London Neighbourhoods
East India Docklands
The East India Docks were a group of docks in Blackwall, East London, north-east of the Isle of Dogs. Today only the entrance basin and listed perimeter wall remain visible. The docks were located on the Thames between Blackwall Reach and Bugsby's Reach. They were orginally built to serve the vast shipping needs of the East India Company. Opened in 1806, the docks consisted of parallel import and export docks with a basin and locks connecting to the river. The basin allowed lots of ships to gather together to avoid the delay of going through locks. The docks closed in 1967.
The East India Docks were the third of London's great dock complexes. They comprised three bodies of water: the Export and Import docks and the Basin. While much smaller than the West India Docks or the later Royal Docks, the East India Docks could still handle East Indiamen of 1000 tons and up to 250 ships at one time. It was a profitable dock, with the tea trade alone worth £30 million per year. Other goods traded through the dock included spices, indigo, silk and Persian carpets. Spice merchants and pepper grinders were situated in the general vicinity of the dock, ready to receive the goods to process and sell.
The East India Docks were initially designed to handle large East Indiamen of up to 1000 tons. The basin, import and export docks could berth up to 250 sailing ships at a time. However, as the 19th century progressed, steamships also began to use the docks. Although they could not accommodate the larger vessels that used the Royal Docks or Tilbury, the East India Docks were frequented by the smaller steamers of the Union Castle and other shipping lines throughout the late 19th century and well into the 20th century.
The advent of steam power and larger ships reduced the importance of this dock and by the mid-20th century most of the trade had left. The docks played a key role in the Second World War as a location for constructing the floating Mulberry harbours used by the Allies to support the D-Day landings in France. These docks suffered much misfortune even before they closed. The Export Dock was heavily damaged during the war and was filled in shortly afterwards; the Brunswick Power Station was built on the site. The imposing entrance gate was demolished in 1958 as part of the expansion of the Blackwall Tunnel.
The rest of the complex stayed open until 1967. Most of the Import Dock has since been filled in. The Docklands Light Railway has a station here, and several new roads on the site have been named after spices once handled here - Oregano Drive, Nutmeg Lane, Coriander Avenue and Saffron Avenue. Despite this, there is very little to commemorate this important set of docks.
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East India Docks
Most of the Import Dock has been filled in since it closed in 1967, but a small part of the dock has been retained as an attractive water feature. Mute swans and other wildfowl now take advantage of the site. The lock gates were the sole entrance to the East India complex. They were enlarged in 1890 and refurbished in 1997. The area is predominantly residential today with several major developments either complete or under construction around it. One, the Leamouth Peninsula, forms the western boundary of the dock.
The entrance basin to the East India Dock is the only intact part of the former East India Docks complex. It has survived relatively unscathed, and has been transformed into a pleasant public space, with special features to attract wildlife. The northern edge of the basin has been filled in to create islands, reed beds and other features to attract insects, wading birds and wildfowl.
The imposing entrance gate, one of the most enduring symbols of all London's docks, was demolished in 1958 during the expansion of the Blackwall Tunnel. The plaque from the gate, restored in 1914, was preserved and is now fixed into the wall on the east side of the Northern Approach. Like London's other major docks, the East India complex was originally surrounded by a high wall to protect the goods. Unusually, this part of the wall in Leamouth Road has survived.
The disused railway bridge over the River Lea, dating from around 1860, carried a branch of the Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway from its line at Canning Town to the Pepper Warehouse of the East India Docks. Its massive cast iron columns give it an air of solidity, but its future is uncertain.
East India Station
East India Station provides the easiest access to the Docks area. It is on the Beckton and Woolwich Arsenal branches of the DLR, and is in Travelcard Zones 2 and 3. The historic Greenwich Prime Meridian crosses the DLR at the eastern end of the platforms, which is marked by an illuminated blue line underneath the tracks at street level. The modern IERS Reference Meridian used by GPS crosses the tracks approximately 117 metres further east between Neutron Tower and Switch House, but is unmarked.
East India station was originally to be named Brunswick Wharf and this name was shown on the 1994 'all projections' map. 'Brunswick' is now a code destination used to indicate that a train in the depot has been cleaned. In February 2001 an episode of the ITV series The Bill featured DLR trains with 'Brunswick' as a dummy destination for filming purposes.
Trinity Buoy Wharf
Trinity Buoy Wharf, to the east of East India Docks, is home to London's only lighthouse offering great views of the Thames and Millennium Dome from within the docklands. It is also home to the 'Long Player', an innovative and ever-evolving composition that has been designed to play steadily without repletion for 1000-years using Tibetan singing bowls. A workspace, events space and arts quarter, it sits within interesting, vibrant surroundings: it is home to the London Parkour Academy, a sculpture park and living/office spaces built entirely from brightly coloured shipping containers. There is plenty to do here and we recommend grabbing a burger and shake from the local Fat Boy's 1940's Diner or a coffee from the Bow Creek Cafe.
The lighthouse was built in 1864 and was a centre of innovation for lighthouse technologies, attracting platers, riveters and tinsmiths from across the country. At one time even Michael Faraday, one of the most influential scientists of all time, carried out experiments in the lighthouse. Closed from 1988 until 1996, it then became what it is today: a bizarre but wonderful destination for an afternoon in the capital.
Fat Boy's Diner is a traditional 1940's American diner, complete with chrome exterior, Formica, twirly bar stools and neon sign trim. The food isn't exactly Michelin starred, but it is good, hearty American staple. It even features such delicacies as the chilli hotdog, pastrami on rye sandwich and their Shake One in the Hay strawberry milkshake. However, what really makes Fat Boys Diner special is its location. There's something quite unique about eating in a 1940s American Diner whilst being surrounded by the old London docklands. Perhaps it's down to this rather strange juxtaposition that Fat Boys Diner was featured in the 1998 movie Sliding Doors.
To get to Trinity Buoy Wharf, there are a few options. It's a 10 minute walk from East India Dock DLR station, or a 15 minute walk from Canning Town station. Alternatively, should you be coming from the South of the river there is a regular shuttle boat service that takes you straight to the wharf from North Greenwich pier.
Image credit: Amos & Amos
London City Island
London City Island is a newly developed neighbourhood close to the East India Dock Basin. It comprises of 12 acres of mixed use development including homes, offices, restaurants, boutique shops, pedestrian and cycle routes, waterside parks, arts and cultural spaces. Its Manhattan-style partments at London City Island offer vistas of the river and well known London landmarks including Canary Wharf, the 02 Arena and St Pauls Cathedral. London City Island is actually one two small peninsulas that lay in a hairpin meander of the River Lea and is geographically named Goodluck Hope after one of the adjacent reaches of the Lea. The other peninsula is Orchard Place. The area was traditionally the easternmost part of Middlesex, with Essex on the other side of the Lea.
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