The first Wearmouth Bridge over the River Wear, in Sunderland, was opened by the Duke of Gloucester on the 9th of August, 1796. The iron bridge had a high arch, to allow sailing ships with tall masts beneath it. Before the bridge was built, the only way to cross the River Wear, downstream of Chester-le-Street, was by ferry. Initally a toll was payable to cross the bridge; it became free to pedestrians in 1846, and was completely toll free by 1885.

As a stunt, Micheal Smith, a American living in Sunderland, jumped off Wearmouth Bridge on the 8th of September 1842. He survived and swam to the riverbank. The crowds who had watched the spectical give him money, but as a result, the Police arrested him for begging. A folk song about Micheal Smith was written and published soon after the event.

Construction of the new Wearmouth Bridge in Sunderland began in 1927. The old bridge neeed to be replaced in order to accommodate the growing volume of road traffic over the River Wear in Sunderland. Notably, the new bridge was built around the old one, in order to allow the road to remain open as long as possible. 

The new Wearmouth Bridge in Sunderland was opened by the Duke of York (later King George VI), on the 31st of October 1929. The bridge, over the River Wear, was designed by Mott, Hay and Anderson and fabricated by the famous bridge building firm of Sir William Arrol & Co. The bridge cost £231,943 to build, including £12,000 for dismantling the old bridge.

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