Abingdon St

A Memory of Sunderland.

I have fond memories of visiting our grandparents on our mother's side, who lived at number 8. We recited the "ABC" streets and I can remember Smythes the cake shop at the top of the street, where we bought Snowball cakes from. We also walked to Barnes Park with my dad, obviously to get us out of the way for a bit of fresh air! I clearly remember the bandstand and on a recent revisit to Sunderland to retrace some memories, it revoked the cannon we used to sit on.
I remember several of the roads were red tarmac and the buses were orange and we caught the bus which said Seaburn. I remember Binns and on the way into the centre there was a scrap yard with a yellow robot in it that we all looked for. Coming from the country, oddly Sunderland was never about the sea but about seeing nana and granddad and mum used to call her mum "mam".
I clearly remember the metal arched bridges over the river that we used to see on the way into town and nana used to save tokens for us to use on the bus. I'm sure I remember Binns as having little childrens trolleys and a pick and mix sweet aisle so you could choose your own shopping and pay? One Xmas mum and dad gave me an orange furry snake that I had admired in Binns, it was a real suprise and delight and I called him Sammy!
As I mentioned, I recently revisited with one of my sisters and we had a very emotional journey, several places from the past. Sorley St Church where my grandparents were married (and my mother would have been christened), they reconnected with in later years and where we held their memorial services. They had left Sunderland in 1924 to go to Belfast with my grandfather's work, he had been an electrical estimator in Sunderland in the shipyards but we are unsure which one. After 10 yrs they went to London and in later years returned to Sunderland to live in my nana's parents house. Their one child, Margorie, settled in Shropshire and it is from there that we used to travel up north via Clitheroe, Gisburn, Rippon and Skipton, then on up the old A1 to Sunderland.
My sister and I also visited Penshaw, Roiker park, Silksworth, the Royalty and Ryhope, all having family connections or memories. I will go again one day, maybe to show my children where their great grandparents came from and to share some of my childhood. Every time I hear a Geordie accent, I think of my roots there and how much mum loved the accent, although she herself was two when they went to Belfast. If this sparks a related memory with anyone then please get in touch, I would love to know more .

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