The dock owes its name to the Royal Foundation of St Katharine. Founded here by Queen Matilda in 1148, it was strengthened by Queen Eleanor in 1273, who gave it a remit to care for the poor, the sick and foreigners.

Between 1825-8 they all had to move elsewhere as Thomas Telford dug out the new dock. Having been associated with poverty for centuries, St Katharine’s Dock soon became synonymous with wealth. It specialised in imports such as marble, spices and wine. It was said that nowhere in Britain could you get so graphic an idea of the nation’s wealth than by looking around warehouses at St Katharine’s Dock.

Telford designed the dock for sailing vessels. However, by the 1860s the switch to steam meant that St Katharine’s Dock could not cope with bigger steamships. For many years, and because of the high value of the goods landed here and the security of the warehouses, steamships were unloaded onto
barges down river and the goods brought to St Katharine’s Dock. But it was an expensive process, and it was one of the first docks to close.

In the old docks, everything possible was done to keep visitors out of the docks for security. By contrast, today’s magnificent St Katharine’s Dock has
evolved into one of London’s major visitor attractions.