Washington, Tyne and Wear Sunderland
Washington is a town located in the metropolitan borough of Sunderland, before 1974 it was part of county Durham but in 1974 it was included in what today we call Tyne and Wear. It is located an equal distance from Newcastle, Sunderland and Durham and so has close links with all three. It was made a town in 1964 officially and grew rapidly, and created many new villages whilst absorbing others. The town has a population of 60,000 according 2001 census. There is a lot of debate as to where the name of the town hailed from. The three main theories are;
"Hwæsa origin"- The name is derived from an Anglo Saxon word Hwæsingatūn meaning "estate of the descendents (family) of Hwæsa".
"Washing origin"- The name is derived from the old English verb wascan and the noun dūn meaning "hill"; making it Wascandūn, meaning "washing hill". This theory comes from the fact that the town is located near to the river wear.
"Gaelic origin"- The name is derived from Gaelic uisge meaning "water" and dùn meaning "fort". Forming Uisgedùn as there was an Anglo Saxon settlement based there many centuries ago.
There is a Washington old mill built in 1183 by william de hertburn who took the name of his new estate and was thereafter called William de Wessyngton. In 1539 he moved to Northamptonshire and the spelling of the town was changed to Washington from then on.
Today the foundations are all the remains of the house. That house was also home to George Washington’s ancestors and the American independence is still commemorated at the sight of the old house each year.
The industry of Washington was mainly coal mining and there were many pits. One known as the 'F' Pit Museum has been preserved as it appeared when it was in use. As coal production was so vital many wagon ways and later railways were erected to transport the vital coal to the ships sitting on the river wear. The chemical industry was also big in Washington and in the 19th century the Washington Chemical Works was a huge business employing many people. Today Washington’s main industries are textiles, electronics, car manufacturing, chemicals and electronics. Nissan has a huge factory there and employ thousands. It is the largest car manufacturer factory in Sunderland.
There is a nature reserve called the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, and Washington 'F' Pit mining museum are within the town. There is also an arts centre and a north east aircraft museum. Washington is one of Britain’s largest towns without a railway station (the nearest one is 3 miles away), but there are numerous bus links.