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The River Wear is pictured from the entrance to the North Dock, looking upriver and towards the South Dock. Flags on the ships are flying at half-mast out of respect for the 1883 Victoria Hall disaster, when 183 children were crushed to death and another 100 injured in a stampede for free toys. The crisp and detailed style is characteristic of this artist's painting technique. John (or James) Smith was a Sunderland-born painter specialising in landscape, marine and coastal scenes. In later life he was often known as 'John Smith of Roker'.
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