Remarkable overview of the history of the Southampton Docks, from it's earliest to most recent developments, to explore what has made it the enormous industrial estate it is today. It is aided by fascinating early maps and photographs to illustrate the magnitude of the changes made to the docks through time. To most Southampton citizens, and indeed many visitors, the view of the Docks on its doorstep is a familiar sight witnessed daily without much of a second thought - as if it has always been there. Countless books have been written about the docks and many have referred to various stages of its development, but few have told the fuller story of its evolution from a couple of small basins clawed from the mud to the enormous industrial estate it is today. This book, with the aid of early maps and photographs, explores and illustrates the various stages of the docks growth and progress under an array of owners over the passage of time. It explores everything from how it was built from the earliest days of its commencement under the ownership of the Southampton Dock Company, to its final expansion to Redbridge in 1996 under private owners Associated British Ports, bringing the story up to date.

The railways in and around London's docks were arteries to the national railway system at a time when all heavy goods were moved by rail. This book describes the dawn of the major rail-served docks, and traces the evolution of the capital's quayside railways and their locomotives from the days of the early dock companies through to what became the Port of London Authority's huge undertaking.