Port Glasgow (, ) is the second-largest town in the

Inverclyde Inverclyde (, , , "mouth of the Clyde") is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the historic county of Renfrewshire, which ...

council area {{Unreferenced, date=May 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) A council area is one of the areas defined in Schedule 1 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 and is under the control of one of the local authorities in Scotland created by that Ac ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19,426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16,617 persons. The most recent census in 2011 states that the population has declined to 15,414. It is located immediately to the east of

Greenock Greenock (; ; , ) is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms ...

and was previously a

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

in the county of

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Renfrewshire is located in the west central Lowlands. It borders East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, and lies on the southern ba ...

. Originally a fishing hamlet named Newark, Port Glasgow came about as a result of large ships being unable to navigate the shallow and meandering River Clyde to the centre of the city of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. Because of this, it was formed as a remote port for Glasgow in 1668 and became known as 'New Port Glasgow', which was shortened to 'Port Glasgow' in 1775. Port Glasgow was home to dry docks and shipbuilding beginning in 1780. The town grew from the central area of the present town and thus many of the town's historic buildings and people are found here. Port Glasgow expanded up the steep hills inland to open fields where areas such as Park Farm, Boglestone, Slaemuir and Devol and Oronsay were founded. This area has subsequently become known as upper Port Glasgow and most of the town's population occupies these areas.

History

Origins

The origins of Port Glasgow go back to the construction by Sir George Maxwell between 1450 and 1477 of the "New Werke of Finlastoun", which became Newark Castle. At a good anchorage near the castle, a small fishing hamlet known as Newark formed, like other scattered hamlets along the shores of the

River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...

. After 1589 the village of

formed just under to the west of Newark, and gradually became a market town with growing fishing and sea trade, although it had only a jetty in the bay to unload ships. Since seagoing ships could not go further up the Clyde due to sandbanks and shallows, the

merchants such as the

Tobacco Lords The Tobacco Lords were a group of Scottish merchants active during the Georgian era who made substantial sums of money via their participation in the triangular trade, primarily through dealing in slave-produced tobacco that was grown in the T ...

wanted harbour access, but got into arguments with Greenock over harbour dues and warehouses. They put a bid in for the Easter Greenock estate for a harbour, but were outbid and the lands became the

Barony of Cartsburn Barony may refer to: * Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron * Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron * Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...

. They then negotiated with Sir Patrick Maxwell of Newark Estate, and in 1668 he agreed to feu (lease) to the City of Glasgow of land to the west of the castle, for payment of 1,300

merks The merk () is a long-obsolete Scotland, Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a Mark (currency), money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 1 ...

and an annual

feu duty As a legal term, ground rent specifically refers to regular payments made by a holder of a leasehold property to the freeholder or a superior leaseholder, as required under a lease. In this sense, a ground rent is created when a freehold piece of ...

of four merks. Construction of piers and

breakwater Breakwater may refer to: * Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour Places * Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia * Breakwater Island, Antarctica * Breakwater Islands, Nunavut, Canada * ...

s enclosing the

harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...

began promptly, and Newport Glasgow was constituted as a free port. Trade prospered quickly, and by 1710 Newport Glasgow had the principal Clyde

custom house A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...

, initially in Customhouse Lane, then after 1754 in a new building constructed on the west quay of the harbour. Through that century the town became known simply as Port Glasgow. Ships, mostly owned by Glasgow merchants, imported tobacco, sugar, rum, cotton and mahogany from the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, as well as timber, iron and hemp from the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...

. These goods were then taken by road to Glasgow, as was market garden produce from farms around Port Glasgow. A change began in 1773 when the Lang Dyke was constructed to deepen the upper river, and ships increasingly went upriver straight to Glasgow. In 1830, the custom house collected £243,349 3s 1d in revenue, but after that income from the port declined, while by then Greenock had its own customs house. In the 1690s, the grid-iron street layout, which still forms much of the town centre today, was laid out.

