The Stars and Stripes were raised at Washington Old Hall to mark American Independence Day and the second anniversary of Sunderland's friendship agreement with Washington DC.
The annual ceremony took place yesterday in the Jacobean gardens of the hall, once home to the ancestors of George Washington, first President of the United States.
The event was organised by Washington School, the Friends of Washington Old Hall
and the National Trust, which owns the historic building.
Every year, the 50-strong National Trust Council visit different regions and this year they were dropping in on trust properties in the North East, including Washington Old Hall.
They were joined by Fiona Reynolds, director general of the National Trust and chairman Sir William Proby.
The celebration included a moving reading of Martin Luther King's The Dream by two pupils from Washington School, a reading from the American Declaration of Independence by Nick Dolan, of the National Trust, and a speech by the Mayor of Sunderland, Coun Mary Smith, about the unique friendship agreement between the Sunderland and the capital of the USA, Washington.
The ceremony ended with the raising of the American flag by Kelly and Kaitlin Whittaker, of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and the singing of the American national anthem before a short address by American Pastor Tom Richters and a rendition of the Battle Hymn of the Republic by City Swing.
One of the highlights was an enactment by children from John F Kennedy Primary School and Broadway Junior School, who brought to life the stories of George Washington and JFK.
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