My favourite stories were Every day a docker left the docks pushing a wheelbarrow full of straw, the cop on the gate would stop and search him and the barrow but could not find any contraban, this went on for ever, finally 1 of the cops said to the docker " listen lad, I am retiring tonight, I know you are at it but can't work out what you're robbing, I give you my word, tell me what it is I give you my word I won't tell anybody I just need to know" OK says the docker, " I'm robbing wheelbarrows" As the lads usually had a drink, one day a small cask of alcohol had "accidentally been opened" the lads had to finish the cask as to not waste the spirit, as usual when finished the cask would be smashed then twine wrapped around with a brick then tossed into the dock, this time was different, upon smashing the case out fell a small dead monkey, the cask was on its way to the Liverpool tropical school of medicine, apparently the dockers upon realising what they had done were lined up retching over the chains into the dock, my Grandfather Paddy Kennedy started on the dock in 1925 ending up a ships boss, before the war he lived with his wife Mary nee Broadhurst in Scotland Rd, spent the war from North Africa to D Day, Falaise gap all the way to Germany, after the war he was attached to the SIB hunting SS and Gestapo with his unit of Durham light infantry finally demobbed in 1948, the family were then living in bruton Rd Huyton. My first pint was in the Barley Mow, Cantrell Farm with a load of dockers with names like "Boxhead" and the "Ghost" amazing guys, we will never see their like again.
Many years ago, possibly during the war or soon after crates of Oranges washed up on the “cast iron shore” Obviously these were collected as treasure. But apparently they wer oranges for making Marmalade so didn’t taste edible
my grandad and great grandad was dockers, my dad told me that my grandad was on security or somethink like that, and used too bring allkinds home haha, he also said he was in the penny gang in the docks our something am not too sure, the must have been some great characters on the docks, lets hope there storys are never forgotton !
Can't blame him for eating a bunch of oranges while living on bland food in an environment too cold to grow oranges and a yard too small for a few trees.
someone needs to do more on this series... there's SO many good dock stories and docker names
My favourite stories were
Every day a docker left the docks pushing a wheelbarrow full of straw, the cop on the gate would stop and search him and the barrow but could not find any contraban, this went on for ever, finally 1 of the cops said to the docker " listen lad, I am retiring tonight, I know you are at it but can't work out what you're robbing, I give you my word, tell me what it is I give you my word I won't tell anybody I just need to know"
OK says the docker, " I'm robbing wheelbarrows"
As the lads usually had a drink, one day a small cask of alcohol had "accidentally been opened" the lads had to finish the cask as to not waste the spirit, as usual when finished the cask would be smashed then twine wrapped around with a brick then tossed into the dock, this time was different, upon smashing the case out fell a small dead monkey, the cask was on its way to the Liverpool tropical school of medicine, apparently the dockers upon realising what they had done were lined up retching over the chains into the dock, my Grandfather Paddy Kennedy started on the dock in 1925 ending up a ships boss, before the war he lived with his wife Mary nee Broadhurst in Scotland Rd, spent the war from North Africa to D Day, Falaise gap all the way to Germany, after the war he was attached to the SIB hunting SS and Gestapo with his unit of Durham light infantry finally demobbed in 1948, the family were then living in bruton Rd Huyton.
My first pint was in the Barley Mow, Cantrell Farm with a load of dockers with names like "Boxhead" and the "Ghost" amazing guys, we will never see their like again.
My Dad still swears he never robbed a single thing from 1963 till 1995!
Many years ago, possibly during the war or soon after crates of Oranges washed up on the “cast iron shore” Obviously these were collected as treasure. But apparently they wer oranges for making Marmalade so didn’t taste edible
my grandad and great grandad was dockers, my dad told me that my grandad was on security or somethink like that, and used too bring allkinds home haha, he also said he was in the penny gang in the docks our something am not too sure, the must have been some great characters on the docks, lets hope there storys are never forgotton !
My dad smuggled overproof run in a sasparella lemonade bottle, i seen it in the Cuboard took hold of it swigging it right back,nearly killed me 😂 LOL
Just one of many tricks, oh I, fun and games.
Proper working class. Laughs and tears in equal quantity.
My grandfather was a Dock Clerk at Liverpool, possibly Gladstone Dock, what would they do?
brilliant
We got loads of banners, we were very poor and ate the lot, i sill love they stopped us from starving
I meant RUM
Can't blame him for eating a bunch of oranges while living on bland food in an environment too cold to grow oranges and a yard too small for a few trees.
Check out my song about the Liverpool Dock strike
Dockers