River Clyde
Encyclopedia
The River Clyde is a major river
in Scotland
. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom
, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow
, it was an important river for shipbuilding
and trade
in the British Empire
.
) and the Potrail Water. The Southern Upland Way
crosses both streams before they meet at Watermeetings to form the River Clyde proper. At this point the Clyde is only 10 kilometres (6 mi) from Tweed's Well, the source of the River Tweed
, and 13 kilometres (8 mi) from the Devil's Beef Tub
, the source of the River Annan
.
From there it snakes northeastward before turning to the west, its flood plain used for many major road
s in the area, until it reaches the town of Lanark
. On the banks of the Clyde, the industrialists David Dale
and Robert Owen
, built their mills and the model settlement of New Lanark
. The mills harness the power of the Falls of Clyde
, the most spectacular of which is Cora Linn. A hydroelectric power station still generates electricity here, although the mills are now a museum and World Heritage Site
.
Between the towns of Motherwell and Hamilton
the course of the river has been altered to create an artificial loch within Strathclyde Park
. Part of the original course can still be seen, and lies between the island and the east shore of the loch. The river then flows through Blantyre and Bothwell
, where the ruined Bothwell Castle
stands on a defensible promontory.
Past Uddingston
and into the southeast of Glasgow the river begins to widen, meandering a course through Rutherglen and Dalmarnock
. Flowing past Glasgow Green
, the river is artificially straightened and widened through the centre, and although the new Clyde Arc
now hinders access to the traditional Broomielaw dockland area, seagoing ships can still come upriver as far as Finnieston
where the PS Waverley
docks. From there, it flows past the shipbuilding heartlands, through Govan
, Partick
, Whiteinch
, Scotstoun
and Clydebank
, all of which housed major shipyard
s, of which only two remain. The river flows out west of Glasgow, past Renfrew, and under the Erskine Bridge
past Dumbarton on the north shore to the sandbank at Ardmore Point between Cardross and Helensburgh
. Opposite, on the south shore, the river continues past the last Lower Clyde shipyard at Port Glasgow
to Greenock
where it reaches the Tail of the Bank
as the river merges into the Firth of Clyde
. At the mouth of the River Clyde there has been a significant issue of oxygen depletion in the water column.
There are around 72 bridges (rail, road, foot and other) that cross the Clyde, from estuary to source. The valley of the Clyde was the focus for the G-BASE project from the British Geological Survey in the summer of 2010.
was driven by the location of Glasgow, being a port
facing the Americas
. Tobacco
and cotton
trade began the drive in the early 18th century. However, the shallow Clyde was not navigable for the largest ocean-going ships and cargo had to be transferred at Greenock
or Port Glasgow
to smaller ships to sail upstream into Glasgow itself.
's report on this in 1769, a jetty was constructed at Longhaugh Point to block off the southern channel. This being insufficient, a training wall called the Lang Dyke was built in 1773 on the Dumbuck shoal to stop water flowing over into the southern channel. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries hundreds of jetties were built out from the banks between Dumbuck and the Broomielaw quay in Glasgow itself. In some cases this resulted in an immediate deepening as the constrained water flow washed away the river bottom; in others, dredging was required.
In the mid-19th century engineers took on a much greater dredging of the Clyde, removing millions of cubic feet of silt
to deepen and widen the channel. The major stumbling block in the project was a massive volcanic plug known as Elderslie Rock. As a result, the work was not completed until the 1880s. At this time, the Clyde also became an important source of inspiration for artists, such as John Atkinson Grimshaw
and James Kay
, willing to depict the new industrial era and the modern world.
working grew in the city, the channel finally became navigable all the way up to Glasgow. Shipbuilding replaced trade as the major activity on the river and shipbuilding companies were rapidly establishing themselves on the river. Soon, the Clyde gained a reputation for being the best location for shipbuilding in the British Empire
, and grew to become the world's pre-eminent shipbuilding centre. Clydebuilt became an industry benchmark of quality, and the river's shipyards were given contracts for prestigious ocean-going liners as well as warships, including the Queen Mary
and the Queen Elizabeth 2
in later years, all built in the town of Clydebank
.
From the founding of the Scott family's
shipyard at Greenock in the year 1712 to the present day over 25,000 ships have been built on the River Clyde and its Firth and on the tributary River Kelvin
and River Cart
together with boatyards at Maryhill
and Kirkintilloch
on the Forth & Clyde Canal and Blackhill
on the Monkland Canal
. In the same time frame it is estimated that over 300 firms have engaged in shipbuilding on Clydeside although probably a peak of 30-40 at any one time.
