Swansea Docks is the collective name for several docks in Swansea, Wales. The Swansea docks are located immediately south east of Swansea city centre. In the mid-19th century the port was exporting 60% of the world's copper from factories situated in the Tawe valley. The working docks area today is owned and operated by Associated British Ports as the Port of Swansea and the northern part around the Prince of Wales Dock is undergoing re-development into a new urban area branded the SA1 Swansea Waterfront.DocksDocks which have existed or still exist in the complex include:North DockThe North Dock was created to fulfil the increasing shipping demands from the nearby metals industry. The North Dock was created by diverting the River Tawe by cutting a new direct course within a meander section near the estuary. The old course of the River became the new dock and work was completed in 1852. The North Dock closed in 1930 after the development of new larger docks on the east side of the River Tawe made the North Dock obsolete. The north dock has since been filled in and the Parc Tawe retail complex was built on the site in the late 1980s.South DockConstruction began on the South Dock in 1852 by a private company. It was built on a site west of the River Tawe, just south of the North Dock and was not completed until 1859. The South Dock was closed in 1971 and was redeveloped in the 1980s. The dock itself became the Swansea Marina and the land around the dock was developed as the Maritime Quarter residential area.
Tags: Marina