Parkeston, Essex
| Parkeston | |
|---|---|
 Parkeston
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| Parkeston shown within Essex | |
| Population | 2,343 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | TM236319 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HARWICH |
| Postcode district | CO12 5 |
| Dialling code | 01255 |
| Police | Essex |
| Fire | Essex |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
Parkeston /ˈpɑːrkstən/ is a North Sea port, electoral ward and village in Essex, England, situated on the south bank of the River Stour about one mile (1.6 km) up-river from Harwich.
In the 1880s, reclaimed land that had been Ray Island was developed by the Great Eastern Railway Company (GER) as a railway depot for import/export trade with the European mainland. The new port was named Parkeston Quay, after Charles H. Parkes, Chairman of the GER. The existing railway line was re-routed to pass through the port, although the original railway embankment, through an overgrown area known locally as The Hangings, still exists. Most of the terraced housing in Parkeston was built for railway employees and some of the streets in the village have names that can be theoretically linked to the shipping and general activities of the railway, examples being Tyler Street (paddle steamer The Lady Tyler), Hamilton Street (paddle steamer Claud Hamilton), Adelaide Street (paddle steamer Adelaide) and Princess Street (paddle steamer Princess of Wales).
Claud Hamilton, a former chairman of GER, also gave his name to Hamilton Park, the extensive playing fields between the village and the station/quay area.
Parkeston is known locally as "Spike Island" or "Cinder City". The 'Cinder City' name was particularly appropriate given the large areas of marshland or saltings that were reclaimed, frequently using waste material from the railway activities.
There can be very few examples of a village created by a railway company to house the company's workers for their very extensive railway and shipping services. The railway operation also included a locomotive shed and very extensive marine workshops to service the fleet of vessels based on the port, comprising up to a dozen ferries and cargo vessels at a peak.
From early in the 20th century, major passenger ferry services were developed, mainly to the Hook of Holland (with the slogan "Harwich to the Hook of Holland") and later to Esbjerg in Denmark. During both World Wars, however, Parkeston served as an important naval base. Parkeston Quay is now named Harwich International Port and the railway station is named Harwich International. Parkeston is also now faced, across the Stour estuary, by the UK's busiest container port, the Port of Felixstowe.
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