Huskisson Dock is a

dock A dock (from Dutch language, Dutch ''dok'') is the area of water between or next to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore) or such structures themselves. The ex ...

on the

River Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, which forms part of the

Port of Liverpool The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed Dock (maritime), dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, Merseyside, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Great Float, Birkenhead Docks between ...

. It is situated in the northern dock system in Kirkdale. Huskisson Dock consists of a main basin nearest the river wall and two

branch dock A branch dock is a dock that forms part of a large harbour system of interlinked docks. Branch docks are terminal branches of a main floating dock. They are ''not'' isolated from the main dock by gates or locks and they share the same water le ...

s to the east. It is connected to

Canada Dock Canada Dock is a dock on the River Mersey, England, and part of the Port of Liverpool. It is situated in the northern dock system in Kirkdale. Canada Dock consists of a main basin nearest the river wall with three branch docks and a graving ...

to the north and

Sandon Half Tide Dock Sandon Half Tide Dock is a half tide dock on the River Mersey, England, and part of the Port of Liverpool. It is situated in the northern dock system in Kirkdale, connected to Huskisson Dock to the north, Wellington Dock to the east and Br ...

to the south.

History

The dock was designed by

Jesse Hartley Jesse Hartley (21 December 1780 – 24 August 1860) was Civil Engineer and Superintendent of the Concerns of the Dock Estate in Liverpool, England between 1824 and 1860. Hartley's career Despite having no experience of dock building, Hartley was ...

and opened in 1852. It is named after a former MP and

Treasurer of the Navy The Treasurer of the Navy, originally called Treasurer of Marine Causes or Paymaster of the Navy, was a civilian officer of the Royal Navy, one of the principal commissioners of the Navy Board responsible for naval finance from 1524 to 1832. T ...

William Huskisson William Huskisson (11 March 177015 September 1830) was a British statesman, financier, and Member of Parliament for several constituencies, including Liverpool. He is commonly known as the world's first widely reported railway passenger casu ...

. Initially dealing in

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

, it later traded in

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legum ...

and provided berthing facilities for passenger ships on North American routes. The main basin was enlarged and a branch dock created in the 1860s to accommodate larger ships. The dock was expanded again at the turn of the twentieth century when two further branch docks were added by

Anthony George Lyster Anthony George Lyster (1852 – 17 March 1920) was born in Hollyhead, Wales. He was engineer-in-chief to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board from 1897, when he succeeded his father, George Fosbery Lyster, until his retirement in 1913, when he wa ...

World War II

On 3 May 1941 Huskisson Branch Dock Number 2 was the site of the explosion during Liverpool's

May Blitz May Blitz was a Canadian-British hard rock power trio that was active in the early 1970s. The group was formed in 1969 by bassist Terry Poole and drummer Keith Baker, the rhythm section of the blues-rock trio Bakerloo, both of whom l ...

, when 1,000 tons of explosives on board the ship were ignited during an air raid. Four people were killed and debris from the ship was strewn up to 2.5 miles away. The two ton anchor stock from the ship landed outside Bootle General Hospital, Derby Road, 1.5 miles from the scene.

Late 20th century

Largely destroyed by the ''Malakand'' explosion, Huskisson Dock was rebuilt after the

War War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

. Huskisson Branch Dock Number 2 was subsequently filled in and is now the site of a timber yard. Huskisson Dock remains in use, handling general bulk cargoes. Up to the 1960s

Cunard Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Bermu ...

liners would berth mainly in Huskisson Dock. Throughout the late 1970s the

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

n 'river' ships (named after Nigerian rivers) were regular visitors to Huskisson Dock. The Nigerian sailors were veritable traders, loading locally purchased, second hand household appliances onto ships for sale in ports of call in Africa, en route to Nigeria.

Impounding station

The impounding station alongside Huskisson Dock was a pumping station used to maintain water levels in these 'floating' docks.

History

World War II

Late 20th century

Impounding station

References

Sources

Further reading

External links