A Walk Around The Docks With Lew Tassell
Constable Tassell of the City of London Police is going to escort us around the London Docks today
Police Constable Tassell, 1971
“During the summer of 1971, I was on duty one Sunday on Tower Bridge, walking up and down and spending a bit of time in the control box. On my way back to Bishopsgate where I was stationed, I bumped into a couple of London Port Authority Police who were opening up St Katharine Dock to have a look inside. I said, ‘I’d love to have a look in there myself.’ and they replied, ‘When you finish work, come round to our office in Thomas More St – we’ll give you the keys and you can spend the afternoon in Western Dock and Eastern Dock up to Shadwell Basin.’ So I said, ‘That’s wonderful, thankyou very much!’
I dashed back to Bishopsgate Police Station where I was living at the time, changed and got my camera, picked up the keys and made my way to the Western Dock just east of St Katharine Dock. Today this area is a housing estate and a supermarket, and virtually all the water has gone. So I spent the afternoon going round the derelict docks taking pictures. It was quite unsafe as you can see from some of the photographs. There are only eighteen pictures because I used the other eighteen frames on the film to take pictures of my girlfriend at the time, whom I married the next year and is my wife today.’
Western Dock parallel with Pennington St looking east
Looking towards Wapping Pierhead
Looking west across Western Dock
Bridge between Western Dock to the left and Tobacco Dock on the right
Interior in Western Dock
Interior in Western Dock
Western Dock looking towards Tower Bridge
Western Dock looking towards Wellclose Sq
Western Dock looking towards St George-in-the-East
Western Dock looking east
Southern part of Western Dock, partly demolished
At Crescent Warehouse
Interior of Crescent Warehouse
Interior of Crescent Warehouse
Interior of Crescent Warehouse
Buildings east of St Katharine Dock
Semi-demolished buildings east of St Katharine Dock
Photographs copyright © Lew Tassell
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What is the history of these structures? There must have been a long period of development of which the present is only one, minor phase. When did the existing structures develop?
Lew never lets us down with his slices of history.
Some heavy symbolism in one or two pics. Priceless!
My eldest brother who’s 10.5 yrs older than me, worked at the Docks after he’d first left school. Wish now I’d asked him to take me there at the time, but think I was put off by his tales of the Giant Spiders which used to come in on the boats bringing Bananas into the country. I still squeal at the sight of a spider!
Looking at the map in the piece, as a child in the late 50s/early 60s I lived between the words ‘LONDON DOCKS’ & ‘Shadwell Station’, yet I literally had no idea the docks were so close! My parents took us for walks which took us south along Cannon Street Road, crossing Cable Street into the Highway then we’d usually turn right & walk up to the Mint then Tower Bridge. The south side of the Highway had a high old & very dirty brick wall & we had no idea what was on the other side. Nor did our parents ever tell us what was there. It seems strange when something so big & important was so ignored we weren’t even aware of its existence. It’s worth also mentioning that my family suffered greatly during the London Blitz due to their home having such close proximity to the docks. I have inherited family wartime letters which describe in detail some of the horrors they endured, whilst also demonstrating their ability to simply ‘carry on’. I have nothing but admiration for them.