whitby Abbey.
The Wear was stopped from exporting coal by the King , he being supported by the folk of Newcastle got the Royal approval to export coal which caused a catastrophic effect on the livelihoods and lives of Wearsiders, who suffered from poverty and death due to starvation. Sunderland supported the Parliamentarians. The Scottish Army encamped in Sunderland and along with the folk of Wearside attacked, burned and ransacked Newcastle during the Civil War . It was many years later that Wearside was granted the approval to re start exporting coal to London.
 
Areet so I should have been a bit more thorough in my research. However I stand by my initial point that we were renowned throughout the world for shipbuilding and not coal. Couldn't care less where the stadium was built.
Still missing the point still.
 
They also found shallow coal seams when cutting the A1 near Lumley on the way north to Chester Le Street.
Monks dug into the hillsides of the Wear, for coal near Finchale Abbey over a thousand years ago.
The earliest records of shipments of coal in UK were from Sunderland to Whitby Abbey.
The Wear was stopped from exporting coal by the King , he being supported by the folk of Newcastle got the Royal approval to export coal which caused a catastrophic effect on the livelihoods and lives of Wearsiders, who suffered from poverty and death due to starvation. Sunderland supported the Parliamentarians. The Scottish Army encamped in Sunderland and along with the folk of Wearside attacked, burned and ransacked Newcastle during the Civil War . It was many years later that Wearside was granted the approval to re start exporting coal to London.
Nice story that have a like.
 
Areet so I should have been a bit more thorough in my research. However I stand by my initial point that we were renowned throughout the world for shipbuilding and not coal. Couldn't care less where the stadium was built.
Why are you so scared of a answering me :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Areet so I should have been a bit more thorough in my research. However I stand by my initial point that we were renowned throughout the world for shipbuilding and not coal. Couldn't care less where the stadium was built.

That depends on how parochial you're being. If you regard the club as for Sunderland, you may have a point. However, if you regard the club as being for the whole of County Durham, which actually reflects the demography of the support base, then coal is far more relevant than shipbuilding.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Back
Top