How do you unload a coal ship? With the maximum amount of noise and dust, you might think, after watching this video. Giant buckets of coal are hoisted up out of the ship's hold, and emptied into a chute with a coal truck waiting below. After a day spent doing that, you can imagine the black dust and grime covering everything nearby. Local people knew they had to get the washing in when the coal boats arrived - click this link to hear more.
The metal gantry that carried coal into the gasworks next to the quay has gone. Before Britain switched to Natural Gas, we used 'Town Gas' created by heating coal in giant ovens. Town gas was cheap to make, but there was a drawback...it contained large amounts of poisonous carbon monoxide. If your house had a gas leak in the middle of the night, it was possible that you would never wake up...