Shipbuilding

In 1780, Thomas McGill set up one of the first shipyards in the area, located near Newark castle. By the 19th century, Port Glasgow had become a centre of shipbuilding. The

Comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...

was built in the town in 1812 and was the first commercial

steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

vessel in Europe. A replica of the Comet was built in 1962 to mark the 150th anniversary. It, and a plaque commemorating the actual site of construction, were situated in Port Glasgow town centre in 1973. PS Comet replica

The Town Buildings were completed in 1815 and Port Glasgow became a parliamentary

in 1832, but around this time, the River Clyde up to Glasgow was deepened and new road and rail links meant that the town was no longer needed much as a port. The

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

industry then took over as the main source of employment and prosperity. Port Glasgow has been responsible for about a quarter of the total tonnage of ships launched on the Clyde, and also dealt in scrapping old ships, most notably the French liner ''L'atlantique'', the burnt out wreck of which was broken up in the yard of Smith & Houston. However, as with most of Inverclyde's industry, the shipbuilding industry has all but gone and only

Ferguson Marine Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Limited is a shipbuilding company whose yard, located in Port Glasgow on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, was established in 1903. It is the last remaining shipbuilder on the lower Clyde and is currently the only ...

, which was nationalised in 2019, remains in the town today.

Regeneration

The former Gourock Ropeworks building, built as a sugar refinery in 1866, was redeveloped as luxury flats in 2006, and a retail park has been laid out adjacent to the town centre. Ferguson Shipyard - geograph.org.uk - 307737.jpg, Ferguson's shipyard gate, before demolition in 2015/16 Ferguson's shipyard - geograph.org.uk - 1166906.jpg, Ferguson's shipyard gatehouse before demolition in 2016 The Glen Yard - geograph.org.uk - 1608628.jpg, Scott Lithgow's Glen Yard in 1986 (site is now a retail park)

Transport

The town is served by Port Glasgow railway station (main station) in the town centre and Woodhall railway station in the east end of the town. Both stations are on the electrified

Inverclyde Line The Inverclyde Line is a railway line running from Glasgow Central station through Paisley (Gilmour Street) and a series of stations to the south of the River Clyde and the Firth of Clyde, terminating at Gourock and Wemyss Bay, where it conn ...

, which has frequent services to the termini at Glasgow Central, Gourock and Wemyss Bay. From 1869 to 1959, the town was also served by rail at Port Glasgow Upper railway station on the

Greenock and Ayrshire Railway The Greenock and Ayrshire Railway ran from Greenock, Scotland to Bridge of Weir, connecting there to the Glasgow and South Western Railway and making a through connection between Glasgow and Greenock. It closed progressively between 1959 and 19 ...

. The town is connected to nearby

by the A8 dual carriageway and the M8 motorway.

Glasgow Airport Glasgow Airport, also known as Glasgow International Airport () and formerly Abbotsinch Airport, is an international airport located in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, west of Glasgow city centre. In 2019 it handled 8.84 million passe ...

located 21 km (13 mi) to the east is the closest airport to Port Glasgow. Port Glasgow station - geograph.org.uk - 1057325.jpg, Main entrance to Port Glasgow railway station Port Glasgow railway station - geograph.org.uk - 1218521.jpg, Port Glasgow railway station Woodhall(2).jpg, Woodhall railway station A8 at Kelburn - geograph.org.uk - 841079.jpg, The A8 dual carriageway runs on land reclaimed from the Clyde in the east end of Port Glasgow The A8 in Port Glasgow - geograph.org.uk - 1166784.jpg, The A8 dual carriageway runs through former shipyard land in the west end of Port Glasgow. A8 Port Glasgow - geograph.org.uk - 1163857.jpg, The A8 at Port Glasgow, with the snow-covered Argyll hills beyond

Visitor attractions

Newark Castle

Newark Castle stands very close to the shore of the Clyde, and dates to around 1484. It was home to the Maxwell Family until 1694. By 1800, the castle was surrounded by shipyards, but today only Ferguson's shipyard remains, standing immediately to the west of the castle. A park and waterfront walkway have been constructed to the east, on the site of Lamont's shipyard and Smith & Houston's shipbreaking yard. The castle is now a visitor attraction maintained on behalf of the nation by

Historic Scotland Historic Scotland () was an executive agency of the Scottish Government, executive agency of the Scottish Office and later the Scottish Government from 1991 to 2015, responsible for safeguarding Scotland's built heritage and promoting its und ...

Parklea

About upstream from the castle and its surrounding park, several acres of the Clyde foreshore at Parklea are owned by the

National Trust for Scotland The National Trust for Scotland () is a Scottish Building preservation and conservation trusts in the UK, conservation organisation. It is the largest membership organisation in Scotland and describes itself as "the charity that cares for, sha ...

