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ISBN: 978-0-7524 4259 4
pp 128
Author: Ian Collard
Published by: Tempus
Publishing, Cirencester Road, Chalford, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL6 8PE
www.tempus-publishing.com
Price £12.99
Hydraulic Pumping Station East Float
Duke Street Swing Bridge before
the installation of the current Scherzer rolling lift bridge
which was installed in the 1930s
Bidston Dock Iron ore Berth |
My first introduction to Birkenhead Docks took place
in the late 1960s. From time to time on a Sunday he would take me
down to the Pier Head where we would cross the river by ferry to
either Seacombe or Woodside and then work through the Birkenhead
Dock system to the other ferry terminal and then return to the Pier
Head.
Birkenhead Docks were a
fascinating place in the late 1960s / early 1970s. Back then my
interest really centred on railways rather than ships and my uncle
and I would spend hours walking along the various dock railway lines
and sidings. The great thing about Birkenhead Docks, unlike
Liverpool Docks, was that most of the Dock estate was open and
unfenced and one could very much wander at will. Such a contrast to
today's security fences and CCTV cameras!
Our Sunday wanders took us to Morpeth Dock and the
old GWR Good Station. By then abandoned, the track however, remained
in situ. I recall some old abandoned offices containing all sorts of
paperwork blowing in the wind some of which was still headed Great Western Railway some
twenty or so years after nationalisation!
Then there were the old cattle runs which lead to
the Lairages - these were still intact to the early 70s including
the swing bridge across the even then abandoned Morpeth Dock
entrance.
Thirty seven years or so ago "Four Bridges" still
boasted 4 bridges! Many of the roads were cobbled, much of the
dock railway system was still in use and continued to be so until
the late 1980s.
Back then I didn't pay much attention to the ships -
though I recall Mersey Ferries and Isle of Man Steam Packet Company
vessels laid up for the winter.
Unfortunately, although I was becoming interested in
photography by the early 70s I never took a camera on my Sunday
rambles through Birkenhead Docks - how I wish I had!
However, Ian Collard's latest book has brought back
many memories and has reinforced just how many impressive buildings
have been lost in the last three decades.
Studying the pictures in this
book, one becomes aware of just how much Birkenhead Docks have
changed. Much of this change being during the 1980s and early 1990s
when many of the buildings were swept away.
In the last 10 years or so the
changes, with the exception of the construction of the Twelve Quays
Terminal, have been more subtle, the last of the grain warehouses
being currently being converted into flats, the infilling of the
Bidston Dock once used to handle the iron ore ships bringing in raw
materials for the John Summers Steel Works at Shotton in North
Wales.
Ian's book not only focuses on the
many interesting ships which have graced Birkenhead Docks from the
training ship HMS CONWAY to the Irish Sea's first "Fast Ferry" the
Vickers VA-3 "Hovercoach" operated by British United Airways; but
also many of the interesting buildings which once graced the
Birkenhead Dock estate and the associated dock businesses of Stone
Manganese Marine - the propeller manufacturers to Robert Smith
Steel.
There is also an overview of the
main shipping lines which used Birkenhead Docks as their base
including Clan Line, Anchor Lines, Bibby Line and not forgetting the
Blue Funnel Line.
Whilst most of the book is pure
nostalgia - the cover is interestingly right up to date. Visible
beyond the long sunken bow of the SARSIA in East Float can be seen
the ALASKA RAINBOW - the ship which managed to put SEA EXPRESS I out
of commission for the 2007 Season.
Your web master has no hesitation
in recommending this latest work from Ian Collard - providing as it
does so much in terms of photographic and textual coverage of the
history of Birkenhead Docks, which always appeared to play second
fiddle to those of Liverpool, even though for most of their
existence the two groups of docks have shared a common ownership and
management.
John H. Luxton
December 09, 2024
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