A fascinating map of the London Docklands showing civil engineer Ralph Walker's unsuccessful proposal to construct a series of docks at Wapping and in the Isle of Dogs. A canal would connect the Wapping docks to the Thames at Blackwall. A large inset shows a suggested mooring plan for the Wapping docks.

In the 1790s, a group of merchants with large interests in the Caribbean trade who felt that the current arrangements to unload their goods in the Pool of London were poorly managed and unsafe began promoting schemes to improve London's docklands. They petitioned Parliament to find an alternate location for a series of docks which would only be accessible to merchant ships from the West Indies.

Ralph Walker, a Scottish civil engineer with experience in canal and dock construction, submitted this modest proposal for two large docks and two small docks in the Wapping/Shadwell area adjacent to the Pool of London. These docks would be capable of holding over 600 ships in a secure area away from the bustle of river traffic. Walker also proposed a narrow cut through the Isle of dogs to allow ships to bypass the large curve in the river around the Isle of Dogs. Adjacent to this cut, two additional docks could be built if they were deemed necessary. The scale of Walker's proposal was far less grandiose than other proposals of the day, some of which involved completely redirecting the River Thames. 

Walker's proposal for a series of docks at Wapping would eventually be accepted, though in a modified format and without giving credit to Walker. He did, however, remain as a resident engineer for the project and later became and engineer with the East India Docks project. The London Docks at Wapping were opened in 1805.

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