Ryhope ( ) is a coastal village along the southern boundary of the

City of Sunderland The City of Sunderland () is a metropolitan borough with city status in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, North East England. It is named after its largest settlement, Sunderland, spanning a far larger area, including nearby towns incl ...

, in

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newc ...

, North East England. With a population of approximately 14,000, measured at 10.484 in the 2011 census, Ryhope is 2.9 miles to the centre of Sunderland, 2.8 miles to the centre of

Seaham Seaham is a seaside town in County Durham, England. Located on the Durham Coast, Seaham is situated south of Sunderland and east of Durham. The town grew from the late 19th century onwards as a result of investments in its harbour and ...

, and 1.2 miles from the main A19. The older village section is centred on a triangular 'green', which contains a war monument. The newer 'Colliery' area of Ryhope flanks the Ryhope Street/Tunstall Bank road, which lead toward the Tunstall and Silksworth areas of Sunderland.

Geography and administration

The A1018 'Southern Radial Route', which opened in 2008, bypasses Ryhope along the clifftops and takes traffic toward the Port of Sunderland in Hendon and other routes to the centre and north of Sunderland. The B1287 Sea View Road links Ryhope with the town of

to the south. Ryhope is surrounded by farmland meaning it is a relatively isolated suburb of Sunderland. A number of cycle routes run through the village, including the

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the cha ...

Route number 1 which is looked after by a local team of Sustrans Rangers. Located to the south-west of the village is

Cherry Knowle Hospital Cherry Knowle Hospital was a mental health facility in Ryhope, Tyne and Wear, England. It was managed by the South of Tyne and Wearside Mental Health NHS Trust. History The hospital was designed by George Thomas Hine using a Compact Arrow layout ...

which is part of the South of Tyne and Wearside Mental Health NHS Trust. It has long been the main mental health services complex for the Wearside area. The Ryhope Engines Museum is also located in this area. Ryhope was part of the

Houghton and Washington East (UK Parliament constituency) Houghton and Washington East was, from 1997 until 2010, a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. A seat ...

until its abolition at the 2010 general election. Since then, it has formed part of the

Sunderland Central Sunderland Central is a constituency in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It is represented by the Labour Party MP Julie Elliott, who has held the seat since its creation in 2010. Constituency profile The Sunderland Central constit ...

constituency.

History

Ryhope (from the Old English ''reof hoppas'', meaning "rough valley") is first mentioned in 930 AD when king Athelstan granted the land of Bishopwearmouth (including the township of Ryhope) to the Bishop of

Chester-le-Street Chester-le-Street (), also known as Chester, is a market town and civil parish in County Durham, England, around north of Durham and also close to Sunderland and Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located on the River Wear, which runs out to sea at ...

. The land had been reclaimed from the

Vikings Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and ...

who had captured it in 918 AD. Ryhope has a strong history of

farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

; in 1183 there were 22 recorded

villein A villein, otherwise known as ''cottar'' or '' crofter'', is a serf tied to the land in the feudal system. Villeins had more rights and social status than those in slavery, but were under a number of legal restrictions which differentiated them ...

s who provided the landowner with cattle and crops. In 1380 the population had swelled to approximately 150. In 1860 common grazing land was split into plots, which radiated out in strips from the village green. Ryhope's proximity to the sea has allowed it to serve as a seaside destination for centuries. The beach is said to have been a favourite sea-bathing spot for the Bishop of Durham. Located on the Durham, England, Durham coalfield, Ryhope followed the path of many other villages in the area, and abandoned agriculture as the main employer in favour of coal. In 1859 a colliery was opened, causing huge changes in the geography of the village. The settlement of Ryhope extended west toward the area of Tunstall, Sunderland, Tunstall, creating two distinct areas of Ryhope; the 'Village' and the 'Colliery' (the post-World War II, council-built estate of 'Hollycarrside' forms a third section.) Railway lines were introduced to the area, linking Ryhope to Sunderland,

and other Durham Coalfield mining villages. Now only a single railway line runs through the village, and there is no longer Ryhope East railway station, a station. The colliery was closed in 1966.

World War II

In March 1944 Ryhope was the scene of the conclusion of the epic last flight of the Handley Page Halifax bomber LK797 from RAF Bomber Command's raid on Nuremberg, which crash-landed in Ryhope, resulting in Pilot Officer Cyril Barton being posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

Sport

There are two football clubs in the town, Ryhope Colliery Welfare F.C., Ryhope Colliery Welfare and Sunderland Ryhope Community Association F.C., Sunderland Ryhope Community Association, both members of the Northern Football League, Northern League.

Notable people

* Mick Buxton, former Sunderland AFC manager * Ronald Radd, actor * Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland from 2014 into the 2020s, has family connections to the area, her paternal grandmother having been born in Ryhope. * Simon Fenton, actor & columnist

Tourism

Ryhope Engines Museum, which is based on the Ryhope Pumping Station, was built in 1868 to supply water to the Sunderland area. Among natural features, Ryhope adjoins Tunstall Hills which have views of the city of Sunderland and beyond (on a clear day, down the coast almost to Whitby). The Tunstall Hills are located on the southern outskirts of Sunderland between (New) Silksworth and Ryhope. The disused quarries and cuttings at Tunstall Hills provide exposure through part of the Magnesian Limestone succession of Permian age. The slopes on the "Maiden Paps" section support species such as blue moor-grass, common rock-rose, perennial flax and locally uncommon plants such as Frog Orchid, Autumn Gentian and Purple Milk-Vetch. These areas have been designated a "site of special scientific interest" (SSSI). Ryhope is also home to the world's first (and so far only) listed Pigeon Cree.

References

External links

Wearside Rangers, who maintain the cycleways through the village

Ryhope-born and bred author Glenda Young whose novels are set in Ryhope in 1919 and published by Headline.
{{T&W places City of Sunderland suburbs Populated coastal places in Tyne and Wear Sunderland