In a message dated 05/11/2007 12:26:28 GMT Standard Time, [email protected] writes: In a message dated 05/11/2007 12:09:56 GMT Standard Time, [email protected] writes: It is a plan drawn by the then parish surveyor James Rain _____________________________________________________________ Other sources say John Rain Stan Stan: The 1984 book edition (ISBN 0 85983 187 6, price in 1984: £3.90) simply calls him "Rain". However, the exceptions to that are on the front cover, where he is called "John Rain", and on the title page where he is again "John Rain". No biographical information is given elsewhere in that publication. Centrally, on the bottom edge of the Plan (Section C5 of the 1984 book) is an elaborate cartouche with the original title and compiler's name: "An Eye Plan of Sunderland and BishpWearmouth From the South by J Rain delin" and that appears to have been the inspiration for the cover. Could you perhaps have been confusing this Rain with Rev Canon James Rain, the Co Durham 19th-century antiquarian and friend of Robert Surtees? Judy and others may also like to know that what makes the "Eye Plan" especially interesting is that it is not the sort of simple map/plan that we are all used to. Instead it is something of a bird's-eye view of the town, with streets being seen obliquely and the fronts (or backs) of the buildings being drawn out, more or less, we must assume, as they were in real life. Although we cannot assume absolute precison - the width of the roadways, for instance, must be exaggerated - nevertheless we do get a sense of being able to "walk the streets" as they were in 1785/90. The expert articles next to each page, or section, of the Eye-Plan make it even more valuable an item for anyone interested in the history of Sunderland. Geoff Nicholson