75th Anniversary of Thurrock Council

As Thurrock Council celebrates its 75th anniversary we look back on the rich history of the area and some of the major events that have helped to shape it. Information is kindly provided by Thurrock Museum.

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1947 - Thurrock Library Service

Thurrock Library service had been established with the opening of the Andrew Carnegie Free Library in Grays. Post-war developments and increasing communities outside Grays now required a mobile library van to service their needs.

Year Event
1936 Thurrock District Urban Council formed
1937 P&O SS Orcades leaves on maiden voyage
1938 State and Bata cinemas opened
1939 Road direction signposts removed
1940 Bomb-proof shelters issued
1941 SS Lunula an oil tanker destroyed
1942 Funds raised to adopt a mine sweeper
1943 Salvage (re-cycling) campaign
1944 Tilbury Hotel destroyed by incendiary bombs
1945 Victory in Europe (VE) parties
1946 Pre-fab housing estates opened
1947 Thurrock Library Service
1948 SS Empire Windrush docks at Tilbury
1949 123,000 people use landing stage
1950 Torells School opens
1951 The Old Dutch House
1952 First meeting of Thurrock Local History Society
1953 Thames Floods
1954 Tilbury Carnival
1955 East Tilbury Bata War Memorial and Thomas Bata statue unveiled
1956 Belhus Mansion demolished
1957 Thurrock Urban District Council Coat of Arms
1958 New Diesel locomotive
1959 Timetable for the Tilbury to Gravesend car ferry
1960 Thurrock Technical College opens
1961 Cleaning of decks and cabins in Tilbury Dock
1962 Foundation stone set for Blackshots swimming pool
1963 Dartford Tunnel opened
1964 Prehistoric animals found
1965 East German ship, Magdeburg, sinks in the Thames
1966 'Wayfinder' shoes made for Boy Scouts
1967 Francis Chichester passes Tilbury on the Gypsy Moth
1968 Stanford cattle market closes
1969 Grays Building Society £7.1 million fraud
1970 Woolmarket opened as a community centre
1971 East Tilbury Railway Station catches fire
1972 Lord Goodman opens Thameside complex
1973 Purfleet magazines cleared for Garrison Estate
1974 Thurrock receives 'Borough' status
1975 New logo for the borough unveiled
1976 Thurrock reaches It's a Knockout final
1977 Joyes department store closes
1978 Tilbury Football Club plays Stoke in the FA Cup
1979 Philip Vincent dies
1980 Poets Corner Estate in Tilbury demolished
1981 Queen and Prince Phillip visit Grays
1982 Large fall of snow in borough
1983 New M25 motorway system completed
1984 Lakeside Retail Park opened
1985 Gordon the Gopher opens Children's World
1986 Freedom of the Borough
1987 Stanford Cricket Club celebrates its centenary
1988 400th anniversary of the Spanish Armada
1989 State Cinema officially closed
1990 Lakeside Shopping Centre opened
1991 Queen Elizabeth II Bridge
1992 Tilbury Riverside station closed
1993 West Thurrock Power Station closes
1994 Purfleet Heritage Centre formed
1995 Railway station for Chafford Hundred
1996 Thurrock wins Anglia in Bloom regional finals
1997 Tilbury Fire Station used as TV location
1998 Culloden - placing of commemorative stone
1999 The Royal National Theatre performs at Blackshots
2000 Thurrock schools at the Millennium Dome
2001 Half Moon pub renamed The Traitor's Gate
2002 Thurrock Heritage Plaque scheme started
2003 Coalhouse Fort showcased
2004 Batman Begins filmed at Coalhouse Fort
2005 Development Corporation begins work
2006 Remember Us play staged in Tilbury
2007 London Cruise Terminal increases in use
2008 Freedom march
2009 Gateway Academy opened
2010 New bridge opened across the Mardyke

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