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      The Museum of London Docklands is a museum on the Isle of Dogs, east London that tells the history of London's River Thames and the growth of Docklands.

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    Discover London Through History

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    A fragment of Neolithic skull now on display at the Museum of London. Londoners

    The Stone Age skull rescued from the river

    Some of the oldest human remains ever found in the Thames: but who was this Stone Age man and what was Neolithic London like?

    Caroline Lawrence, author of children's books set in Roman Londinium. Londoners

    Caroline Lawrence interview: how to die in Roman London

    Author Caroline Lawrence talks about her Roman mystery stories, inspired by the Museum of London's collections.

    Comic valentine's card printed as a woodcut on cheap paper with a caricature of a woman eating a pie. Look of London

    Cruel cards, loving lobsters: quirky Victorian valentines

    From roller-skating cupids to amorous amphibians, the Victorians had a valentine for everyone.

    Gay Pride Discover Hidden London

    Hidden Pride: London's LGBT history

    Looking through our collection for signs of the long struggle for gay rights.

    Explore the stories of the world's greatest city and uncover the hidden treasures of our collections.

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Museum of London Docklands
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Warehouse of the World

1880-1939

New Port, New City

1945 – present

Permanent galleries

Docklands at War

1939-1945

The docks were the first target in the London Blitz

Late in the afternoon of Saturday 7 September 1940, the Luftwaffe launched a massive daylight raid on London. Learn how the Port survived and aided the war effort from Dunkirk to D-Day.

  • Docklands on fire.jpg
  • Molten Column (c) Museum of London.jpg
  • A workman recovers precious sugar burned during the bombing of the London dock warehouses during WWII. Copyright PLA.
  • Consol Shelter(c) Museum of London.jpg
  • Maunsell forts.jpg
  • Tanks being embarked onboard ship at the Port of London, ready for the D-Day invasion. Copyright PLA Archive/Museum of London.
  • gas mask.jpg
  • doorwithmessage-eastwoodcook.jpg
  • Photograph of mobile canteen dispensing food on the London docks during WWII, copyright PLA Archive/Museum of London.
  • Section of pipeline developed for Project Pluto, to deliver fuel to the D-Day invasion of France.

Not to be missed on your visit

View slideshow

Docklands on fire.jpg

The Docklands ablaze

A photo taken during the Blitz of 7th September 1940, showing smoke rising from the London Docks and West India Docks. © Port of London Authority.

Molten Column (c) Museum of London.jpg

Iron column melted by in the Blitz

This column was discovered in the debris of London Dock in 1980. Its iron was melted in the fierce heat of the blaze caused by German incendiary bombs during the 1940 Blitz.

A workman recovers precious sugar burned during the bombing of the London dock warehouses during WWII. Copyright PLA.

Sugar salvage from the ruins of No. 7 Warehouse, 1940-44

This bombing of the docks set fire to huge quantities of sugar, in short supply during the war. This worker salvages some of the solidified sugar from the wreckage. © PLA collection.

Consol Shelter(c) Museum of London.jpg

Take cover in a Consol shelter

This bell-shaped air raid shelter is made from a single piece of steel bolted to a concrete base. It could hold two adults, protecting Port workers caught in an air raid from bomb blasts.

Maunsell forts.jpg

Model of the Maunsell Forts

These armed towers were built in the Thames estuary during the Second World War, to guard the entry to the river against German planes and ships.

Tanks being embarked onboard ship at the Port of London, ready for the D-Day invasion. Copyright PLA Archive/Museum of London.

Tanks prior to D-Day, 1944

Tanks arriving in the London Docks prior to embarkation for the D Day beaches. The port of London was a vital supply hub for the invasion and liberation of France. © PLA collection.

gas mask.jpg

Telephone operator's gas mask

Telephone switchboard operators at the General Post Office needed to be able to work through an air raid, and were given these masks with built-in earpiece and microphone.

doorwithmessage-eastwoodcook.jpg

Door with message, Eastwood Cook, 2001

This artwork reflects an all too common sight in wartime London: the door of a family "bombed out" of their home, with only a short message to let friends know where they had fled.

Photograph of mobile canteen dispensing food on the London docks during WWII, copyright PLA Archive/Museum of London.

Mobile canteen for dockers, 1942

The crucial role of the dockers to the war effort brought some improvement in their working conditions, including the introduction of mobile canteens. © PLA collection

Section of pipeline developed for Project Pluto, to deliver fuel to the D-Day invasion of France.

Uncover Pipeline Pluto, a secret weapon against the Axis

This is a surviving section of a 130km long undersea pipeline, that carried fuel across the Channel to supply the invasion of France in 1944. Learn more about the astonishing story.

Gallery access

The gallery is open during the museum's normal hours:

10am – 5.30pm

The gallery is on the second floor and can be accessed by lift.

Entry free, no ticket required.

Docklands at War also of interest

DMR_test.jpg

Heroism on display at the Museum of London Docklands

Learn more about the story behind the George Cross display

Find Out More

Docklands at War gallery

Hear Londoners' war stories

The museum's oral history collection records the real life stories of everyday people

Explore

Free events at the Museum of London Docklands.

Free events for all the family

Free storytelling and tours at Docklands

Plan your visit

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