The shipbuilding firms became 'household names' on Clydeside but also known around the world - Denny
of Dumbarton, Scott of Greenock, Lithgows
of Port Glasgow, Simon and Lobnitz
of Renfrew, Alexander Stephen and Sons
of Linthouse, Fairfield
of Govan, Inglis of Pointhouse, Barclay Curle
of Whiteinch, Connell
and Yarrow
of Scotstoun to name but a few. Almost as famous were the engineering firms that supplied the machinery to drive these vessels, the boilers and pumps and steering gear - Rankin & Blackmore, Hastie's and Kincaid's of Greenock, Rowan's of Finnieston, Weir's
of Cathcart, Howden's of Tradeston and Babcock & Wilcox
of Renfrew.
One Clyde 'shipyard' was not even located on one of these waterways - Alley & MacLellan's Sentinel Works in Jessie Street at Polmadie
is around half a mile from the Clyde yet it is reputed to have constructed over 500 vessels, many of which were pre-assembled then 'knocked down' to kit form for despatch to some far distant and remote location - one such vessel being the SS Chauncy Maples
, still in service. on Lake Malawi
. Clyde Shipbuilding reached its peak in the years just before WW1 and it is estimated that over 370 ships were completed in 1913.
The Clyde became famous worldwide for its significant contribution to yachting and yachtbuilding and was the home of many notable designers: William Fife III
; Alfred Mylne
; G L Watson
; E McGruer; David Boyd. It was also the home of many famous yacht yards.
Robertson's Yard
started repairing boats in a small workshop at Sandbank in 1876, and went on to become one of the foremost wooden boat builders on the Clyde. The 'golden years' of Robertson's yard were in the early 20th century when they started building classic 12- and 15-metre racing yachts. More than 55 boats were built by Robertson's in preparation for the First World War and the yard remained busy even during the Great Depression in the 1930s, as many wealthy businessmen developed a passion for yacht racing on the Clyde. During World War II the yard was devoted to Admiralty work, producing large high speed Fairmile Marine
Motor Bots (MTB's and MGB's). After the war the yard built the successful one-class Loch Longs and two David Boyd designed 12-metre challengers for the America's Cup: Sceptre (1958) and Sovereign (1964). Due to difficult business conditions in 1965 the yard was turned over to GRP production work (mainly Pipers and Etchells) until it closed in 1980. During its 104 year history, Robertson's Yard built 500 boats, many of which are still sailing today.
The downfall of the Clyde as a major industrial
centre came during and post-World War II
. Clydebank in particular was targeted by the Luftwaffe
and sustained heavy damage. The immediate postwar period saw a severe reduction in warship orders which was balanced by a prolonged boom in merchant shipbuilding. By the end of the 1950s, however, the rise of other shipbuilding nations, recapitalised and highly productive, made many Europe
an yards uncompetitive. Several Clydeside yards booked a series of loss-making contracts in the hope of weathering the storm. However, by the mid-1960s, shipbuilding on the Clyde was becoming increasingly uneconomic and potentially faced collapse. This culminated in the closure of Harland and Wolff
's Linthouse yard and a bankruptcy crisis facing Fairfields of Govan. The Government responded by creating the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders
consortium. After the consortium's controversial collapse in 1971, the Labour government of Harold Wilson
later passed the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act which nationalised most of the Clyde's shipyards and grouped them with other major British shipyards as British Shipbuilders
.
Today, two major shipyards remain in operation on the Upper Clyde; they are owned by the naval defence contractor, BAE Systems Surface Ships, which specialises in the design and construction of technologically advanced warships for the Royal Navy and other navies around the world. The two yards are the former Yarrow
yard at Scotstoun
and Fairfields
at Govan. There is also the King George V Dock
, operated by the Clyde Port Authority. On the Lower Clyde, the privately owned Ferguson Shipbuilders
at Port Glasgow
is the last survivor of the many shipyards that once dominated Port Glasgow and Greenock
- its mainstay being the construction of car ferries
.
project is expected to attract investment of up to £5.6bn in the area from Glasgow Green to Dumbarton. Market gardens
and garden centre
s have grown up on the fertile plains of the Clyde Valley. Tourism
has also brought many back to the riverside, especially in Glasgow where former docklands have given way to housing and amenities on the banks in the city, for instance, the Glasgow Harbour
project, the Glasgow Science Centre
, and the creation of the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre
. With the migration of the commercial Port of Glasgow downstream to the deeper waters of the Firth of Clyde
, the river has been extensively cleaned up, once having a very poor reputation for pollution and sewage
, in order to make it suitable for recreational use.
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, it was an important river for shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
and trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
in the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
.
