Gravesend was granted, allowing the men of the town to operate boats between London and the town; these became known as the "Long Ferry". It became the preferred form of passage, because of the perils of road travel (see below). On Gravesend's river front are the remains of a Tudor fort built by command of King Henry VIII in 1543. On 21 March 1617, John Rolfe and Rebecca (aka Princess Pocahontas) with their two-year-old son, Thomas, boarded a ship in London bound for the Commonwealth of Virginia; the ship had only sailed as far as Gravesend before Rebecca fell fatally ill,
Gravesend Crew for Thames tugboats live in town, with Gravesend watermen often hailing from a family tradition. The Port of London Authority Control Centre (formerly known as "Thames Navigation Service") has its headquarters at Gravesend, providing maritime pilots with radar nowadays playing an important role in shipping navigation up the Thames. There is a variety of retail stores and shops in Gravesend. Gravesend market was first chartered in 1268. As of 2018, is situated in the heart of the town. Gravesend has the world's oldest surviving cast iron pier, built in 1834. It is a unique structure having the first known