Throughout
the years, we have dealt with many customers from Sunderland and North East, offering
paternity testing and other DNA relationship testing to the local
community. Using this opportunity, we want to provide information about this
fine city.
Located at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea,
Sunderland was known as Wearmouth in Saxon times; it formerly included
Monkwearmouth, site of a monastery built in 674 where the Venerable Bede
studied. Sunderland itself (named for the part of Monkwearmouth
“sundered” from the monastery by the river) was chartered in the late
12th century. The port grew rapidly as the coal trade developed in the
17th century, and by the mid-18th century it was a major shipbuilding
centre. Modern industries include glassware and automobile
manufacturing. Within the borough are the seaside resorts of Roker and
Seaburn. In addition to the town of Sunderland, the city and
metropolitan borough includes the towns of Washington,
Houghton-le-Spring, and Hetton-le-Hole.