Course
The Clyde is formed by the confluence of two streams, the Daer Water (the headwaters of which are dammed to form the Daer ReservoirDaer Reservoir
Daer Reservoir is a man-made waterbody created by the damming of the Daer Water, a tributary of the River Clyde in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It lies within the Lowther Hills in Dumfries and Galloway. A minor public road leaving the A702 follows the Daer Water south to the dam and then...
) and the Potrail Water. The Southern Upland Way
Southern Upland Way
Opened in 1984, the Southern Upland Way is a coast to coast walk in Scotland between Portpatrick in the west and Cockburnspath in the east....
crosses both streams before they meet at Watermeetings to form the River Clyde proper. At this point the Clyde is only 10 kilometres (6 mi) from Tweed's Well, the source of the River Tweed
River Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water, is long and flows primarily through the Borders region of Great Britain. It rises on Tweedsmuir at Tweed's Well near where the Clyde, draining northwest, and the Annan draining south also rise. "Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot the ae hillside" as the Border saying...
, and 13 kilometres (8 mi) from the Devil's Beef Tub
Devil's Beef Tub
The Devil's Beef Tub is a deep, dramatic hollow in the hills north of the Scottish town of Moffat. The 500-foot deep hollow is formed by four hills, Great Hill , Peat Knowe, Annanhead Hill, and Ericstane Hill. It is one of the two main sources of the River Annan; the other is from the...
, the source of the River Annan
River Annan
The River Annan is a river in southwest Scotland. It rises at the foot of Hart Fell, five miles north of Moffat. A second fork rises on Annanhead Hill and flows through the Devil's Beef Tub before joining at the Hart Fell fork north of Moffat.From there it flows past the town of Lockerbie, and...
.
From there it snakes northeastward before turning to the west, its flood plain used for many major road
Road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...
s in the area, until it reaches the town of Lanark
Lanark
Lanark is a small town in the central belt of Scotland. Its population of 8,253 makes it the 100th largest settlement in Scotland. The name is believed to come from the Cumbric Lanerc meaning "clear space, glade"....
. On the banks of the Clyde, the industrialists David Dale
David Dale
David Dale was a Scottish merchant and businessman, known for establishing the influential weaving community of New Lanark, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is credited along with his son in law Robert Owen of being a founder of utopian socialism and a founding father of socialism-Early...
and Robert Owen
Robert Owen
Robert Owen was a Welsh social reformer and one of the founders of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement.Owen's philosophy was based on three intellectual pillars:...
, built their mills and the model settlement of New Lanark
New Lanark
New Lanark is a village on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles from Lanark, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It was founded in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Dale built the mills there to take advantage of the water power provided by the river...
. The mills harness the power of the Falls of Clyde
Falls of Clyde (waterfalls)
The Falls of Clyde is the collective name of four linn on the River Clyde near New Lanark, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The Falls of Clyde comprise the upper falls of Bonnington Linn, Corra Linn, Dundaff Linn, and the lower falls of Stonebyres Linn. Corra Linn is the highest, with a fall of 90 feet...
, the most spectacular of which is Cora Linn. A hydroelectric power station still generates electricity here, although the mills are now a museum and World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
.
Between the towns of Motherwell and Hamilton
Hamilton, South Lanarkshire
Hamilton is a town in South Lanarkshire, in the west-central Lowlands of Scotland. It serves as the main administrative centre of the South Lanarkshire council area. It is the fifth-biggest town in Scotland after Paisley, East Kilbride, Livingston and Cumbernauld...
the course of the river has been altered to create an artificial loch within Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Park
Strathclyde Country Park is a country park located in Lanarkshire, Scotland.The park covers some 4 km², centred on the artificial Strathclyde Loch. It is located next to the River Clyde between Hamilton and Motherwell. Strathclyde Park forms what used to be known as the Low parks of the now...
. Part of the original course can still be seen, and lies between the island and the east shore of the loch. The river then flows through Blantyre and Bothwell
Bothwell
Bothwell is a small town in the South Lanarkshire council area of Scotland. It lies on the north bank of the River Clyde, adjacent to Uddingston and Hamilton, nine miles east-south-east of Glasgow city centre....
, where the ruined Bothwell Castle
Bothwell Castle
Bothwell Castle is a large medieval castle sited on a high, steep bank, above a bend in the River Clyde, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located between Uddingston and Bothwell, about south-east of Glasgow. Construction of the castle was begun in the 13th century by the ancestors of Clan...
stands on a defensible promontory.
