King's Lynn Docks are located to the north of the town of King's Lynn in the

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county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

.''OS Explorer Map 23” (Edition A 1997) – “Norfolk Coast West''. . They are on the River Great Ouse which provides access to the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...

via the Lynn Channel and

The Wash The Wash is a rectangular bay and multiple estuary at the north-west corner of East Anglia on the East coast of England, where Norfolk meets Lincolnshire and both border the North Sea. One of Britain's broadest estuaries, it is fed by the riv ...

. They are located north of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

, west of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

and north of

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on the A1078 Edward Benefer Way. The docks are operated as the Port of King's Lynn by Associated British Ports. It handles around 400,000 tonnes of cargo per year, including forest products, agribulk and manufacturing and recycling materials.
Associated British ports. Retrieved 2014-03-29. Three docks, including the tidal Riverside Quay, can accommodate vessels up to in length. The docks cover an area of and include the 25,000 tonne capacity Alexandra Grain Silo complex.

History

In the 13th century King's Lynn was one of England's most important ports. It attracted traders from the Hanseatic League trading for wool, cloth and salt.King's Lynn Haseatic Trail
Visit East Anglia. Retrieved 2014-03-29. The port infrastructure developed in the 19th century following the formation of a docks and railway company in 1865. This built the Alexandra Dock which was completed in 1869 and linked by rail in 1870. By 1876 over 500 ships were using the new dock each year.The King's Lynn Docks
, Norfolk Museum Service, Norfolk County Council. Retrieved 2014-03-29. The larger Bentinck Dock with a length of was opened in 1883. The port has traditionally relied on exporting agricultural produce for the bulk of its traffic.

Transport links

The docks are on the A1078 road and linked via this and the

A148 road The A148 is an English A road entirely in the county of Norfolk. It runs from King's Lynn to Cromer via Fakenham, which it bypasses to the north. Route King’s Lynn starting point Starting at the western end, A148 starts as an exit from ...

through King's Lynn to the main A47 trunk road to the south of the town. This provides links to the A17 and A1 roads to the west. Other main roads connect the port to the M11 motorway and A14 trunk road at

, providing links to the UK motorway network. The nearest railway station is

King's Lynn railway station King's Lynn railway station is the northern terminus of the Fen line in the east of England, serving the town of King's Lynn, Norfolk. It is from and measured from London Liverpool Street. The station and most trains calling are operate ...

on the Fen Line which runs between King's Lynn, Ely and Cambridge and provides links to London King's Cross and London Liverpool Street stations. The port had a railway link to this line in the 19th century, the last elements of which were closed in the 1990s.Comment: Stuart Corrigan says Lynn to Norwich line should be reopened
''

Lynn News The ''Lynn News'' is published by Iliffe Media and appears each Tuesday and Friday in King's Lynn, Norfolk, England. It was previously owned by Johnston Press, but in January 2017 it was bought by Iliffe Media, along with 12 other titles for £17 ...

'', 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2014-03-29.

Seafarers' welfare

The port now has a dedicated centre, set up by th
Apostleship of the Sea
for visiting seafarers. The facility offers them a place to relax, and spend some quiet time, with free internet connection for them to use. It was opened on 17 November 2014 by Bishop Alan Hopes, Bishop of East Anglia. The centre is largely-funded by the Merchant Navy Welfare Board and the site on which it was built was provided by Associated British Ports.

References

External links

Port of King's Lynn
official website {{Associated British Ports Transport in Norfolk Ports and harbours of Norfolk Port cities and towns of the North Sea Coastal features of Norfolk King's Lynn