The halfpenny steamer

An illustration of a halfpenny steamer from the book 'Journeys through London, or, byways of modern Babylon' by James Greenwood, undated, c.1873. Greenwood finds himself accidentally beside a tunnel that gives access to the steamers 'Perserverance' and 'Grasshopper' on which passengers can sail between Hungerford and London Bridge, for a halfpenny fare. These cheap steamers were frequented by people travelling to and from markets such as Billingsgate and Covent Garden, but Greenwood notes other passengers who 'tattered, torn, and hungry, were bound to the docks or thereabouts to see if a job might be picked up'.