Pool of London

The Upper Pool consists of the section between London Bridge, which blocked tall-masts from continuing west, and the Cherry Garden Pier in Bermondsey.

Two-thirds of coastal vessels using it were colliers meeting an increase in the demand for coal as the population of London rose.

Shipping needed unrestricted access to the Pool of London which imposed constraints on the crossings that became increasingly necessary with the commercial development on both sides of the river.

The abrupt collapse of commercial traffic in the Thames due to the introduction of shipping containers and coastal deep-water ports in the 1960s emptied the Pool and led to all of the wharves being closed down, and many being demolished.

[5] In 1996, an organisation - the Pool of London Partnership - was established to help promote urban renewal of the areas north and south of the river.

[example needed] Patrick O'Brian refers to the Pool of London in his novels The Commodore and Blue at the Mizzen, both in the Aubrey-Maturin series.

Neal Stephenson mentions various locations around the Pool of London in his novel The System of the World, the third book in The Baroque Cycle.