[1] The first dock was small, with a 20 ft (6.1 m)-wide entrance, and intended for river and canal boats moving timber.

[1] In 1839, Jesse Hartley and his son were employed by a separate private company to design two further small basins on the site, known as Harrington Dock and Harrington Dry Basin.

[1] The name of the dock can be traced to the district of Harrington, intended for a planned overflow town for Liverpool which never came to fruition.

[1] The district of Harrington, itself, was named in honour of Lady Isabella Stanhope, daughter of William Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Harrington and wife of Charles Molyneux, 1st Earl of Sefton who owned the former Royal Forest of Toxteth Park.

[1] By 1858, the dock primarily traded with the west coast of South America.