By Steamer to the Kent Coast

From the 1840s, with the development of steamships, there was a demand for day trips to the coast. Towns along the Thames and on the Essex and Kent coasts benefitted from the influx of trippers. Numerous companies, such as the Eagle and Belle steamers and the New Medway Steam Packet Co., catered for this tourist traffic. Towns such as Margate, Ramsgate, Herne Bay and Deal grew on the profits made ...