South Dock (Hudson Dock)

The South Dock was opened in 1850 by the Sunderland Dock Company, which had been formed in 1846 and was headed by George Hudson, the "Railway King" who became one of Sunderland's two Members of Parliament in 1845. The design of the Dock was by John Murray, the River Wear Commission Engineer. Robert Stephenson, son of George and one of the leading engineers of the day, was employed as a consultant. The dock included the staiths of the Durham and Sunderland Railway, which formed part of Hudson's Railway Empire, and was served by the dock railway (HER ref. 2538) and drops (HER ref. 2875). It covered an area of 47 acres and was built largely on reclaimed land. By 1856 it had been enlarged to 66 acres and between 1864 and 1868 the Hendon Dock was added. All the docks had access to the sea, initially using a unique sluicing sustem, which was replaced in 1878-8. In 1889 2 million tons of coal passed through the dock, and in 1928 5 million tons. Two South Dock Grain Warehouses survive, the larger designed by John Dobson in 1856, the smaller by Thomas Meik in 1863.