Everyday all through the year ships steamed into Hull’s Docks. The ships that arrived in Hull were loaded with fruit, coffee, copper, wood, wool, meat, wheat or paper.

Ships docked and the workers began unloading the cargo from the ships to the dockside warehouses.- then they would reload the ships with cargo to set sail off to foreign countries so they could buy produce from us.

Dockers arrived by car, bus, or bicycle at 7am to start work for the day. A loud speaker would sound and call out the numbers of those who would be working- They’d have their pay books stamped and for those who’s numbers wasn't called it was back off home on “fall back pay”- they’d come back at 2pm to see if there was any afternoon work.

Once all the cargo was off the ship the Tallyman would have to check every sack, container and box (like a stock check)

Wheat was extracted from the ships cargo area using a giant tube that sucked it up into an underground storage area ready for the flour mill. Animal grain wheat was sent straight from the ships to cargo boats and shipped up the Humber to the local farms.

Dock workers

Dock work was a very physically hard job, it needed skill and judgment as well as strength, but more than anything it was team work.

Each gang of dockworkers (they worked in groups) choose a ship steward- he was responsible for speaking up for the workers with the management. For example if the workers were expected to handle “dirty cargo” (chemicals) then the shop steward would go to the management and ask for protective clothing.

At lunchtime dockworkers go to the nearest docks’ board canteen to meet their friends, they would usually talk about football, family, politics, the union, or the conditions of their job.
After lunch those who had jobs to finish returned to them, those who didn't went to the union notices and queued for another job.

A section of the docks called “roll on roll off” was used by ferries crossing the north sea over to Dutch (Holland), Germany or Denmark. These ferries were built so that cargo could be driven on and off them. Dockers would use a folk lift truck or a special tractor called “tug masters”

Fish docks

The fishing docks were Hull’s main docks. The men who unloaded the fish on these docks were not really Dockers, they were called Bobbers.
Bobbers didn't have the same union as the Dockers, their pay was far less, they didn't have a canteen or shower room.

Fish trawlers would arrive late on a night with fish packed in ice. The wet fish bobbers worked through the night unpacking the iced fish into baskets which where hauled into the docks.

Later on, in the morning, fish buyers and filleters arrived. They haggled for fish to get the best possible deal for their company. The fish was either loaded straight into lorries or filleted on the docks then it was taken to factories  and fishmongers all over the country

When the ships were empty, the fish weighed, sold and carried away the decks of the ships and docks washed- Bobbers, filleters, buyers and boys are gone, the only thing left was the smell of fish.

Hull’s Dry docks 

Ships that needed repairing were towed into the dock. Water was then drained out of the dock so that workers could repair every part of the ship and then repaint it before it was fit for work again. Then the Dry docks are filled back up with water, the ships tugged out again so Dockers can load the new cargo.