Tilbury Docks were officially opened on 17th April 1886, when the steamship "Glenfruin" broke a tape stretched across the entrance lock. At first, business was bad but eventually the docks were filled with shipping.
This only became possible when The Company dropped their dues, and as their competitors were forced to do likewise this led to the destruction of the private dock companies. A new body, called the Port of London Authority, which was a new form of public trust, finally supplanted the small dock companies in 1909.