Grimsby, United Kingdom

The Oðinic name "Grimr/Grim" occurs in many English place names in the historical Danelaw and elsewhere in Britain. Examples are numerous earthworks named Grimsdyke. Other British place names with the element Grim are explained as referring to Woðen/Oðin (e.g. Grimsbury, Grimspound, Grime's Graves, Grimsditch, Grimsworne), and Grimsby is likely to have the same derivation.

Grimsby is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as having a population of around 200, a priest, a mill, and a ferry.

In the 12th century, Grimsby grew into a fishing and trading port, at one time ranking twelfth in importance to the Crown for tax revenue. The town gained its charter from King John in 1201. The first mayor was installed in 1202.

Grimsby is noted in the Orkneyinga Saga in this Dróttkvætt stanza by Kali Kolsson:

Grimsby had no town walls. It was too small and felt to be protected by the marshland around it. However, the town dug a defensive ditch.

Grimsby in medieval times had two parish churches, St Mary's and St James. St James, now Grimsby Minster, remains. It is associated with a folk tale of an imp who played tricks in the church and was turned into stone by an angel. A similar tale is told of Lincoln Cathedral – see Lincoln Imp.

In the mid-14th century, Grimsby benefited from the generosity of Edmund de Grimsby, a local man who became a senior Crown official and judge in Ireland.

In the 15th century, The Haven began to silt up, preventing ships in the Humber from docking. As a result, Grimsby entered a long period of decline until the late 18th century. In 1801, the population of Grimsby was 1,524, around the size it had been in the Middle Ages. By 1810 Joseph Smedley was hiring a purpose built theatre for seven Guineas.

In May 1796, the Grimsby Haven Company was formed by the Great Grimsby (Lincoln) Harbour Act 1796 (36 Geo. 3. c. 98), also known as the Grimsby Haven Act 1796, for the purpose of "widening, deepening, enlarging, altering and improving the Haven of the Town and Port of Great Grimsby". After the dredging of The Haven and related improvement in the early 19th century, Grimsby grew rapidly as the port boomed, importing iron, timber, wheat, hemp, and flax. New docks were needed to cope with the expansion. The necessary works were allowed under the Grimsby Docks Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c. ccii).

In 1848, the arrival of the railway eased the transport of goods to and from the port to markets and farms. Coal mined in the South Yorkshire coalfields was brought by rail and exported through Grimsby. Rail links direct to London and the Billingsgate Fish Market allowed fresh "Grimsby fish" to gain nationwide renown. The first true fish dock opened in Grimsby in 1856, and the town became central to the development of the commercial fishing industry.

The Dock Tower was completed in 1851, followed by the Royal Dock in 1852. No.1 Fish Dock was completed in 1856, followed by No.2 Fish Dock in 1877. Alexandra Dock and Union Dock were completed in 1879. During this period, the fishing fleet was much expanded. In a rare reversal of usual trends, large numbers of fishermen from the south-east and Devon travelled north to join the Grimsby fleet. Over 40 per cent of the newcomers came from Barking in East London and other Thames-side towns.

In 1857, there were 22 vessels in Grimsby. Six years later there were 112. The first two legitimate steam trawlers built in Britain were based in Grimsby. A gale in February 1889 resulted in the loss of fifteen smacks and 70 to 80 lives. At that time it was thought to be one of the most serious losses to a single port.

By 1900, a tenth of the fish consumed in the United Kingdom was landed there, although there were also many smaller coastal fishing ports and villages involved. The demand for fish in Grimsby meant that at its peak in the 1950s it claimed to be the largest fishing port in the world. The population grew from 75,000 in 1901 to 92,000 by 1931.

The Great Depression and restructured fishing caused a sharp decline in employment. After that the population was fairly stable for the rest of the 20th century.

The Royal Dock became the UK's largest base for minesweepers patrolling the North Sea. The Admiralty requisitioned numerous trawlers to serve the purpose of the Royal Naval Patrol Service. Often the crew was ex-trawlermen, alongside Royal Naval Reserve and Royal Navy volunteers. Trawlers used the winches and warps from fishing operations to tow a paravane with a cutting jaw through the water in what was known as a "sweep" to bring mines to the surface and allow for their removal.