In 1902 the book, 'A New
Illustrated Guide To Liverpool ' was published
by Littlebury Brothers. The book included many sketches of the period by
Leonard Pattern. It has since been re-produced by Liverpool Libraries and
Information Service.
Continuing with our 1902 'Guide to Liverpool '
we will today take a trip on the Overhead Railway and view the Docks from the
perspective of a visitor to the city at that time.
The visitor who travels
from end to end of the seven miles of Liverpool Docks by the Overhead Electric
Railway, will realize what a great convenience the existence of this line must
be to the business man and dock worker. The Dock system is so vast, and,
moreover, increasing so rapidly that this unique Electric Railway is now quite
indispensable.
The line, which was opened
by Lord Salisbury in 1893, is nearly 7 miles in length, and, with the exception
of two short distances, first, where it reaches ground level to enable a siding
of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway to pass over it, and secondly, when it
passes through the tunnel near Dingle Station, it is built entirely on an iron
viaduct which skirts the line of Docks. It is the first Railway of its kind
made in Europe . The electric current is
generated at the Central Station at Bramley Moore Dock, and transmitted along the
conductors between the lines of metals, from which it is taken up by collectors
placed under the coaches. The trains are each made up of two roomy carriages,
and the modest fares of 3d. (1st class) and 2d. (2nd class) are charged for a
part or the whole distance.
As a visit to the Docks
will be almost certainly made by the visitor at a comparatively early stage of
his sojourn in Liverpool , he cannot do better
than take a ticket on this overhead line and make the complete journey. The
Docks are each full of interest, and differ greatly, but the visitor will find
that by seeing such as the Canada ,
Canning, and Herculaneum ,
he will gain a good idea of the entire system. The Overhead Line reaches from
the Dingle Station in the south, to Seaforth at the northern (Bootle) end of Liverpool . There are 15 Stations between these points,
giving the readiest access to the different Docks. The most important and conveniently
situated Station is the one in St.
Nicholas Place called the Pier Head.

We will assume that the
visitor starts from the northern overhead terminus at Seaforth. At Seaforth
Station there is an Electric Stairway on the Reno Elevator principle, which
gently and almost imperceptibly conveys the passenger from the entrance to the
platform. The Railway cars are provided with many windows, enabling the
passenger to get a good view of the various objects of interest past which he
journeys. In some of the trains windows are found at the end of the
compartment, which enable the occupant to obtain a capital outlook. As we sit
facing the direction in which we are going, and leave the Seaforth terminus, we
notice, to our right, the long stretch of sands which here mark the shore to
the Crosby channel. Straight ahead we get a
glimpse of the wall which forms the present limit to the Dock area. At the
corner of this wall is the Seaforth Battery, the guns of which, and those of
the Rock Fort at New Brighton ,
opposite, command the entrance to the Mersey Estuary. At a short distance from
the Seaforth Battery, to the south, and near the first Hornby Dock, is the
North Wall Lighthouse. We are now passing
through the least interesting part of our whole journey, a great space
largely taken up by slates, bricks, timber, &c., but the train presently
makes a slight curve and enters Alexandra Dock Station. This is the nearest
station for the first Hornby Dock and the great Alexandra Dock, and with its 3
branches. The Alexandra was Alexandra opened (with the next Langton Dock) by
King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra in 1881, when Prince and Princess of Wales.
The two Docks are connected by passages, each 90 feet in width. The area of the
Alexandra Dock quay space is no less than 3921 yards. On the landward side of
the Overhead Railway at this Dock are the fine warehouses and silos of the
Liverpool Grain Storage Co. At a short distance from the Alexandra is Langton
Station, which faces the great Langton Dock and its branch. The huge 100-ton
hydraulic crane is here noticeable. There are two Graving Docks which open out
of this Dock, each 948 feet by 60 feet. On the Quay at the side are handsome
buildings of Gothic design, with a clock tower 120 feet high. The next station
we reach is Brocklebank. Between this and the important Canada Station the
space is almost entirely taken up by timber yards. At Canada Dock, with quay
space of 2887 yards, and the adjoining Huskisson Dock and branches, we are
certain to see, at one time or another, all the largest liners which ply
between Liverpool and New York
and other parts. Such leviathans as the “ Campania ,” “ Oceanic,” “Saxonia,” “
Teutonic,” are to be seen here docked, lying alongside the monster goods sheds.
On making application at the offices, permission is readily granted to view
these fine vessels. A new branch Dock from the Canada is now under construction,
and immediately south of this we come to Dock the Canada Graving Dock, the
largest Graving Dock in the world, 925 ft. long by 94 ft. wide. It is said that
this Dock can be cleared of water in one hour. The Canada Basin ,
the entrance to this and other docks, is one of the most interesting to be seen
in the whole extent of the Dock frontage. Fine jetties run to north and south,
and on the south wall is situated an interesting mediaeval looking Castle and
Harbour Master’s buildings.
