Archives and Local Studies
collection guide no.9
Thames and fishing
London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
Heritage Services
Location
 Bay 7 of the main shelves
Scope of the collection
The Thames has been important factor in the history and
development of Barking and Dagenham. By 1850 Barking was
the busiest fishing port in Britain, sending its vessels to the North
Sea to supply the London markets. In Dagenham, the 18th century
saw the formation of the Breach and the attempts to repair it,
culminating in success for John Perry. The Breach became a
popular fishing and holiday spot, and it was here that the
Ministerial Whitebait Dinners were first held.
Topics covered in this section include histories of the Thames and
London Docklands; design and development of barges and fishing
vessels; and general studies of North Sea fishing.
The books are for reference only, so are always available on the
open shelves. Before the re-opening of Valence House in summer
2010, each volume was carefully cleaned by Archives and Local
Studies volunteers before being added to the sustainable custombuilt oak shelves in the new library.
Examples
 C.L. CUTTING: Fish saving: a history of fish processing
from ancient to modern times
 Peter EARLE: Sailors: British merchant seamen 16501775
 FISHING NEWS AND FISH MERCHANDISER &
PROCESSOR: The Short Blue Fleet 1764 -1964
(supplement to the 3 April 1964 issue)
 Henry HUMPHERUS: History of the Watermen’s
Company (in 3 volumes)
 Edgar J MARCH: Sailing trawlers
 E.J. MATHER: Nor’ard of the Dogger
 M.S. SCOTT: The Hewetts of Barking: the story of a
fishing family
 Derek SIMMANS: The History of the Barking Fishing
Fleet volumes 1 and 2 (extracted from the Hewett diary
and log 1856–1861, original at the Essex Record Office)
 Fred S THACKER: The Thames highway (in 2 volumes)
 Chris THURMAN: Essex Thames-side: Woolwich to
Thorpe Bay
See also
Topic Boxes (press cuttings, pamphlets etc.):
Fishing Industry / Dagenham Breach / Dagenham Dock
The following Archives & Local Studies Information Sheets:
No. 33 The Barking Fishing Fleet
No. 36 History of Dagenham Breach
No. 19 Sir Cornelius Vermuyden
No. 37 Captain John Perry RN
See also
The Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River
Thames: Bindings index 1692-1949 (CD-Rom)
Archives and Local Studies Centre, Valence House,
Becontree Avenue, Dagenham, Essex RM8 3HT
Opening times
 Mondays to Fridays: 10am - 4pm (except Bank Holidays)
 Saturdays: 10am - 12.30pm and 1.15pm - 4pm
When visiting for the first time, please bring proof of your
address as you will need to register.
Contact details
 Phone: 020 8227 2033
 Email: localstudies@lbbd.gov.uk
 Internet: www.lbbd.gov.uk/archives
 Facebook: www.facebook.com/valencehouse
09.2014