• Dublin Port is the main seaport of Dublin, handling the majority of Ireland’s unitised trade and an annual trade value of around €165 billion, making it critical to the national economy.
• It sits at the mouth of the River Liffey, and the working port has moved progressively seaward over time to accommodate deeper-draught vessels and container traffic.

Historical development

Source: Port Collections Talk 13th March by Donnybrook & Sandymount Historical Society with Pembroke Library.

• Efforts to improve the harbour go back at least to 1707, when an Act established a Ballast Office to dredge, maintain channels and levy port charges, marking the first systematic governance of the port.
• The 5 km Great South Wall, begun in 1715 and completed in 1795, and the Poolbeg Lighthouse (1767) were major engineering projects that stabilised the entrance and protected shipping from shifting sands in Dublin Bay.
• The construction of the Custom House in 1791 and subsequent dock developments turned the area into a major commercial quarter, with management later passing to the Dublin Port and Docks Board in 1867.

Pre-Containerisation – 1950 -1960 Photographic Collection (link)
The colour slides displayed portray the daily life and operations in Dublin Port throughout the 1950 and 1960s. Before goods were shipped into containers, thousands of dockers relentlessly worked handling all kinds of imported and exported commodities

Modern port, planning and heritage

• With containerisation in the later 20th century, Dublin Port extended further downriver, building deeper berths while older docklands closer to the city shifted towards mixed-use and cultural regeneration.
• Today the port is guided by long-term strategies (such as “Port 2040”) and a Heritage Conservation Strategy that emphasise both infrastructure investment and conservation of historic structures, archives and landscapes.
• The port is also investing in greenways and public spaces to reconnect the working port with surrounding communities and the wider city.

Public programmes and visiting
These tours and events let visitors see freight terminals, container ships and heritage sites at close quarters, while exploring themes such as engineering, ecology, local communities and maritime culture. Learn about the importance of the ‘Button’ in the video below.

Dublin Port now runs a substantial cultural and events programme, with more than 100 events from April to October 2026 including behind-the-scenes bus tours, public lectures, exhibitions, performances and new boat and architectural tours.