Sulina : Romania

Sulina is a town in Romania, at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the Danube.
Sulina is the only free port on the Danube, and is much used for the transhipment into seagoing vessels of grain which is brought down the river in large lighters from Romania, Russia, Bulgaria, Serbia and Austria-Hungary. No agricultural produce is grown in its neighborhood, owing to the reed-covered swamps with which it is surrounded. Sulina is the headquarters of the technical department of the European Commission of the Danube. Large steamers navigate up to Galati and Braila. In 1901, 1411 steamers and sailing craft aggregating 1,830,000 tons register cleared from Sulina for European ports carrying, besides other merchandise, nearly 13,000,000 quarters of grain. Owing to the improvements effected by the European Commission, there is a depth of 24 ft. of water on the bar, and of 18 to 22 ft. in the fairway. A lighthouse overlooks the estuary. The town contains the only English church in Romania.
The information in this article is old. Austria-Hungary doesn’t even exist any more. It’s questionable whether Sulina is the only free port on the Danube, or whether it’s still a free port.
Sulina is no longer a free port, and steamers do not navigate up to Galati and Braila, and possibly are unable to. Ferries and hovercraft come from the nearby port of Tulcea most days, apparently bringing food, packages and post to the people of the town, although it is unclear whether they are the sole source of deliveries.
Population
1900: 5,611
2000: 5,140