Port of river Dangė (Danė)

From the middle of the 16th century till the second part of 18th century Klaipėda port was located in the River Dangė. Port‘s and commercial infrastructure concentrated on its embankments: there were located city scales, stowages squares and warehouses, herring sorting building, flax scales. In the middle of 18th century near the river there was built the Stock Exchange of Klaipėda Merchants‘ Guild.
Till the middle of 18th century the river‘s channel was relatively shallow. It was not once deepened and straightened. In the middle of 18th century having built two moles of Dangė, later named North and South capes, finally there was managed the mouth. The quays many times were heightened – they were poured with ballast, which was brought by sailing ships.
Only in the second half of the 18th century, when port has not stowed in the River Dange, a part of it‘s infrastructure was gradually moved to the current port‘s location near the Curonian lagoon. However, until the end of 19th century many industrial enterprises remained in the river port: sawmills, sailboats (later – steamships) shipyards, timber stowage squares, city utilities.
The Port of the River Dangė has stretched from the mouth of the river almost 3 km, up to the railway bridge, built over the river in 1874-1875.
Up the the 20th century ships entered the River Dangė and thus reached the city center.
After the Second World War environment of the Port of the River Dangė has changed significantly. In the first years after the war there was an idea to pull down all industrial and warehouse buildings, which were located on the quays, and to install a green zone on both sides of the river. Implementing this idea there were dismantled buildings of stock exchange, customs, flax scales, which were dilapidated during the war, demolished warehouses in the North rage, whereas embankment was planted with trees and built with residential houses of typical construction. Dates back to the ancient port infrastructure recalled the red brick warehouses, which remained not demolished, former building of Robert Meyhoefer shipping company and several ships mooring bollards.
In 1969 at the quay of the River Dangė there was moored sailboat „Meridianas“. In 1948 it was built in the shipyard of Turku city (Finland) and together with 48 sailboats of this type was transferred to the USSR as war reparation. Up to 1967 the students of Klaipėda Naval School performed therein maritime practice.
In 1971 a restaurant was settled there, which in the eighth and ninth decades has been considered as one of the best in town.

Source: Istorinio kultūros paveldo vietos Lietuvos pajūryje. Klaipėda, 2011, p. 33-34.