Past Uddingston
Uddingston
Uddingston is a small town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is on the north side of the River Clyde, about seven miles south-east of Glasgow...
and into the southeast of Glasgow the river begins to widen, meandering a course through Rutherglen and Dalmarnock
Dalmarnock
Dalmarnock is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde. It is bounded by the Clyde to the south and east, Parkhead to the north, and Bridgeton at Dunn Street to the north west...
. Flowing past Glasgow Green
Glasgow Green
Glasgow Green is a park situated in the east end of Glasgow on the north bank of the River Clyde. It is the oldest park in the city dating back to the 15th century.In 1450, King James II granted the land to Bishop William Turnbull and the people of Glasgow...
, the river is artificially straightened and widened through the centre, and although the new Clyde Arc
Clyde Arc
The Clyde Arc , is a road bridge spanning the River Clyde in Glasgow, in west central Scotland, connecting Finnieston, near the Clyde Auditorium and SECC with Pacific Quay and Glasgow Science Centre in Govan. A prominent feature of the bridge is its innovative curved design and the way that it...
now hinders access to the traditional Broomielaw dockland area, seagoing ships can still come upriver as far as Finnieston
Finnieston
Finnieston is an area of Glasgow, Scotland, situated on the North bank of the River Clyde and between the city's West End and the city centre. It is home to the SECC, where many musical concerts and important conferences are held...
where the PS Waverley
PS Waverley
PS Waverley is the last seagoing passenger carrying paddle steamer in the world. Built in 1946, she sailed from Craigendoran on the Firth of Clyde to Arrochar on Loch Long until 1973...
docks. From there, it flows past the shipbuilding heartlands, through Govan
Govan
Govan is a district and former burgh now part of southwest City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south bank of the River Clyde, opposite the mouth of the River Kelvin and the district of Partick....
, Partick
Partick
Partick is an area of Glasgow on the north bank of the River Clyde, just across from Govan. To the west lies Whiteinch. Partick was a Police burgh from 1852 until 1912 when it was incorporated into the city.-History:...
, Whiteinch
Whiteinch
Whiteinch is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde between the Partick and Scotstoun areas of the city...
, Scotstoun
Scotstoun
Scotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park, Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...
and Clydebank
Clydebank
Clydebank is a town in West Dunbartonshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, Clydebank borders Dumbarton, the town with which it was combined to form West Dunbartonshire, as well as the town of Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire, and the Yoker and...
, all of which housed major shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
s, of which only two remain. The river flows out west of Glasgow, past Renfrew, and under the Erskine Bridge
Erskine Bridge
The Erskine Bridge is a cable-stayed box girder bridge spanning the River Clyde in west central Scotland, connecting West Dunbartonshire with Renfrewshire....
past Dumbarton on the north shore to the sandbank at Ardmore Point between Cardross and Helensburgh
Helensburgh
Helensburgh is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Firth of Clyde and the eastern shore of the entrance to the Gareloch....
. Opposite, on the south shore, the river continues past the last Lower Clyde shipyard at Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...
to Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
where it reaches the Tail of the Bank
Tail of the Bank
The Tail of the Bank is the name given to the anchorage in the upper Firth of Clyde immediately north of Greenock and Gourock. This area of the firth gets its name from the sandbar immediately to its east which marks the entrance to the estuary of the River Clyde.The Tail of the Bank was a...
as the river merges into the Firth of Clyde
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
. At the mouth of the River Clyde there has been a significant issue of oxygen depletion in the water column.
There are around 72 bridges (rail, road, foot and other) that cross the Clyde, from estuary to source. The valley of the Clyde was the focus for the G-BASE project from the British Geological Survey in the summer of 2010.
Industrial growth
The success of the Clyde at the beginning of the Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
was driven by the location of Glasgow, being a port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
facing the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
. Tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
and cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
trade began the drive in the early 18th century. However, the shallow Clyde was not navigable for the largest ocean-going ships and cargo had to be transferred at Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
or Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...
to smaller ships to sail upstream into Glasgow itself.
Deepening the Upper Clyde
In 1768 John Golborne advised the narrowing of the river and the increasing of the scour by the construction of rubble jetties and the dredging of sandbanks and shoals. A particular problem was the division of the river into two shallow channels by the Dumbuck shoal near Dumbarton. After James WattJames Watt
James Watt, FRS, FRSE was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.While working as an instrument maker at the...
's report on this in 1769, a jetty was constructed at Longhaugh Point to block off the southern channel. This being insufficient, a training wall called the Lang Dyke was built in 1773 on the Dumbuck shoal to stop water flowing over into the southern channel. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries hundreds of jetties were built out from the banks between Dumbuck and the Broomielaw quay in Glasgow itself. In some cases this resulted in an immediate deepening as the constrained water flow washed away the river bottom; in others, dredging was required.
