1883 - Parkeston Quay opened

The use of larger ships and the increased volume of traffic meant there became a need for an extension of facilities at Harwich. No room however existed there and, after consultation, it was decided to build a new quay off Ray Island, in the River Stour upstream of Harwich and reclaim a large area between the island and the mainland. Plans were passed by Parliament in July 1874.

From 1879 to 1883, the Great Eastern Railway (GER) carried through a vast project of reclamation and quay building. It cost over £500,000. About 600 acres were enclosed by a sea wall, which formed a curved embankment two and a half miles long. In the centre was a massive pier named Parkeston Quay after Charles H Parkes, the chairman of GER.

This quay provided seven berths and accommodated the station, a luxury hotel and two large goods warehouses. To the east of the hotel were offices, the Marine Shops, where maintenance work was carried out, and the loco shed. There was also an extensive cattle lairage and a licensed slaughterhouse.

West of the level crossing were stables for 96 horses, many of which worked on the quay.

The old port area of Harwich declined, however many people found work at Parkeston Quay. GER began to build houses for its employees on the higher ground on Ray Island. The population of 600 in 1886 rose to 1,060 by 1901. The village had its own school, Methodist and Anglican churches, village hall, Co-operative store, sports ground, fire station and electricity supply from the Company's power station.

Similar developments took place on the Dutch side where a new port, linked by rail to Rotterdam was completed at the Hook in 1893. This became the passenger terminal and proved a popular route.

This therefore meant new and better ships and the company replaced the paddle steamers with a fleet of larger screw propelled vessels. These were named after places connected with GER such as the Ipswich and the Norwich in 1883, Cambridge (1886), Colchester (1889), Chelmsford (1893) and the Amsterdam, Berlin and Vienna in 1894.

The illustration shows Parkeston Quay in the early years of the 20th Century with the cargo vessel Colchester alongside. The Colchester was built in Hull by Earles Shipbuilding and Engineering Company in 1889. In the foreground is the ill-fated Berlin, which was also built by Earles in 1894.