A detailed depiction of the West India Docks in 1810, by Thomas Rowlandson and Augustus Charles Pugin. This print shows the warehouses at the quayside and several West Indiamen moored alongside. The extensive warehousing was needed to accommodate thousands of tons of cargo, which included sugar, rum, molasses, coffee, spices and hardwood.

London’s West India Docks were constructed by a powerful group of businessmen, led by Robert Milligan. A wealthy merchant and ship-owner, he was outraged at the losses suffered due to theft and delay at London’s riverside wharves.