Did you know that...
Surrey Quays SE16 takes its name after the Surrey Commercial Docks. The now-closed docks worked from 1696 until 1969. The docks were originally called Howland Great Wet Dock after the landowners. In the 18th century, the docks were renamed Greenland Dock.
Greenland Dock is the oldest riverside wet dock in London. It still has some of the old capstans and hydraulic machines. Russia Dock Woodland is now a park created by filling one of the old docks.
The docks developed as a residential area in the 1990s. More than 5,000 homes were built. South Dock was transformed into a marina. It’s London’s largest marina. After the Surrey Quays shopping center was opened in 1988, the nearby London Underground station was renamed Surrey Quays.
In the 2000s, The Surrey Quays Shopping Center greeted its visitors with a dolphin sculpture. The sculpture was taken down and in its place, a commercial zone and seats were built. The shopping center has more than 40 stores and also a food court.
The area is now known as ‘Surrey Quays’, however, the historical name ‘Surrey Docks’ is still the name of the electoral ward and a thing that distinguishes local residents from those who are not from the area.
The today’s largely residential area of Rotherhithe in south-east London, Surrey Docks has got its modern appearance mainly during massive building program of the late 1980s when over 5 thousand various new homes were built here. At that time, the district was extensively redeveloped.
The docks on the south bank of the River Thames operated in one form or another from 1696 to 1969 and provided an essential aid in various maritime activities. In good times, the Surrey Commercial Docks were able to accommodate up to 120 sailing ships. The docks were finally closed in 1969 due to lack of custom and the inability to adjust to the newly adopted container system and much larger vessels. After more than 10 years of desolation and decay, much of the warehousing was demolished and the docks were redeveloped for residential housing.