The Wapping Pub Walk  New Walk!

A Riverside Walk through Dockland’s History, Masts, Myths and Malt from Tower Hill to Wapping

Short read:

Embark on a captivating riverside walk from the Tower of London to historic Wapping — a journey through centuries of London’s maritime past. We’ll begin by the mighty Tower itself, take in striking views of Tower Bridge, and explore the hidden charm of St Katharine Docks, once a thriving port for the world’s goods. As we follow the Thames Path east, discover stories of pirates, smugglers, and the notorious Execution Dock.

Along the way, we’ll pause for a pint at The Dickens Inn and two of London’s most legendary riverside pubs: the Town of Ramsgate, steeped in tales of intrigue and river justice, and the Prospect of Whitby, London’s oldest waterside tavern. With cobbled lanes, warehouse wharves, and historic watering holes, this walk is perfect for history lovers, curious wanderers, and anyone who enjoys a pint with a side of London lore.

Long Read:

Once known as Wapol — a marsh — Wapping rose between the river wall to the south and boggy ground to the north. In his 16th-century Survey of London, John Stow described it as,

“a continual street or filthy passage, with alleys of small tenements or cottages, inhabited by sailors and victuallers.”

It has always been about the river. Wapping’s maritime character runs deep. This was London’s notorious waterside district — home to sailors, mast makers, immigrants, pirates, boat builders, slaves, and convicts awaiting transportation to Australia. At its peak, over thirty taverns lined the river wall, serving a clientele of dockers, scoundrels, and smugglers. It was a place of trade and toil — and of executions!

As surely as the tide breached the river wall, and fires swept through sail lofts and timber yards fuelled by pitch, tar, and oil — Wapping has endured. During the Blitz, when the Thames shimmered like silver foil beneath enemy raids, it was Wapping that bore the brunt, day and night. Yet it survived. Kinetic, unyielding, ever-changing — like the tide that shaped it — Wapping is a place forged by hard men and women. Built on salt, sand, riverside air, and no small amount of guile, its past lingers like the shadows cast by a gibbet at low tide. What remains? The copper-tipped tower of St John’s. The timber staves still driven deep into Thames mud. The old river stairs. The great wharves of tea, tobacco, and spice — now reborn as luxury apartments. And the spirit of the place, still whispering in the remnants of churches, tight-knit communities, and riverside haunts.

There are tales of Captain Kidd, of Hanging Judge Jeffries, of Colonel Thomas Blood. But also of resilience — the Friar of St Patrick’s who galvanised a poverty stricken community of Mog Murphy of the Turk’s Head, who kept her pub open around the clock during the Blitz so families could wait for news of loved ones. Trade disputes. Picket lines. Stories that won’t lie still. This is a place of stubborn pride and deep memory. There’s something timeless about these old riverside taverns—weathered places that still know how to spin a great yarn. In Wapping, storytelling runs as deep as the Thames. From The Prospect of Whitby to The Town of Ramsgate—perhaps the oldest riverside pub in London—these historic haunts are full of character, charm, and tales as tall as any told by fishermen. Nowhere else captures the soul of a people — or the pulse of the river — quite like Wapping. With cobbled alleys, salty tales, and riverside charm, this is history served with a generous splash of ale.