£27.5m plans for Yorkshire's Maritime City unveiled

The proposals - all part of the build up to a potential £50m cruise terminal being built in the port - could become a reality by 2019, and as well as creating 74 new jobs, should add up to a £1.44m annual boost for the local economy.

The Heritage Lottery Fund is putting £15m into the plans, which aim to raise the profile of the city’s rich maritime history and make a new visitor attraction of three former dry docks, which earlier were shipyards, a short walk from the Museums Quarter.

The most northerly of the three docks was where the HMS Bounty - famed in the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty - was built, almost at the same time the Alexander, which was part of the First Fleet to Australia, in the most southerly dry dock.

The middle dock was the lock-pit for Queen’s Dock, now a city park, which saw many whalers pass through on their way to the Polar regions.

The Arctic Corsair, a veteran of the Cod Wars, which has been a floating attraction in the River Hull for the last two decades, will be taken out of the water and given a complete overhaul.

It is hoped one of the docks will become home to the 110-year-old steam trawler Viola, which campaigners are trying to bring home from South Georgia.

The Spurn Lightship, which once guided vessels navigating the estuary, will also be restored.

Adam Fowler, former chairman of the fishing heritage charity Stand, which saved Arctic Corsair from the scrapyard, said she was never meant to be “stagnant in water rising and falling twice a day” and the dock would be a fitting final berth.

Author and historian Dr Robb Robinson said he was “absolutely delighted”: “Ten to 15 years ago it was very difficult to get the powers that be interested in maritime history. That attitude has been transformed. Hull’s unique selling point is its wonderful maritime story and its connections throughout the world.”

The Maritime Museum, which has already seen a huge surge in visitor numbers this year, will get a new floor and visitors will be able to go up into one of its cupolas for stunning views across the city.

There will be a 50 per cent increase in the number of items on public view and nearly 38,000 items will be rehoused in the Dock Office Chambers.

Director of cultural services Simon Green said: “Local people are incredibly proud of that museum. They are passionate about what it stands for”.

However he said time had stood still and children were seeing what their grandparents saw back in the 70s.

There has been criticism that Wilberforce House in the city which was renovated a decade ago, became more bland and politically correct as a result.

Mr Green disagreed, but said there would be extensive consultation before any changes and that would be about “trying to capture what is about the atmosphere people love.”

Garry Taylor, city major projects manager, said: "The ultimate end game here is a cruise terminal - we have been building up to that in layer upon layer of investment."

Sir Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “This is fantastic news for Hull, and will put the city firmly on the map for visitors from across the world.

“Yorkshire’s Maritime City will further cement the county’s reputation as a major UK tourist destination.”