We are heading down to the docks with old warehouses to the left. These buildings stood when the first missionaries arrived. We parked in the car park next to the wheel and the arena. At one point this area became a haven for scoundrels, homeless, and other shifty characters. The city made great efforts to reclaim what was once a crucial part of the city's economy. We saw many evidences of this with new and modern buildings standing along side remaining old buildings.
A view of the River Mersey going out to sea. At one time, a stone fence was built around the docks with castle-like gates to keep the riffraff and vandalism out. About half of the fence is gone and you can see here the towers that remain at one entrance. More old warehouses and a very long one that has now been converted into business offices.
Sea Trek Monument: Note the husband, wife, children, and their baggage gathered around as they wait for their departure. The monument commemorates the thousands of Mormon as well as other emigrants that left from this port seeking a better life.
The Albert Dock was the center of activity during the migration period and stands as it did then. The upper photo shows the contrast of new construction, with the older construction in the bottom photo.
The inside of the dock is shaped in a square with one gate leading out to the river. The building is teeming with businesses, shops, and eateries. There were several boats docked that were fun to see and photograph. The name of the boat in the bottom left is, Brocklebank. That was the name of Dad's landlady when he served in Hyde on his mission.
The poster on the left is made out of legos. The Beatles are from Liverpool, and you can find reminders of them in almost every shop. The bottom right picture is made out of jelly beans.
We went into the Merseyside Maritime Museum and walked through the insides of a ship to get a feel for what the emigrants had to deal with while on their journey across the sea without knowing exactly how long it would take. It reminded us of "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride in Disneyland. It was dark, small lights, and here and there, the sounds and smells of a ship. We know why we are born now and they were born then. It caused a feeling of more gratitude for our pioneers. They not only crossed the plains, they first came by ship, sometimes under physically hard conditions.
The ship to the right was used during World War I, by the British Admiralty. Dazzle camouflage works not by offering concealment but by making it difficult to estimate a target's range, speed and heading. Dazzle was intended more to mislead the enemy as to the correct position to take up than actually to miss his shot when firing. The ship is in dock in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the first World War.
The building to the left remains as it was at the turn of the 19th century, minus the scaffolding. It was home to the White Star Line, the company that made and launched the Titanic, in Liverpool. It was here in front of the building on that fateful day 15 April 1912, when the Titanic went down, where family and friends of those aboard came to hear any news of their loved one's fate.
After the docks, Peter took us on a small tour of Liverpool, seeing the streets and mostly buildings that would have been there in 1837. They would have been black from the smoke output and these have been washed and/or painted and modern conveniences added as time passed.
Top picture is of St. Peter's Church. This building is noted historically, I just cannot remember at this time!
The drawing is of the Church's printing, publishing, and emigration office. We sat in the car in a car park where this building stood. It was here that Mormon emigrants checked in for housing, and to begin the paperwork for them to continue on their journey to Zion. The building was also used to print flyers, pamphlets, etc for distribution in the cause of spreading the gospel.
The other photo is of more buildings that existed during that time.
The day had run out and places on Peter's list had been completed so we headed back to Chorley. We dropped Peter off at his home, stopped by McDonald's for supper, and then headed to the accommodations centre for the evening.
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