The origin of the harbour of Ardrossan lies in the vision of Hugh, the twelfth Earl of Eglinton, who was a man of great energy. Not only did he rebuild the family home of Eglinton Castle but on July 31, 1806, he was responsible for the laying by William Blair, Master Mason, of the foundation stone of the harbour and wet dock to be connected by canal to Paisley and Glasgow. The town of Ardrossan grew up around the project. Earl Hugh died on December 15, 1819 but the Eglinton family continued the project. The estimated cost for the harbour was £40,000 with and anticipated 10% annual return on capital, but costs mushroomed to £100,000 and expected revenues were never realized. The canal made its way from Glasgow as far as Johnstone before the competing project of deepening the Clyde in the new age of the steamboat sucked up all the interest and capital. Nevertheless, Ardrossan was in an...