Life Is But A Dream...

So there I was in Bunny Hill library, Sunderland, just a stone's throw from the restored Hylton Castle, determined to learn all there is to know about the legend of the Cauld* Lad in case I could tease a story out of it.

*it's pronounced 'card' on Wearside

Instead I end up reading Bryan Talbot's magnificent Alice In Sunderland from cover to cover. It's a surreal journey through the city's history, presented in the form of a graphic novel, interweaving the biographies of Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell, both of whom had close connections with the area. Several pages are available to view on the link below.

http://www.bryan-talbot.com/alice/

I found out quite a lot today.

I already knew that Washington Old Hall, which is less than three miles from Hylton Castle, was the ancestral home of the family from whom George Washington was descended. I wasn't aware that its coat of arms consisted of stars and stripes.

And it came as a big surprise to discover that Sunderland-born John Lilburne wrote a tract in 1649 that's considered to be one of the main inspirations for the American Constitution.

Then there was the immense contribution Baron Hylton's relatives made to the settlement at Plymouth when they followed the Mayflower across the Atlantic in 1621.

So it could easily be argued that the USA owes the name of its capital city, its flag, its Constitution and even the success of its Founding Fathers to Sunderland and the surrounding area.

Nee bother, as people from round here might say.