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From the sinking of the Titanic and the Battle of the Atlantic to a tour of the Old Dock, there’s plenty to see and do at Merseyside’s treasure trove of maritime history.
The Albert Dock, home of the Merseyside Maritime Museum, was built in 1846 as part of a complex of warehouses. The dock was very popular in its early days, serving sailing ships with valuable cargoes such as brandy and tobacco, and remained working until it was finally closed in 1972. The warehouses were derelict until regeneration work in the early 1980s brought the whole area slowly back to life.
Today in the maritime museum, informative displays, video footage and wonderfully detailed ship models chart the buoyant story of Edwardian Liverpool, when many of the world’s finest and largest passenger liners graced its docks.Three famous maritime catastrophes of the early 20th century are commemorated on its first floor.
Disaster struck first in 1912 with the loss of the ‘unsinkable’ Titanic. Within three years, the Lusitania and the Empress of Ireland had also sunk. Three of the largest liners owned and registered in Liverpool had been lost at sea while more than 3,700 people died as a result.
Dozens of artefacts – including posters, telegrams, clothing and a cork life jacket from the Titanic – illustrate the importance of these ships, and the dire consequences of their demise for the city.
Next door, there’s a large collection devoted to Liverpool’s role in the Battle of the Atlantic, the longest-running campaign of WWII. Here there’s a wealth of information about U-boats, warships, convoys, weapon systems, and all the people who fought at sea.
There’s a Hotchkiss six-pounder gun which was fitted on some British and Canadian corvettes and frigates, a Mark IV depth charge with a cutaway section, and a Mark VIII torpedo stretching out across the floor of the gallery.
Meanwhile, the Builders of Great Ships exhibition pays homage to centuries of honest toil.
Here visitors can learn about the different shipbuilding companies on Merseyside and a variety of engineering components produced there – from different types of engines and navigational equipment to propellers and hooters.
A compound engine from a paddle-driven steam yacht called Firefly II, built in Runcorn in 1900, proudly takes centre stage.
An eye-catching Thornycroft compound steam engine from a second-class torpedo boat built in 1880 is here too. There are also many other models, including an 1887 triple-expansion engine used by small merchant vessels.
If you fancy pushing the boat out even further, it’s worth joining a free tour of the world’s first commercial enclosed wet dock. Visitors are taken to inspect brickwork dating back to 1715 when the Old Dock was built. The remains rise from the bed of the Pool – that gave the city its name – uncovered during excavations by developers in 2001.
The dock, expanded over many years, remains one of the city’s greatest contributions to progress in world trade and commerce.
5 things to see
1. Mark VIII submarine torpedo: 22ft weapon which had a maximum speed
of 46 knots.
2.Thornycroft engine: Used in Torpedo boat No 71. It produced 110 indicated horsepower.
3. Model of Berengaria: Germany’s Imperator ocean liner was given to the Cunard Line as part of war reparations.
4. Guided tour: Submerge yourself in history and see the world’s first commercial enclosed wet dock.
5. Edmund Gardner: The former pilot cutter resides in dry dock opposite the museum and is open to visitors during the summer. Worth a look.
» For more details, see: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime