PORT-GLASGOW, a parish and sea-port and burgh and market-town,
in the Lower ward of the county of Renfrew; containing 7007 inhabitants,
of -whom 6973 are in the town, 19 miles (W. N. W.) from Glasgow, and 62 (W.)
from Edinburgh. This place was originally part of the parish of Kilmalcolm, constituting
the village of Newark, situated on the bay of
that name. In I66S it was purchased from Sir Patrick
Maxwell, its proprietor, by the city of Glasgow, for the
purpose of forming an out-port and harbour for the
shipping of that place, for which object its position at
the head of one of the finest bays in the Clyde rendered
it peculiarly desirable. The land on which the town is
built, together with some farms in its immediate vicinity,
was in 1695 separated from Kilmalcolm, and erected
into a distinct and independent parish; and in 1775
the town was made a burgh of barony by a charter of
George IIL, which conferred on the inhabitants many
privileges, and vested the government in two bailies and
a council of eleven burgesses. The increase of the town
was striking, though gradual: from the erection of the
first church in 17 IS to the year 1790 the number of its
inhabitants was augmented from about 700 to more than 4000.
The PARISH is about a mile in length and the same in
breadth, and is bounded on the north by the river Clyde,
on the south and east by the parish of Kilmalcolm, and
on the west by the parish of Greenock. