Originally, food passing through the port was either stored in the open on the quays, exposed to the elements, or sheltered in temporary warehouses that were erected and dismantled every year. With the construction of higher quays in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and the growth of the port, about 20 permanent sheds were built between 1904 and 1920. These warehouses are metal structures whose primary supports are set in concrete, which in turn rests on metal or wood posts. With the port's role changing, almost all the sheds were demolished in the 1970s. Only shed 16 survived in near-original form, with few modifications.