Great Float

The Great Float
Tugs Svitzer Stanlow (left) and Thorngarth (right) on East Float with the converted grain warehouse in the background, seen from Duke Street Bridge
Location
LocationBirkenhead, England, United Kingdom
Coordinates53°24′12″N 3°02′16″W / 53.40320°N 3.03780°W / 53.40320; -3.03780
OS gridSJ310901
Details
OwnerPeel Holdings
OperatorMersey Docks and Harbour Company
Opened1860
TypeWet dock
Purpose
  • Cargo transfer
  • Ship repair and layup
Joins
Area
  • 52 acres, 319 sq yd (21.0703 ha) (West Float)[1]
  • 59 acres, 3,786 sq yd (24.1938 ha) (East Float)[2]
Width at entrance100 ft (30 m)[3]
Quay length
  • 2 mi 210 yd (3.41 km) (West Float)[1]
  • 1 mi 1,506 yd (2.99 km) (East Float)[2]
Cargo typeBulk
Transport links

The Great Float is a body of water on the Wirral Peninsula, England, formed from the natural tidal inlet, the Wallasey Pool. It is split into two large docks, East Float and West Float, both part of the Birkenhead Docks complex. The docks run approximately 2 miles (3 km) inland from the River Mersey, dividing the towns of Birkenhead and Wallasey. The Great Float consists of 110 acres (45 ha) of water and more than 4 miles (6 km) of quays.[4]

  1. ^ a b Baines 1859, Part II, p. 107
  2. ^ a b Baines 1859, Part II, p. 108
  3. ^ Baines 1859, Part II, p. 117
  4. ^ "Trading Places: Birkenhead Docks History". Liverpool Museums. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 10 October 2007.