The Stanley Dock

“For miles you may walk along that river-side, passing dock after dock, like a chain of immense fortresses:-Prince’s, George’s, Salt-House, Clarence, Brunswick, Trafalgar, King’s, Queen’s, and many more.” Karel Capek, Letters from England, 1924

Images/map

A system of interlinked wet docks represents the culmination of Jesse Hartley’s development of dock design. It is a dramatic component of Liverpool’s historic dockland, characterised by massive warehouses, walls and docks, but also by smaller structures such as bridges, bollards and capstans.

Rum and tobacco imported from exotic locations were stored in the great brick buildings.

Constructed from a limited palette of materials – brick, stone, iron and mortar – these innovative buildings and structures represent the pinnacle of industrial dock architecture of the Victorian period.

The area incorporates the massive dock boundary wall, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and canal locks, the Victoria Clock Tower and the large water-filled Stanley, Collingwood, Bramley-Moore, Nelson and Salisbury docks.

The Stanley Dock Tobacco Warehouse is a grade II listed building and is the world’s largest brick warehouse, standing 125 feet high. It is a city landmark by virtue of its massive scale.

Today, much of the Stanley Dock conservation area is owned privately and used commercially.