IMMINGHAM DOCKS TALK ENJOYED BY BRIGG AMATEUR SOCIAL HISTORIANS AT SERVICEMEN'S CLUB

REPORT BY JOSIE WEBB

The BASH April meeting was a fascinating illustrated talk entitled The Construction and Opening of Immingham Docks by well known speaker Brian Peeps. 
He described the "Tin Town" which was built for the construction workers to live on site - huts made of corrugated iron and painted cream, but they also had their own church, school and post office (with the post mark "Humberville"). 
The first sod of turf was turned by Lady Henderson on 12th of July 1906, and 6 years later, on the 22nd July 1912, the docks were officially opened by King George and Queen Mary. On the same day, chairman of the docks, Sam Fay, was knighted by the King. 
Between the first and second world wars, cruises to such places as Norway and Sweden and were very popular and many of the ships sailed from these docks.
Interestingly, some 400 years earlier a number of ships left nearby these docks also carrying a human cargo, the Pilgrim Fathers, to the New World and away from persecution in this country. There is now a stone memorial marking the actual spot from which they fled.