The loop is part of the Thames lower reaches: within the meander was a huge area of marshland.

Gravesend on the opposite shore had long been a port of entry for shipping, all of which had used the river itself for loading and unloading of cargo and passengers.

With the coming of the railways and increasing ship size, proximity to the centre of London became less important than access to deep water, unrestricted sites and reduction in time spent travelling up the winding Thames.

[2] For a while the East & West India Company continued construction with their own workers until the firm of Lucas and Aird was engaged to complete the work.

[6] In 1909 Tilbury, along with the upstream docks, became part of the newly established Port of London Authority (PLA).

[10] Near the Dockmaster's office, on New Lock, is a memorial to Captain Peter de Neumann, GM, who was killed there in an accident on 16 September 1972.

[11] In 1978, a deep water riverside berth was opened for large container ships on reclaimed land at Northfleet Hope.

[16][17] Port of Tilbury recently announced a joint development with Tarmac, a partnership which will see the UK's largest construction materials aggregates terminal (CMAT) built on a 152-acre site.

Tilbury became the only port in the PLA to serve ocean liners, when, in 1916, it opened berths specifically for the P&O within the dock complex.

With the need for expanded facilities, a large new passenger landing stage was constructed in the Thames jointly by the PLA and the London Midland and Scottish Railway, with rail connections.

For many people Tilbury was their point of emigration to Australia under an assisted passage scheme established and operated by the Australian Government.

At the end of the second world war Displaced People (DP's) from the Baltic Countries who were in camps in Germany began to arrive.

The ship on which they travelled-the Empire Halladale was used to transport British Military families from Tilbury in 1946 under Operation Union to Germany.

[20] Tilbury was also a port of entry for many immigrants; among them being a large group of West Indians on HMT Empire Windrush in 1948.

[21][22] The passenger landing stage was reopened by the Port of Tilbury group, as the London Cruise Terminal in 1995.

The old station building (no longer served by a railway connection) has been refurbished to house a new luggage retrieval hall.

[28] The connection passed through a pair of high security gates and then fanned out into a series of exchange sidings which were controlled by a dock company signal box.

[29] In the early years goods traffic was low which was a disappointment for the LT&SR board who had been hoping the docks would be a big boost to its income.

Traffic was reasonable in the summer but poor in the winter and it was decided to withdraw the service with the last train running on 30 April 1932 and the Tilbury Marine closing the following day.

A grain terminal was opened in the docks called Northfleet Hope in 1969 and the container berths were rail served.

During World War II the Hunslet and one of the Hudswell Clarke locomotives worked on the Manchester Ship Canal railway system returning in 1946.

[41] The PLA chose diesel locomotives made by the Yorkshire Engine Company (YEC) to replace the aging steam fleet at Tilbury during 1959/60.

[43] The Docks stood in for Venetian waterways during the boat-chase scene in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989).