. For many years, the land has been leased to the local council as playing fields. When the NTS acquired the land, it was regarded as protecting the foreshore from the widespread acquisition by shipyards. However, this did not prevent the construction of extensive timber ponds along this stretch of the river. Parklea Farm - geograph.org.uk - 842052.jpg, Parklea Farm Parklea playing fields - geograph.org.uk - 842115.jpg, Parklea Playing Fields Timber ponds and Dumbarton Rock - geograph.org.uk - 842235.jpg, Timber Ponds at Parklea Timber ponds at Parklea - geograph.org.uk - 842129.jpg, Timber Ponds at Parklea

Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow sculpture

A new sculpture by John McKenna was installed in Coronation Park in March 2022. The 10m high stainless steel structure depicts two larger than life shipyard workers wielding sledgehammers to bend steel plates into shape to form the hull of a ship, part of which is also depicted. They became known as ''The Skelpies'' (the word

skelp Skelp (sometimes spelled scelp) is wrought iron or steel that is rolled or forged into narrow strips and ready to be made into pipe or tubing by being bent (into a cylindrical shape) and welded. The word is most commonly used in the traditiona ...

combined with ''

The Kelpies ''The Kelpies'' are a pair of monumental steel horse-heads between the Scottish towns of Falkirk and Grangemouth. They stand next to the M9 motorway (Scotland), M9 motorway and form the eastern gateway of the Forth and Clyde Canal, which meets ...

''), and the sculpture was officially launched on 24 June 2023. Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture_(2).jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture_detail_(1).jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow detail Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture_detail_(2).jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow detail Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture_and_Port_Glasgow_Town_Building.jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow and the Town Buildings Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture.jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow and the Port Glasgow tower blocks Ferguson_Marine_shipyard_and_Shipbuilders_of_Port_Glasgow_sculpture.jpg, Shipbuilders of Port Glasgow and Ferguson marine shipyard

Coronation Park

Coronation Park was opened on the site of the West Harbour in 1937 to celebrate the

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

of King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

. It contains a memorial to the Clyde boating tragedy when 20 people died when a pleasure cruiser capsized in bad weather on 14 September 1947. Coronation Park - geograph.org.uk - 940440.jpg, The main pedestrian entrance to the park File:200127 Ferguson Marine, MV Glen Sannox, Coronation Park slipway.jpg, Slipway in use, MV ''Glen Sannox'' at Ferguson Marine shipyard Coronation park, Port Glasgow - geograph.org.uk - 337749.jpg, The boat slip at the park Thamesteel I passing Perch Lighthouse - geograph.org.uk - 843662.jpg, Ships pass very close to the park Steam hammer - geograph.org.uk - 337648.jpg, The steam hammer in Coronation Park

Football

Port Glasgow has played host to several successful football clubs, including

Port Glasgow Athletic F.C. Port-Glasgow Athletic was a football club based in Port Glasgow, Scotland. The club was formed in 1878 and originally named Broadfield before changing their name in 1881. They played in the Scottish Football League between 1893 and 1911, and wer ...

and their sister side Port Glasgow Athletic Juniors F.C., which are both now defunct.

Port Glasgow F.C. Port Glasgow Junior Football Club is a Scottish football club, based in the town of Port Glasgow, Inverclyde. History Nicknamed ''the Undertakers'', they were formed as Port Glasgow Athletic Juveniles F.C. in 1948 as an offshoot of Clune Roc ...

, formed in 1948, returned "home" to a new stadium at Parklea, Port Glasgow in 2012, following a spell playing their home games in nearby Greenock.

Parliamentary representation

Port Glasgow was a

parliamentary burgh In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...

as part of the Kilmarnock Burghs constituency from 1832 to 1918, when it was merged into the West Renfrewshire constituency. From 1974 to 1997, it was part of the Greenock and Port Glasgow constituency. It returned to the West Renfrewshire constituency in 1997, before becoming part of the present

constituency in 2005. In the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...

, Port Glasgow has been part of the West Renfrewshire Holyrood constituency since 1999.

Areas of Port Glasgow

Areas of Port Glasgow include: * Bardrainney * Boglestone * Bouverie *Broadfield *Chapelton * Clune Park Estate *Devol *Highholm *Kelburn *Kingston Dock *Lilybank * Mid Auchinleck * Park Farm *Parkhill *Slaemuir *Springhill *

Town Centre A town centre is the commerce, commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train ...

* Woodhall

References

Bibliography

External links

Inverclyde Waterfront (Port Glasgow)The Finlaystone Timber Ponds on the River Clyde.Video footage
{{authority control Towns in Inverclyde Ports and harbours of Scotland Large burghs