- Source: Town Pier, Gravesend
The Gravesend Town Pier is located in Gravesend, Kent. It was designed by William Tierney Clark and built in 1834 on the site of the earlier Town Quay. Over 3 million passengers were served between 1835 and 1842, but around 1900, this pier fell into disuse due to the arrival of the railways.
In 2000, this site was restored by the Gravesham Borough Council, partly funded by the organisations English Heritage, English Partnerships, Heritage Lottery Fund, Kent County Council, and Manifold Trust. In 2002, this renovation project was finished. They had also added a restaurant and a bar to the pier. When reopened, the Gravesend Town Pier was initially successful, but it later became a fiscal failure.
Gravesend town pier is the oldest surviving cast iron pier in the world and is a Grade II* listed building.
Current services
Since 2012 the Gravesend–Tilbury Ferry has run from the Town Pier.
The Gravesend to Tilbury ferry, operated by Jetstream Tours, is no longer in service.
On 4 November 2022, Uber Boat by Thames Clippers announced that they had completed the purchase of the Pier, with an aim to operate a long-term River Bus service from Gravesend within 2-3 years. In recent years they have operated select sailings into Central London during high season.
From 27 July 2024 to 29 September 2024, Thames Clippers will run services to London.
Mention of the pier in other media
It is the setting of the 2017 song "Gravesend Pier" by Gone Molly, which describes a scene of poverty and wealth in nineteenth century England.
See also
List of piers
References
Further reading
Clark, W. T. (1840). "Account of the Gravesend Pier (Including Plates)" (PDF). ICE Transactions. 3 (3): 245–256. doi:10.1680/itrcs.1840.24368.
External links
View of the Gravesend town pier
National Piers Society entry for Gravesend Town Pier
Jetstream Tours