The Port of Hull, 1945-2000 : change, adaptation and memory

Ombler, Alexis Douglas

Abstract

In this study, which draws on a large body of archival and oral history material, I outline the economic shifts, technological development and political factors that impacted the British port system after 1945 and transformed its spaces, practices and work cultures. I argue that these developments were felt particularly keenly in the port of Hull which was forced to contend with marked changes to its cargo handling profile as well as specific geographical and operational disadvantages. In addition, I will also address how these structural changes were experienced, interpreted and remembered by those working on the docks in Hull. The attitudes of some associated with the port often remained deeply rooted in the past, a feature that encouraged inertia and a reluctance to adapt to modern trading conditions. In contrast, others at the port who embraced, and benefitted from new developments, often recalled the period as one marked by progress and modernisation. These tensions between broader economic, political and social change and the ways these changes were experienced by the dock workforce have rarely been addressed in previous academic research - this thesis highlights this crucial relationship that is at the heart of the transformation of the port sector. Finally, this thesis also engages with the ways that the port and its work are remembered in contemporary Hull. Since the 1990s the port has experienced comparative success and revival. The local authority, however, is keen to re-brand the city with a modern, vibrant, pioneering image and have therefore neglected the heritage of those who once lived and worked on the industrial waterfront and many of whom suffered the destruction of a way of life. This thesis therefore also outlines how the memory and heritage of the port, and its broader roles in the city of Hull, are changing and developing in the early twenty-first century.

Citation

Ombler, A. D. The Port of Hull, 1945-2000 : change, adaptation and memory. (Thesis). University of Hull. https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4223568

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 27, 2021
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 24, 2023
• Keywords: Geography
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4223568
• Additional Information: Department of Geography, Environment & Earth Sciences, The University of Hull
• Award Date: Sep 1, 2015