Walls of Queen’s Dock in Hull to be revealed for first time in decades as part of Queen's Gardens project

And soon the city’s residents could feel more closely connected to their maritime heritage as sections of the former site will be unearthed this month for the first time in 60 years as part of a £4.3m project.

Work to unveil sections of the old walls – last seen in the 1960s when Queen’s Gardens was remodelled to a design created by the renowned architect and town planner Sir Frederick Gibberd – will begin next week.

A restoration includes the building of a new perimeter wall around the boundary of the gardens and the old dock walls will be incorporated in to the foundations of the project.

When Queen’s Dock was constructed in the 1770s, it was the largest of its kind in the country.

It was the starting point for some of the first settlers in Western Australia.

Darker circumstances awaited some voyages, however, including one to Canada, during which a tribe killed most of the crew and kept the captain as a slave for several years.

Councillor Daren Hale is the portfolio holder for economic investment and regeneration at Hull Council.

He said: “These walls once were greeting docking ships and bidding farewell to those disembarking from Queen’s Dock, in what we now know as Queen’s Gardens. Our rich maritime history will play an important role in the refurbishment of the gardens, so it’s fantastic that we will be able to uncover and view the historic walls for the first time in so long this month.”

The Queen’s Gardens project is aimed at improving accessibility and the flow of visitors, delivering structural repairs through rebuilding of the perimeter walls, introducing bespoke pieces of public art, enhancing biodiversity and regenerating one of the East Yorkshire seafaring city’s much-loved open spaces.

The council says that the project will make the gardens “fit for purpose, futureproofing the space” and its ability to host large-scale events.

The history of the gardens will be incorporated in its design, reconnecting it with the origins of the space as a former dock, says the authority.

The Queen’s Gardens refurbishment is being funded by Hull Council as part of the Hull: Yorkshire’s Maritime City project.

Hull Dock Company formed in 1773, the first statutory dock company in Britain.

Five years later it built the city’s first dock, initially known as The Dock and, after 1855, as Queen’s Dock, according to the Carnegie Heritage Centre, was behind the Hull Firsts Trail.

The dock entrance was on the River Hull, south of North Bridge.

Its creation was followed by Humber Dock in 1809 and Junction Dock (now Princes Dock) in 1829.

The three docks were built along the line of the town’s medieval walls, and were known as the Town Docks, according to the centre.

Queen’s Dock closed in 1930 and Hull Corporation bought it for £100,000.

It was subsequently filled in to become Queen’s Gardens.