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Report - - Stanley Dock, Liverpool, 2006 - 2019 | Industrial Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Stanley Dock, Liverpool, 2006 - 2019

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dweeb

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Recently I ticked off a little piece of a big site which I have waited to see for nearly ten years. The few snaps we took do not warrant a report, so I thought I would raid the archive and tell some tales from exploring this amazing and gargantuan site. I've always been blown away with the whole area around these buildings. The walls, towers and warehouses are just incredible in size, age and detail. I am very happy indeed that there actually seems to be a viable future for the buildings, as the smaller warehouse is now a plush hotel, and the baccy warehouse is being hollowed out which I think it a very clever solution to a virtually unconvertable building.

I first laid eyes on the docks sometime in 2006. We had come up to Liverpool to climb the hydraulic tower in Birkenhead, and swung past to have a look before heading home. As the buildings had been designed to prevent pilfering of their valuable wares, actually getting into the site didn't look the easiest. I later learned that the enormous gates were open each and every Sunday for the Stanley Dock market, and that seemed to offer a chance of some mooching.

The first time we had a pop we stayed away from the market as much as possible and headed for the older, and smaller warehouse across the dock from the more impressive tobacco warehouse. To be fair it was a vast space, and looking back at it very untouched. But at the time I found it a little empty, and despite the fact that the larger building would most probably be very much the same we looked across the dock and craved a look around baccy warehouse. On the way out we did also manage the castle like hydraulic tower, which I seem to recall being a fetid pigeon crap infested affair, but with rather special views!
Having pushed our luck enough for one day we swung back round the fence and vowed to return to have a go at the main event.

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It wasn't long before we had decided to return to have another pop. This time we entered the markets and famed interest in the stalls whilst looking for stairs. We didn't have a lot of luck to start with... all the stairs were either locked or blocked up with wood or boxes. We eventually ended up in a more quite part, and swinging a metal lift door open it appeared it would be possible to climb up to the level above. We all climbed into the lift shaft and closed the door, and then one by one used the lift cables to climb up. The next floor was totally deserted... we were in!

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This image pretty sums up 90% of the building, and in the case of the tobacco warehouse that is a LOT of building!! Despite the fact there was little actually inside the fabric of the building was beautiful and incredibly impressive. I'd love to know how many of those iron pillars there are in the place!
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However devoid of artifacts the place was. a building of that age and size is bound to have some original features... and they were there to see if one took the time to look.
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We ventured to the top floor, here you can see the old market in full swing below, complete with Beatles music as a soundtrack to the explore.
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The warehouse roof offered a cracking view of the hydraulic tower
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And of the docks themselves. Note the pre-restored bridge.
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A few more interesting features

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dweeb

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Our next trip to Liverpool was to explore the Tate & Lyle sugar silo up the road, and after a successful mooch in there we thought we'd have a pop at the grain silo at the head of Stanley Dock. Despite having to be rather blatant in front of the market we managed to reach it unchallenged.

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Note the six sided tower in the distance!
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My final visit to the tobacco warehouse was incredibly off the cuff... After exploring something or other in Sheffield @Oxygen Thief and I sat in a boozer in Kellam Island trying to decide what to do with the rest of the weekend. The tobacco warehouse was brought up as someone had recently found a strong room in one of the cellars full of paperwork, and after discussion and realizing that we would manage to get to Liverpool in time for a beer, a plan was hatched to kip in the car till the market opened.
We drove around the docks looking for a boozer, eventually finding one with some lights on after several that were closed, boarded up or burned out. We walked in, only to be greeted by something that resembled the scene in An American Werewolf In London. As soon as I'd said "two pints of best" someone leaned over and asked "where ya from?" I was hardly about to explain I was in town to photograph the dock architecture, so decided on "were here to go the market in the morning mate"... "You're here from Birmingham to go to Stanley market... you know it's shit don't ya!" As t turned out the pub was very welcoming and we had a cracking night, drinking long past closing.
Around 3 - 4 AM there was a knock on the car window, and we awoke to find two coppers shining some kind of small sun into the car. "We've run you're plates and we see you're not from round here, what are you doing parked down here?" "Just getting some kip mate, were going to the market in the morning" "You what, you've come from to Birmingham to go to Stanley market, you know it's shit don't you??!" YES MATE, WE'VE BEEN TOLD!!

Well after all that carry on we did get in, and had a much better look around than the first time, including finding the iron bridge that linked the main warehouse to the south warehouse. Despite trying and trying, we never managed to get into the basement of the right building to find the strong room.

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This appeared to be some kind of lift for bales.

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And what I think was a bale press
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And some views from over the years of the buildings

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I'll finish with the last piece of the puzzle. Big thanks to @urbanchemist for coming with Six, Ojay and I to see this!

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I must say after all that time wanting to see it the paperwork itself was actually fairly un-interesting! Mostly from the 70's and most of it returning to the earth. The room itself however was amazing, if not a little smelly! I'm really happy to have seen that last bit that alluded me for a long time!



I also don't believe any Stanley Dock report is complete without giving Onion Head a mention. Whoever he was there is A LOT of graffiti about him!

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tarkovsky

SWC
Regular User
Great photos! I need to come back and read all the words properly when I have more time later. Thanks for taking the time Dweeb, some really interesting stuff here.
 

host

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Another cracking in-depth report mate. We only got to see a lot of paper work on pallets in a room still a really nice place. Glad it’s finslly getting a make over.
 

raisinwing

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Fantastic report, a great example of how perseverance pays off in this game. Really well covered! :thumb
 

urbanchemist

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Nice to meet yourself and the rest of the exploring-with-elephants (!) crew the other evening.
Also interesting to see some shots of the inclined jigger, lifting thing and tobacco press - there's a plan of this on the wall of the Titanic hotel.
Pity there wasn't more of interest in that squalid strongroom though.
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dave

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Lovely stuff, mind shame the majority of the paperwork was not quite what was expected/hoped for.
 

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