Wapping Bridge showing Wapping ChurchH

The swing bridge on Wapping High Street went over the principal entrance to the London Dock.  Opened in 1805, the London Dock was built in the days of sail.  However, the entrance soon after its completion, could not handle the bigger ships coming into service.  This led to the London Dock Company building a larger entrance at Shadwell.  Slowly the use of the new entrance at Shadwell reduced the amount of shipping using the Wapping Entrance until it's use became mainly handling small vessels and barges. 

In the 1950s, the swing bridge was removed and a permanent road constructed.  The entrance was filled in and landscaped.  

Wapping Church, St John’s, was built in 1760, replacing one built in 1617 in the churchyard.  In December 1940, St John’s suffered a direct hit by incendiary bombs and was gutted.  Only the Tower, badly damaged, and the outer walls remained.  The congregation was merge with nearby St Peter’s Church. London Dock.  The Tower was restored by the London County Council after the war.  The shell of the Church survived until the 1990s when it was incorporated into flats built on the site in the shape of the old church.