A windswept stretch of creek side, echoing to marsh birds' calls and the thud of shipwrights' hammers, Standard Quay is straight from Charles Dickens. To the right eyes, this scruffy working wharf is a vision of living history. Skilled craftsmen have built and repaired wooden ships here for centuries and in recent years the quay has become a haven for the few dozen surviving Thames sailing barges. But Standard Quay's property developer owner plans to build houses and restaurants on the site. This is the story of its final year as a working shipyard.—Anonymous