In the mid-19th century engineers took on a much greater dredging of the Clyde, removing millions of cubic feet of silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
to deepen and widen the channel. The major stumbling block in the project was a massive volcanic plug known as Elderslie Rock. As a result, the work was not completed until the 1880s. At this time, the Clyde also became an important source of inspiration for artists, such as John Atkinson Grimshaw
John Atkinson Grimshaw
John Atkinson Grimshaw was a Victorian-era artist, a "remarkable and imaginative painter" known for his city night-scenes and landscapes....
and James Kay
James Kay (artist)
James Kay was a Scottish artist notable for his paintings of the landscapes and shipping around the River Clyde. Born on the Isle of Arran, Kay spent much of his working life with a studio in Glasgow and living at Portincaple on Loch Long in Argyll and Bute...
, willing to depict the new industrial era and the modern world.
Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering
The completion of the dredging was well-timed; as steelSteel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
working grew in the city, the channel finally became navigable all the way up to Glasgow. Shipbuilding replaced trade as the major activity on the river and shipbuilding companies were rapidly establishing themselves on the river. Soon, the Clyde gained a reputation for being the best location for shipbuilding in the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
, and grew to become the world's pre-eminent shipbuilding centre. Clydebuilt became an industry benchmark of quality, and the river's shipyards were given contracts for prestigious ocean-going liners as well as warships, including the Queen Mary
RMS Queen Mary
RMS Queen Mary is a retired ocean liner that sailed primarily in the North Atlantic Ocean from 1936 to 1967 for the Cunard Line...
and the Queen Elizabeth 2
RMS Queen Elizabeth 2
Queen Elizabeth 2, often referred to simply as the QE2, is an ocean liner that was operated by Cunard from 1969 to 2008. Following her retirement from cruising, she is now owned by Istithmar...
in later years, all built in the town of Clydebank
Clydebank
Clydebank is a town in West Dunbartonshire, in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, Clydebank borders Dumbarton, the town with which it was combined to form West Dunbartonshire, as well as the town of Milngavie in East Dunbartonshire, and the Yoker and...
.
From the founding of the Scott family's
Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Limited, often referred to simply as Scotts, was a Scottish shipbuilding company based in Greenock on the River Clyde.- History :...
shipyard at Greenock in the year 1712 to the present day over 25,000 ships have been built on the River Clyde and its Firth and on the tributary River Kelvin
River Kelvin
The Kelvin rises on watershed of Scotland on the moor south east of the village of Banton, east of Kilsyth - . At almost 22 miles long, it initially flows south to Dullatur Bog where it falls into a man made trench and takes a ninety degree turn flowing west along the northern boundary of the bog...
and River Cart
River Cart
The River Cart is a tributary of the River Clyde, Scotland, which it joins from the west roughly midway between the towns of Erskine and Renfrew....
together with boatyards at Maryhill
Maryhill
Maryhill is an area of the City of Glasgow in Scotland. Maryhill is a former burgh. The population of Maryhill is about 52,000. Maryhill stretches over along Maryhill Road...
and Kirkintilloch
Kirkintilloch
Kirkintilloch is a town and former burgh in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It lies on the Forth and Clyde Canal, about eight miles northeast of central Glasgow...
on the Forth & Clyde Canal and Blackhill
Blackhill, Glasgow
thumb|left|Blackhill Locks on the [[Monkland Canal]]thumb|left|Blackhill Locks lower basinBlackhill is an area of north east Glasgow, Scotland. It was developed as a council housing estate in the 1930s...
on the Monkland Canal
Monkland Canal
The Monkland Canal was a 12.25-mile canal which connected the coal mining areas of Monklands to Glasgow in Scotland. It was opened in 1794, and included a steam-powered inclined plane at Blackhill. It was abandoned for navigation in 1942, but its culverted remains still supply water to the Forth...
. In the same time frame it is estimated that over 300 firms have engaged in shipbuilding on Clydeside although probably a peak of 30-40 at any one time.
