THESE wonderful photographs of day-to-day life along the river in South Hylton were all taken during the summer of 1877.
Pubs line the waterfront, jostling for space with brick, gas and metal firms. Long-gone shops and farm buildings are also featured, as is the ferry landing.
"The pictures provide us with a unique snapshot in time," said Ron Lawson, photographic archivist for Sunderland Antiquarian Society.
"They show an era when the river at South Hylton was bustling with life and industry. Indeed, they are an absolutely fascinating insight into a time now long gone."
South Hylton is thought to date back thousands of years, with the discovery of a Neolithic dugout canoe in the bed of the River Wear in 1885 adding weight to the theory.
However, little more is known of the area's history until 1157, when Romanus of Hylton held the title of Lord of the Manor. The estate was eventually sold off in about 1750.
The little community was known as Low Ford or Hylton Ferry until the late 18th century, when the name South Hylton came into regular use.
Originally a rural farming community, the village of South Hylton was a product of the industrial revolution. Factories, shops and pubs lined the banks of the River Wear by the early 1700s.
Hylton Cement Works was a major success story, becoming one of Sunderland's main cement firms in the 19th century, while Dawson's Pottery produced Sunderland lustreware until 1864.
Sandstone quarried from nearby Coxgreen was used to make glassware, and the copperas industry also flourished along the Wear at Deptford and South Hylton.
The process, extracting sulphur from coal to make inks and dyes, even lent its name to Copperas Bank in South Hylton, where Forster's Forge later thrived in the late 19th century.
Indeed, Sunderland's metal industries were mainly concentrated around the South Hylton, Deptford, Millfield and Monkwearmouth areas, producing steel as well as iron.
Shipbuilding, too, was another industry to flourish in the area, with Edward Potts opening a yard at South Hylton in 1803 and George Bartram setting up shop nearby in 1837.
Mr Lawson said: "The pictures depict just how much industrial activity there used to be at South Hylton, as well as the many houses, shops and, of course, pubs which lined the river.
"There are 20 pictures in the full collection and it is highly unusual to find so many photographs taken of the same place at the same time.
"Very little today remains of what was photographed in 1877, making these pictures a truly wonderful addition to our archives."
l The pictures can be viewed at the next public meeting of Sunderland Antiquarian Society, which will be held at Southmoor School from 10am to noon on February 10.


Tragic blaze at the George and Dragon
THE George and Dragon pub, pictured on these pages, was the scene of a tragic blaze on December 3, 1891.
Fire broke out at the popular inn in the early hours and publican William Davison was woken by shouts for help outside his bedroom door.
His sister, Sarah Jane Gibbon, and sister-in-law, Mary Ann Porter, who had been helping out at the pub, had discovered the blaze and were banging on the door for help.
Running to let them in, the room filled with smoke and flames as soon as William opened the door. Beaten back by smoke, he returned to the bedroom to rescue his family.
A report from the Sunderland Echo later that day reads: "He groped about in the darkness for members of the family and brought them beside the window.
"Having smashed the window, he dropped to the ground and told his wife to throw the children down, which she did, Mr Davison catching them. He then assisted his wife to get down and called on his sister and companion to follow.
"As there was no answer, he climbed to the upper window again and, making his way into the room, called the girls and searched for them amid the blinding smoke and scorching fire."
Tragically, he fainted before he could save them. The bodies of Sarah, 18, and Mary Ann, 16, were later recovered from the fire-blackened building. William, however, eventually managed to scramble to safety.
"Their awful death is indeed a sad end to two such young and promising lives," the Echo told its readers.