Nationalization

on Feb 9, 2022

For a small boy, one of the treats when going for a sail on the Clyde or a holiday visit on the Firth in the 1950s was to go to the steamer shop or stationery shop when ashore and, after much deliberation, choose a postcard depicting a favourite steamer of the day. Particularly prized were the photographic cards produced by Messrs W. Ralston, Ltd., the premier marine photographers who were renowned for their images of ships on trials. Their series of cards of Clyde Steamers covered most of the important members of the fleet. With the exception of the MacBrayne vessels, the uniform buff, black-topped funnels of the Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd., gave the impression that this was standard for a passenger steamer, but careful attention to the photographs gave glimpses of a more colourful age that preceded the utilitarian post-war decade. This article is mostly pictorial in nature. The...

Mambeg Pier

on Jun 4, 2021

In the Glasgow Herald of October 2, 1857, an advert announced: “Feuing on the Roseneath Estate.—The new pier at Mambeg, on the Gareloch, is now open to the public. The ground on either side affords some very desirable sites for villas. For particulars, apply to James Dalgleish, Esq., W. S. Edinburgh; or Smith & Wharrie, Surveyors, 54 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow. Duncan Campbell at Mambeg Farm, will give all local information.” The pier was about equidistant from Garelochhead and the hamlet of Rahane where there was a ferry across the loch to Shandon, but the proximity of the pier was not well populated. A number of villas were built and advertised for summer lets but the pier remained in a fairly isolated spot. Despite limited local trade, the pier was popular with excursionist parties such a Sunday-school trips with ready access to suitable fields for picnics and games. The beauty...

Garelochhead Pier

on Jun 3, 2021

The steamboat pier at the head of the Gareloch was erected in 1845 by Sir James Colquhoun to serve the village of Garelochhead, then described as an “increasing clump of cottages.” The population of the district had been in decline for some years as farms and small-holdings had been combined and farming had become more efficient with a focus on livestock in adjoining Glen Fruin. However, the beauty of the surroundings and the new fashion of sea-bathing was bringing visitors to the area in summer and the proximity to Glasgow and the Clyde attracted new residents. Around 1838, a Church had been built in the village that lay six miles from the Parish Church of Row. About the same time, a Hotel was opened, a popular spot since the adjoining parish of Roseneath was “dry.” Garelochhead before the pier around 1840. The church, built in 1838 is visible. Steamboat communication had begun early,...

Craigendoran Steamers between the Wars

on Apr 27, 2017

The North British paddle steamers sailing out of their base at Craigendoran were able to maintain services well into the early years of the First World War. In 1915, Waverley continued sailing to Arrochar and Lochgoilhead until September when she was called up to join Marmion which had gone in June. Kenilworth had been reboilered early in the year and appeared that season with her fore-saloon extended to the full width of the hull and her bridge brought forward of the funnel. She served the Dunoon and Holy Loch connection along with Talisman while Lucy Ashton maintained service to the Gareloch piers. Dandie Dinmont was the spare boat. It was 1917 before Talisman and Kenilworth went to war, leaving Lucy Ashton and Dandie Dimont to cover the Craigendoran services for the remainder of the emergency. Dandie Dinmont approaching Dunoon around 1920 (McGeachie)   Kenilworth in Rothesay Bay...

North British Steamers

on Feb 28, 2016

The North British Railway Company had taken over the Helensburgh Railway in July 1866, a subsidiary, the North British Steam Packet Co., formed to run steamer services with their new well-appointed saloon steamers Meg Merrilies and Dandie Dinmont, immediately pressured the Helensburgh authorities for improved steamboat accommodation and a railway connection with the pier. The failure of this initial venture to attract a greater portion of the coast trade with steamers so obviously superior to those on other routes with the exception of the Iona must have been a tremendous blow to those involved. At the end of the season, Meg Merrilies and Dandie Dinmont were laid up in Bowling and offered for sale. The former was sold in 1868 to Turkish owners. Meg Merrilies Dandie Dinmont was moved to the Forth and tried on ferry services there. Her deck space was unsuitable for the requirements of...

Collision in the Gareloch

on Nov 26, 2014

On 8th January 1912 the Lucy Ashton was sailing from Craigendoran to Garelochhead in a snowstorm when she ran into the stern of the Allan liner Siberian which was moored between Rahane and Mambeg. She was travelling at speed when the accident occurred and stove in her bow both above and below the waterline. The vessel was able to make Garelochhead and disembark her passengers. She then returned to the Siberian to see if assistance was required. The skipper was Roderick McDonald who had a reputation for driving the little steamer hard. The Siberian was laid up at the time.  Apparently, the moorings of the Siberian had dragged her anchor in the storm and moved her into the track normally taken by the steamer. Siberian in Service The following account is from a contemporary newspaper: “During the severe snowstorm in the Gareloch on Monday night the North British steamer Lucy Ashton,...