Image of a boat with a single mast cut from the book "The History of the town of Gravesend in the County of Kent and of the Port of London" by Robert Pierce Cruden. Side view; vessel is shown at sea, with men working on the rigging. Caption printed below reads, "A Gravesend Tilt-boat, from an engraving, by P.C. Canot, 1753."
According to the text of the book, a London-Gravesend ferry service known as the Long Ferry transitioned from using traditional barges to using tilt-boats in the 16th century, and in 1737, regulation was put in place giving a minimum closeness of deck and burthen for any tilt-boat used in the Long Ferry.
