DUNTOCHER, a quoad sacra parish (for a time), in
the parish of Old-Kilpatrick, county of Dumbarton;
containing 3309 inhabitants, of whom 2749 are in the
village, 8 miles (N. W. by W.) from Glasgow. This very
thriving place, which, less than forty or fifty years
since, had only a few scattered houses, owes its prosperity
to the enterprising spirit of a resident, Mr. William
Dunn, who about that period purchased the Duntocher
mill and extended the works for spinning cotton- yarn.
In the neighbourhood are now several vast establishments
for this branch of manufacture, and for weaving,
all of them aided by powerful steam machinery. Many
of the inhabitants also are employed in coal, lime, and
iron works, in brick-making, and various other pursuits,
chiefly on the property of Mr. Dunn here; and all
around presents a scene of remarkable and successful
industry: the iron-works are principally for making
spades, shovels, and other implements, and those parts
of iron used in building sailing-vessels. The village is
situated about two miles distant northward from the
river Clyde, on the road from Kirkintilloch to Dumbarton;
and in the immediate vicinity are the villages of
Faifley and Hardgate. A sub post-office has been established
under Glasgow. At Duntocher is a bridge supposed
by some to be a Roman structure, and near
which is a modern engraved stone stating that it was
erected in the reign of Adrian; but it is probable that
the materials whereof it is built were obtained at a more
recent date from a contiguous Roman fort, the lines of
which can with difficulty be traced: the bridge was repaired
in 1/72 by the then Lord Blantyre. Ecclesiastically,
Duntocher is in the presbytery of Dumbarton,
synod of Glasgow and Ayr; the stipend of the minister
is £114, produced by seat-rents and collections, and
the patronage is vested in the male communicants. The
church was erected in 1836, at the cost of about £1660,
contributed by the General Assembly and by opulent
individuals in the neighbourhood, and is a very chaste
and handsome edifice, containing accommodation for
S76 persons. The members of the Free Church have a
place of worship, and there are two other meeting-houses
and a Roman Catholic chapel; besides schools. A
sepulchral stone of Roman origin, and of elegant design
and workmanship, was discovered some time since. In
the front of the house next the bridge is placed a square
stone with figures carved upon each side of it, found in
the vicinity some time ago: it is supposed to have been
the principal part of an altar to Jupiter Olympus, and
the owner has several times been olTered a considerable
sum for it. Not far from the other end of the bridge, a
few years since, there was discovered the mouth of a
vault that entered the hill in a south-east direction; and
when examined by some of the inhabitants, a number
of small rooms were found not far from the entrance,
in some of which the ashes where fires had been kindled
were still to be seen. The interior was wholly of brickwork,
a part of which has since been removed for other
purposes.