Isle of Dogs (London)

United Kingdom / England / Westham / London
 peninsula, draw only border

The Isle of Dogs is now actually a peninsula, but was a former island in the East End of London that is surrounded on three sides (east, south and west) by one of the largest meanders in the River Thames. It includes the Millwall docks, And the world Famous Canary Wharf
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   51°29'40"N   -0°0'55"E

Comments

  • What normally happens to meanders is that they gradually erode to leave a bypass-route which water flows through. The Isle of Dogs was at that stage before the docklands grew up. Had the docklands not been built, over time the water would have left sediments and eventually blocked up the curved water, leaving an ox-bow lake. Since the docks blocked up the bypass route, water now goes around the meander.
  • The Isle of Dogs declared independence from the United Kingdom for a short period in 1970, blocking off the two roads leading into the area and turning it into what was effectively its own state! The campaign was an attempt to highlight the isolated nature of the area, and the lack of concern the authorities were showing towards alleviating the associated problems. The man at the centre of it all was Labour councillor Ted Johns who came to be portrayed as the state's 'president', and would later go on to launch a Thames-side boat invasion of GLC County Hall.
  •  29 km
  •  186 km
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  •  254 km
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  •  416 km
  •  488 km
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This article was last modified 10 years ago