Tunnel Pier, Wapping

Tunnel Pier was one of the stopping points on the London County Council’s Steamboat Service.  Starting on 17th June 1905, “The Penny Steamers”, its nickname at the time, had thirty paddle boats on the ran from Hammersmith to Greenwich.  However, despite carrying over 10 million passengers in the three years of its' existence, the Steamboat Service was declared uneconomic and closed.  

The Tunnel Pier was named after the nearby Thames Tunnel built by the Brunels between 1824-1843.  Also nearby is King Henry’s Wharf, the site of Execution Dock, where pirates and smugglers were hung and their bodies left to be washed over by three tides.  

Tunnel Pier was later administered by the Port of London Authority.  W J Alexander, whose headquarters and repair yard were a little way up river, used the Pier to moor his famous “Sun” tugs while they were being repaired.  The Pier also played an important part in the lives of Wappimg people during the last world war.  During the famous air-raid on Saturday 7th September 1940, the beginning of the blitz, Wapping was alight from one end to the other.  Because all the bridges were open, a standing order during an air-raid, Wapping became an island.  The people of Wapping had to be evacuated by water.  A fleet of rivercraft were assembled and the people of Wapping evacuated upstream to safety. In fact, some were taken as far as Richmond.  

The Pier is now used by Woods River Services to moor their pleasure craft.