The shipbuilding firms became 'household names' on Clydeside but also known around the world - Denny
William Denny and Brothers
William Denny and Brothers Limited, and often referred to simply as Denny, were a Scottish shipbuilding company.-History:The Company was founded by Peter Denny in 1840 and based in Dumbarton, on the River Clyde. Although the Denny yard was situated near the junction of the River Clyde and the River...
of Dumbarton, Scott of Greenock, Lithgows
Lithgows
Lithgows Limited, was a British shipbuilding company based in Kingston, Port Glasgow, on the River Clyde in Scotland.-Founding:The Company was established by Joseph Russell and his partners Anderson Rodger and William Lithgow who leased the Bay Yard in Port Glasgow from Cunliffe & Dunlop and...
of Port Glasgow, Simon and Lobnitz
Lobnitz
Lobnitz Marine Holdings is a Scottish shipbuilding company located at Renfrew on the River Clyde, west of the Renfrew Ferry crossing and east of the confluence with the River Cart...
of Renfrew, Alexander Stephen and Sons
Alexander Stephen and Sons
Alexander Stephen and Sons Limited, often referred to simply as Alex Stephens or just Stephens, was a Scottish shipbuilding company based in Linthouse, Govan in Glasgow, on the River Clyde.-History:...
of Linthouse, Fairfield
Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the...
of Govan, Inglis of Pointhouse, Barclay Curle
Barclay Curle
-History:The company was founded by Robert Barclay at Stobcross in Glasgow, Scotland during 1818. In 1862, the company built a large engineering works at Stobcross in Glasgow. In 1876, the company moved their yard down the river to Whiteinch. It was incorporated in 1884 as Barclay Curle...
of Whiteinch, Connell
Charles Connell and Company
Charles Connell and Company was a British shipbuilding company based in Scotstoun in Glasgow on the River Clyde.-History:The Company was founded by Charles Connell who had served an apprenticeship with Robert Steele and Co before becoming manager of Alexander Stephen and Sons Kelvinhaugh yard...
and Yarrow
Yarrow Shipbuilders
Yarrow Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipbuilding firm based in the Scotstoun district of Glasgow on the River Clyde...
of Scotstoun to name but a few. Almost as famous were the engineering firms that supplied the machinery to drive these vessels, the boilers and pumps and steering gear - Rankin & Blackmore, Hastie's and Kincaid's of Greenock, Rowan's of Finnieston, Weir's
Weir Group
The Weir Group plc is an engineering company headquartered in East Kilbride, Scotland. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.-History:...
of Cathcart, Howden's of Tradeston and Babcock & Wilcox
Doosan Babcock
Doosan Babcock, is part of Doosan Power Systems Ltd a UK-based subsidiary of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction. DPS is a power sector utility boiler OEM and after market services company, offering specialist services and technologies to clients in the nuclear power generation, fossil-fired...
of Renfrew.
One Clyde 'shipyard' was not even located on one of these waterways - Alley & MacLellan's Sentinel Works in Jessie Street at Polmadie
Polmadie
Polmadie is a district of Glasgow, a city in Scotland. Polmadie is situated south of the River Clyde, and adjacent to the Gorbals....
is around half a mile from the Clyde yet it is reputed to have constructed over 500 vessels, many of which were pre-assembled then 'knocked down' to kit form for despatch to some far distant and remote location - one such vessel being the SS Chauncy Maples
SS Chauncy Maples
MV Chauncy Maples is a motor ship and former steamship that was launched in 1901 as SS Chauncy Maples. She has spent her entire career on Lake Malawi and is regarded as the oldest ship in Africa...
, still in service. on Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi
Lake Malawi , is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the Great Rift Valley system of East Africa. This lake, the third largest in Africa and the eighth largest lake in the world, is located between Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania...
. Clyde Shipbuilding reached its peak in the years just before WW1 and it is estimated that over 370 ships were completed in 1913.
Yachting and yachtbuilding
The first recorded Clyde racing yacht, a 46-ton cutter, was built by Scotts of Greenock in 1803, and the great Scottish yacht designer William Fyfe did not start designing yachts until 1807. The first yacht club on the Clyde was the Northern Yacht Club, which appeared in 1824 and received its Royal Warrant in 1831. The club was founded to organise and encourage the sport, and by 1825 Scottish and Irish clubs were racing against each other on the Clyde. However, yachting and yacht building didn't really take off until the middle of the 19th century.The Clyde became famous worldwide for its significant contribution to yachting and yachtbuilding and was the home of many notable designers: William Fife III
William Fife
William Fife III OBE , also known as Wm. Fife, Jr., was the third generation of a family of Scottish yacht designers and builders....
; Alfred Mylne
Alfred Mylne
Alfred Mylne was a Scottish yacht designer, born in Glasgow. He founded A Mylne & Co. in 1896.- Work :Alfred Mylne was apprenticed to the Scottish shipbuilders Napier, Shanks and Bell, and went on to work as a draftsman and apprentice to George Lennox Watson...
; G L Watson
George Lennox Watson
George Lennox Watson was a Scottish naval architect. He was born in Glasgow, son of Thomas Lennox Watson, a doctor at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, and grandson of Sir Timothy Burstall, engineer and entrant at the 1829 Rainhill Trials.-Early life:...
