Dundee Harbour and Docks - Ref: WC0971
Although Dundee's main source of income in the 19th century was the jute industry (the whaling fleet supplied oil which was essential to the pre-treatment of the raw material), the city also had a sizeable fishing fleet.
This photograph by the local amateur, Alexander Wilson, shows some of those trawlers in the tidal harbour, beyond which is the King William IV Dock. The line of buildings in the middle distance is Dock Street.
The church spire is that of St Paul's Cathedral. To the left of the photograph, behind the sailing ship's masts, is the Royal Arch, which stood at the north end of a pier between the King William IV and the Earl Grey Docks.
Alexander Wilson who took this photograph, was a supervisor in a Dundee jute mill for over 20 years. He bequeathed much of his collection and £50, to cover the costs involved, to the Free Library Committee of Dundee in 1923.