PORT OF FELIXSTOWE 50 YEARS OF CONTAINERS

THE HISTORY OF THE PORT OF FELIXSTOWE

Founded by Colonel George Tomline in 1875, the Port of Felixstowe began life as ‘The Felixstowe Railway and Pier Company’. Withstanding two World Wars and a number of changes of ownership, in 1966 work began on the New South Quay. Opening on the 1st July 1967, and later renamed Landguard Container Terminal, it was the UK’s first purpose-built container terminal.

The operation today bears no real resemblance to those early years. The scale and level of technical innovation have grown beyond recognition. But not everything has changed. Felixstowe was chosen in 1967 because of its proximity to the main shipping lanes and the major ports of Northern Europe. That remains a key differentiator but since then its position has been improved by the development of road and rail links that are second to none.

Change has been a constant at Felixstowe over the last 50 years. The second phase of Landguard Terminal was completed in the 1970s followed by Dooley, Walton and Trinity Terminal, the UK’s first post-panamax facility, which was built in phases through the 1980s and 1990s with the final phase completed in 2004.

Since then growth has continued. The most recent phase of development, Berths 8&9, was opened in 2011 and was extended in 2015. The creation of the newest terminal involved the reclamation of additional land from the River Orwell but also included the site of the New South Quay, bringing the story full-circle and ensuring that the largest container ships in the world are handled where the very first container ships visited 50 years ago.

Watch Our Port film Watch Our 50th film

1967

Port of Felixstowe opens the first container terminal in the UK – Landguard Container Terminal – with the first 500ft of quay becoming operational, and one Paceco Vickers Portainer Crane.

The first colour television broadcast takes place in the UK. The broadcast was from the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, on BBC2, which at the time had become the only channel to broadcast in colour.

1969

With the birth of transatlantic container ships, Port of Felixstowe regularly welcomes the Lightning, Sea Witch and Staghound (1,300 TEU) of American Export Isbrandtsen Line.

The Beatles’ last recorded album, their eleventh, is released. It was entitled 'Abbey Road' and went to number one on the UK and US charts.

1970

A new direct rail link opens at Port of Felixstowe, making the movement of containers in and out of the port easier and quicker, removing the need for trains to reverse at Felixstowe Town. 

Boeing 747 makes its debut commercial flight on Pan Am's New York to London route. The plane, given the nickname 'Jumbo Jet', held the record for the greatest passenger capacity for 37 years.

1973

In a major phase of development, the port's South Rail Terminal opens, and a 700ft extension to the Landguard Container Terminal is completed.

Sydney Opera House opens its famous doors to the public, with a  concert featuring music by Wagner. The venue was designed by Danish architect Jorn Utzon.

1980

The year that Port of Felixstowe  became the largest container port in the United Kingdom, handling 252,802 containers in 12 months.

Pac-Man, one of the most popular video games of all time, is launched by Namco in Japan.

1981

The port's new Dooley Container Terminal becomes operational at the port – within a year work will commence on a new
second Railfreight Terminal to carry
freight to and from Dooley.

Ronald Reagan is inaugurated as the
40th President of the United States of America, at the age of 69 years and
349 days.

1983

Port of Felixstowe opens the 'North' Rail
Terminal (as it was called then) to serve
its new container terminal at Dooley. The
Rail terminal would later become known
as the Central Rail Terminal.

David Bowie releases the single 'Let's
Dance', which went on to top the UK
charts for three weeks, and the Billboard
Hot 100.

We’ll be extending our timeline of milestones every week,
so check back soon and see how our story evolved.

Back to the top

The Port of Felixstowe is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the completion of its first roll-on roll-off berth (More details here: http://bbc.in/1DqJKcL )

To mark the occasion, the port has let us publish these fantastic black and white photographs dating back to the 1960s.

What are your memories of sailing from Felixstowe?

The Port of Felixstowe has celebrated the 50th anniversary of Roll-on/Roll-off operations at the Port of Britain.

The anniversary was marked by a reception for guests and local dignitaries followed by a visit to the Ro/Ro ferry Suecia Seaways at the port's Dooley Terminal. The event was also attended by a number of retired employees who have worked at the port's Ro/Ro terminals over the last 50 years.

As a memento of the anniversary, Clemence Cheng, Chief Executive Officer of the Port of Felixstowe and Managing Director of HPH Europe division, presented Mark Woodard of DFDS Seaways, with a framed copy of a DFDS advert from the port's 1965 Handbook.

In 1965 DFDS operated a weekly service to Copenhagen. Fifty years on they operate three sailings per day from Felixstowe to Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

Speaking at the event, Mr Cheng said:

"Ro/Ro operations were introduced at Felixstowe before we handled our first container and have continued, uninterrupted, ever since. Freight ferries remain hugely important for trade with Europe and we are delighted to be celebrating this event with DFDS. Their North Sea service offers shippers a vital route for UK trade with the Netherlands and the rest of mainland Europe."

Mark Woodard, Manager of DFDS Seaways in Felixstowe, added:

"We are very pleased to be able to take part in these important celebrations. We have operated our route for some decades now and it has developed into a high frequency and capacity driven freight service with daily crossings to Rotterdam. I believe it is important to acknowledge the professional and efficient operations here in Felixstowe where a quick turnaround time in port is extremely important to our customers who mainly trade in time-sensitive goods. We therefore congratulate the port and staff and we look forward to many more years to come of Ro/Ro in Felixstowe."

The first Ro/Ro vessel, the 2,760 ton Gaelic Ferry, called at the port's then newly-built No.1 Ro/Ro Bridge on 12 July 1965. That first service to Rotterdam was operated by Transport Ferry Service, the trading name of the Atlantic Steam Navigation Company (ASN). The vessel loaded 34 lorries and around 80 BMC cars.

ASN was acquired by the European Ferries group, the operators of Townsend Thoresen ferries, in 1971 and continued to operate from the port under the Townsend Thoresen brand. Five years later, in 1976, European Ferries also bought the Port of Felixstowe itself.

The port, and the ferry company, was subsequently sold to P&O and the ferry company renamed P&O European Ferries. P&O's ferry services from the port continued until 2002.

DFDS acquired the service previously operated by Norfolk Line in 2010. The first Norfolk Line ship arrived in Felixstowe on 6 January 1992. Other ferry services that have operated from the port over the last 50 years include those by Sealink, Tor Line, Fred Olsen and Finanglia.