; E McGruer; David Boyd. It was also the home of many famous yacht yards.
Robertson's Yard
Alexander Robertson and Sons Ltd (Yachtbuilders)
Alexander Robertson started repairing boats in a small workshop at Sandbank, Argyll and Bute in 1876, and went on to become one of the foremost wooden boat builders on Scotland's River Clyde. The 'golden years' of Robertson's yard were in the early 1900s when they started building IYRU 12mR & 15mR...
started repairing boats in a small workshop at Sandbank in 1876, and went on to become one of the foremost wooden boat builders on the Clyde. The 'golden years' of Robertson's yard were in the early 20th century when they started building classic 12- and 15-metre racing yachts. More than 55 boats were built by Robertson's in preparation for the First World War and the yard remained busy even during the Great Depression in the 1930s, as many wealthy businessmen developed a passion for yacht racing on the Clyde. During World War II the yard was devoted to Admiralty work, producing large high speed Fairmile Marine
Fairmile Marine
Fairmile Marine was a British boat building company founded in 1939 by the car manufacturer Noel Macklin.Macklin used the garage at his home at Cobham Fairmile in Surrey for manufacturing assembly which is why the boats he designed came to be called Fairmiles....
Motor Bots (MTB's and MGB's). After the war the yard built the successful one-class Loch Longs and two David Boyd designed 12-metre challengers for the America's Cup: Sceptre (1958) and Sovereign (1964). Due to difficult business conditions in 1965 the yard was turned over to GRP production work (mainly Pipers and Etchells) until it closed in 1980. During its 104 year history, Robertson's Yard built 500 boats, many of which are still sailing today.
Shipbuilding decline
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
centre came during and post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Clydebank in particular was targeted by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
and sustained heavy damage. The immediate postwar period saw a severe reduction in warship orders which was balanced by a prolonged boom in merchant shipbuilding. By the end of the 1950s, however, the rise of other shipbuilding nations, recapitalised and highly productive, made many Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an yards uncompetitive. Several Clydeside yards booked a series of loss-making contracts in the hope of weathering the storm. However, by the mid-1960s, shipbuilding on the Clyde was becoming increasingly uneconomic and potentially faced collapse. This culminated in the closure of Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
's Linthouse yard and a bankruptcy crisis facing Fairfields of Govan. The Government responded by creating the Upper Clyde Shipbuilders
Upper Clyde Shipbuilders
Upper Clyde Shipbuilders was a British shipbuilding consortium created in 1968 as a result of the amalgamation of five major shipbuilders of the River Clyde in Scotland...
consortium. After the consortium's controversial collapse in 1971, the Labour government of Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
later passed the Aircraft and Shipbuilding Industries Act which nationalised most of the Clyde's shipyards and grouped them with other major British shipyards as British Shipbuilders
British Shipbuilders
British Shipbuilders Corporation was a public corporation that owned and managed the shipbuilding industry in England and Scotland from 1977 and through the 1980s...
.
Today, two major shipyards remain in operation on the Upper Clyde; they are owned by the naval defence contractor, BAE Systems Surface Ships, which specialises in the design and construction of technologically advanced warships for the Royal Navy and other navies around the world. The two yards are the former Yarrow
Yarrow Shipbuilders
Yarrow Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipbuilding firm based in the Scotstoun district of Glasgow on the River Clyde...
yard at Scotstoun
Scotstoun
Scotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park, Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...
and Fairfields
Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the...
at Govan. There is also the King George V Dock
King George V Dock, Glasgow
King George V Dock is a dock for ocean-going vessels operated by the Clyde Port Authority in the Govan area of Glasgow in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, operated by the Clyde Port Authority. On the Lower Clyde, the privately owned Ferguson Shipbuilders
Ferguson Shipbuilders
Ferguson Shipbuilders Limited is a shipyard located in Port Glasgow on the River Clyde in Scotland. It is the last remaining shipbuilder on the lower Clyde, and is currently the only builder of merchant ships on the river - the company's mainstay has long been Roll-on/roll-off ferries.-History:The...
at Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow
Port Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...
is the last survivor of the many shipyards that once dominated Port Glasgow and Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
- its mainstay being the construction of car ferries
RORO
Roll-on/roll-off ships are vessels designed to carry wheeled cargo such as automobiles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, trailers or railroad cars that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels...
.
