7: The Eagle Building
Cross the roundabout towards the tower blocks onto High Street East. Please be careful crossing the road. Just past the University of Sunderland's student accommodation is the Eagle Building on your left.
The Eagle Building was the site of a pub dating from the late 17th century. Originally known as the Three Crowns, the pub changed names over the centuries until the 1860s when the owner, Mr Newbiggin, established the Eagle Tavern. The eagle was probably mounted on the building's roof in honour of the pub's new name.
The eagle was removed in 1920 when the building stopped being a pub. Where has the eagle gone? Some sources suggest the original sculpture now rests in a private garden on the island of Jersey.
The Eagle Building was restored in 2002. To mark the occasion a new wooden eagle was carved by local sculptor Phil Townsend and mounted on the roof where the original eagle sat overlooking the town.
