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West Indies

Unloading a sugar cargo at the West India Docks.
View full size imageUnloading a sugar cargo at the West India Docks. © NMM
The importation of sugar from British plantations inthe West Indies was one of the biggest and most profitable trades of the 18th century. To prevent sugar and rum being stolen from ships moored in the river, the West India Docks were built and opened in 1802.

Other exports from the West Indies included bananas, pineapples, rum, coffee, cocoa and bitumen, used for asphalt street paving.
 

 Find out more:
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Stories Going for growth: The West India and the Greenland Docks
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Galleries What is left of the old port: The West India Docks
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Hot spot The West India Docks, 1800s
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Fact file West India Dock
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Trail West India Docks family trail
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