Records of West Coast Stevedoring Company Limited

In the 1940s, the Thames Stevedoring Co., Ltd. moved to Merseyside and was based at S.W. Alexandra Dock. It merged with the Booth Steamship Co. (the first of several mergers) in its early stages. By 1962, the company was known as the West Coast Stevedoring Co., Ltd., and had premises in Union House, Victoria Street, Liverpool. In 1965 there began a series of mergers with South End and Central Stevedoring, with West Coast acting as senior member of the merger. In 1966 the company merged with the Canadian Pacific Co., again as a senior partner, and moved to Bootle. Finally, the company merged with Cunard Stevedoring in April 1968. The late 1960s were peak trading years for West Coast Stevedoring. During this period the company handled an average of 541 vessels per annum. This figure declined gradually until 1982 when only 114 ships passed through the company's hands. The company closed on 31 December 1982. The collection includes financial records, some general information re staff and working conditions, photographs, operational records including sample complete sets of documents relating to incoming and outgoing cargos. Within the collection are some records of the Master Porters and Master Stevedores' Association, 1902-1963. For further details see the attached catalogue or contact The Archives Centre for a copy of the catalogue.