Regeneration
The Clyde Waterfront RegenerationClyde Waterfront Regeneration
Clyde Waterfront is a 20km stretch of the River Clyde, Scotland, running east-west from Glasgow Green in the heart of Glasgow, to Dumbarton on the Firth of Clyde. With over 200 projects on both sides of the Clyde, this is one of Britain's largest urban renewal projects...
project is expected to attract investment of up to £5.6bn in the area from Glasgow Green to Dumbarton. Market gardens
Market gardening
A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. It is distinguishable from other types of farming by the diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically, from under one acre ...
and garden centre
Garden centre
A garden centre is a retail firm that sells plants and products related to gardens as its primary business. It is open to the public, with facilities to care for and display plants.- UK :...
s have grown up on the fertile plains of the Clyde Valley. Tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
has also brought many back to the riverside, especially in Glasgow where former docklands have given way to housing and amenities on the banks in the city, for instance, the Glasgow Harbour
Glasgow Harbour
Glasgow Harbour is an urban regeneration scheme at Partick in the city of Glasgow, Scotland.After many years of dereliction caused by the decline of shipbuilding and the migration of Glasgow's docks to the Firth of Clyde, since the mid 1980s, the banks of the River Clyde at Glasgow have become a...
project, the Glasgow Science Centre
Glasgow Science Centre
Glasgow Science Centre is a visitor attraction located on the south bank of the River Clyde in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a purpose-built science centre composed of three principal buildings which are the Science Mall, an IMAX cinema and the Glasgow Tower...
, and the creation of the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre
Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre
The Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre , located on the north bank of the River Clyde, in Glasgow, is Scotland's largest exhibition centre....
. With the migration of the commercial Port of Glasgow downstream to the deeper waters of the Firth of Clyde
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
, the river has been extensively cleaned up, once having a very poor reputation for pollution and sewage
Sewage
Sewage is water-carried waste, in solution or suspension, that is intended to be removed from a community. Also known as wastewater, it is more than 99% water and is characterized by volume or rate of flow, physical condition, chemical constituents and the bacteriological organisms that it contains...
, in order to make it suitable for recreational use.
See also
- Bonnington PavilionBonnington PavilionThe Bonnington Pavilion or Hall of Mirrors, now a ruin, is situated in the grounds of the old estate of Bonnington, near New Lanark, overlooking Corra Linn falls on the River Clyde in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Alternative names are the Corra Linn Pavilion and the Falls of Clyde summerhouse. The name...
- Clyde walkwayClyde walkwayThe Clyde Walkway is a foot and mountain bike path which runs from Glasgow, Scotland, to just above the UNESCO World Heritage village of New Lanark. The path runs close to the River Clyde for most of its length...
- Clyde Waterfront RegenerationClyde Waterfront RegenerationClyde Waterfront is a 20km stretch of the River Clyde, Scotland, running east-west from Glasgow Green in the heart of Glasgow, to Dumbarton on the Firth of Clyde. With over 200 projects on both sides of the Clyde, this is one of Britain's largest urban renewal projects...
- Clydesdale (disambiguation)Clydesdale (disambiguation)Clydesdale is a former government district in Strathclyde, Scotland.Clydesdale may also refer to:* Clydesdale F.C., a former football club in Glasgow* Clydesdale Bank* Marquess of Clydesdale, title of the eldest son of the Duke of Hamilton...
- Falls of Clyde (waterfalls)Falls of Clyde (waterfalls)The Falls of Clyde is the collective name of four linn on the River Clyde near New Lanark, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The Falls of Clyde comprise the upper falls of Bonnington Linn, Corra Linn, Dundaff Linn, and the lower falls of Stonebyres Linn. Corra Linn is the highest, with a fall of 90 feet...
- Firth of ClydeFirth of ClydeThe Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
- HMNB ClydeHMNB ClydeHer Majesty's Naval Base Clyde is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy...
- Red ClydesideRed ClydesideRed Clydeside is a term used to describe the era of political radicalism that characterised the city of Glasgow in Scotland, and urban areas around the city on the banks of the River Clyde such as Clydebank, Greenock and Paisley...
- Rivers of Great Britain
External links
- River Clyde: Source to Firth Panorama Project
- The Clyde-built ships data base - lists over 22,000 ships built on the Clyde
- Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection on loan to Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Shipping on the Clyde in Glasgow from Grimshaw, on Flickr.com
- Clyde Waterfront regeneration
- Clyde Waterfront Heritage
- River Clyde waterfront regeneration
- Gallery of pictures of the River Clyde from the Erskine Bridge
- Glasgow Digital Library: Glimpses of old Glasgow
- In Glasgow Photo Gallery of pictures of the River Clyde
- Clydebank Restoration Trust - Pictures and history
- Clyde Bridges Heritage Trail
- Clydebank Restoration Trust