In our regular feature on the history of Brentford, today we focus on Brentford Dock.

The dock is based on an island between the Thames and two mouths of the River Brent and was built by Great Western and Brentford Railway Company.

It is sandwiched between the high street and the Thames with Kew Gardens directly opposite.

The dock was constructed to a design by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The entrance to the dock was via a lock from the River Thames.

Construction began in 1855 and was completed in 1859. Brunel's original covered dock was destroyed by fire in 1920 and replaced by an iron and steel structure.

The dock provided a shipment point for goods between the railway network and barges operating on the Thames to the Port of London.

The Thames frontage was adapted for boats of up to 300 tons after World War One.

Heavy river barges, canal boats and sailing barges were a feature of the dock and traffic included coal, steel, timber, wood pulp, flour, animal feedstuffs, cork, general merchandise and, in the 1950s, Morris cars from Oxford.

In December 1964 the dock closed and was redeveloped as housing and a marina in 1972 by the Greater London Council(GLC).

Construction work for the Brentford Dock housing estate began in 1972 and was completed in 1978.

It was originally built as a council estate but later it controversially became a private housing development.

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