Having
journeyed from Canada Station and passed Huskisson, we see great changes in
progress near the Sandon Dock. Sandon The new Half-Tide Dock, now being
constructed, is to receive at its chief entrance, 100 feet across, gates each
weighing no less than 180 tons. On the journey to the next Nelson Station, our
line dips to the ground, allowing a branch line of the Lancashire
and Yorkshire Railway to pass over it. Here, in Bramley Moore Dock, the Station
for supplying electric power to the trains is situated. n passing to Clarence
Station, the line crosses between the Collingwood and Stanley Docks. The
latter, which connects with the Leeds and Liverpool Canal ,
is the only Dock which lies to the left on our whole journey. Here is seen the
enormous Tobacco Warehouse, said to be the largest commercial building in the
world. It is 14 storeys high, and if all the floors were laid out on one
surface they would cover an area of 36 acres, capable of storing
about 65,000 hogsheads of tobacco. On the Mersey
side of the Collingwood is the Salisbury Dock with its picturesque battlemented
clock tower, centrally placed at the Dock gates.
Notice during the journey
the huge Waterloo Goods Depot of the L. & N. W. Railway, covering about ten
acres of ground; also the large depot of the Midland Railway. Between the
Clarence and Prince’s Stations, there are smaller Docks used by the steam
packets plying between Scotland ,
Ireland , and Liverpool . The Trafalgar, Trafalgar and Victoria Docks
are each Victoria , about six acres in extent,
and entered from West Waterloo or Clarence
Docks, they date from 1836.
The East
Waterloo is almost hidden on three sides by the enormous Waterloo
Granaries. These buildings are capable of holding 165,000 quarters of corn, and
occupy an area of 11,550 square yards, and it is almost unnecessary to add, the
cellars are quite rat proof and water tight. The Dock was specially made in
1868 for the corn trade. Every visitor to Liverpool
should make a special effort to see the grain elevators at work. In Prince’s
Station we are abreast of the Prince’s Half-Tide Dock, and in making the journey
to the next, Pier Head Station, we run by the side of the Prince’s Dock. This
Dock, which was made in 1821 and cost £561,060, is chiefly used by the Irish
boats. The Prince’s Half-Tide Dock entrance and buildings are about as well
known as any feature in the whole Dock frontage. The Clock Tower is a most
prominent mark to the north of the great Landing Stage, The large Dock Gates
are worked by hydraulic power, and the splendid wall is considered to be as
fine a specimen of masonry as can be seen in the kingdom. In continuing our
journey towards the Pier Head Station, the ground will look familiar to us, for
we are again brought facing the busy St.
Nicholas Place and George’s Pier Head. We leave
the Pier Head Station, and to the left we get a peep up Water Street . The Georges George’s Dock
lying to our right is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Just before
entering the next station, we notice James
Street to the left, in which the White Star Office
and Mersey Railway Tower
are prominent. Beneath us about this spot the Mersey Tunnel Railway Line makes
its course under the river to Birkenhead .
Between the Stations of James Street, Custom House, and Wapping, we are in the
oldest Dock district. On this south side of the Dock System we notice more
sailing craft, and everything is on a smaller scale.
We next pass the Canning,
the oldest existing Dock, constructed in 1717, and originally known as the Dry
Dock. The Custom House Station stands exactly opposite the great Custom House,
in Canning Place .
On leaving this we pass by the side of the Salthouse, to the west of which lies
the Albert Dock, opened by Prince
Albert in 1845. The imports from East
Indies , China ,
and South America are here landed. The
Salthouse occupies the site of some old salt works, whence its name is derived.
Just before reaching Wapping Station, we pass the huge Railway Goods Depot belonging
to the L. & N.W. Railway. Company, and the Tobacco Warehouse of Messrs.
Ogden, opposite which are the Wapping and King’s Docks. The journey now takes
us by the side of the Queen’s Dock and Basin, and to the foot of the narrow
Coburg Dock, which has an outlet to the river 70 feet in width. The trade with Spain and West Africa
is chiefly carried on here.
Presently we enter the
Brunswick Station, which lies off the Dock of the same name. It has a small
Half-Tide Dock leading to the Mersey , on either
side of which are shipbuilding and repairing yards. This important Dock was for
years the chief centre of the timber trade, now carried on in the Northern
Docks. Nearby the red brick tower
of Cain ’s Brewery and the
African Oil Mills building form prominent landmarks. In nearing the Toxteth
Dock Station, we cannot fail to notice yet another monster Goods Depot on our
left, the joint property of the different companies running as the Cheshire
Lines. The Toxteth Dock has an area of 112 acres, and in this and the
neighbouring Dock is centred the cotton trade. The sills of these last three,
the Toxteth, Toxteth, Harrington, and Herculaneum Harrington, Docks are at a
much lower level than those of the older ones.
We pass alongside the double-storeyed sheds which line the Toxteth and
Harrington Docks, and enter Herculaneum Station. Herculaneum Dock lies ahead of
us. The Herculaneum Dock has communication with the river by two entrances
which measure 80 and 60 feet respectively. It possesses a Branch and three large
Graving Docks. Petroleum oil is here stored in magazines excavated out of the
solid rock. The visitor will notice the two powerful 25-ton hydraulic coaling
cranes, which lift up and tip a full railway wagon into the ship’s hold or
bunkers. This is the last of the series of Docks, and the train, making a sharp
turn, crosses an iron bridge, which spans the intricate system of lines running
through a deep cutting to the Liverpool Central Station in Ranelagh Street , and disappears through a
tunnel which brings it to Dingle Station, the southern terminus. The whole
journey from Seaforth is accomplished in a little over the half-hour.
Link
Source
Central
Library
Liverpool
Records Office
Littlebury
Brothers
Leonard
Pattern
Robert F
Edwards
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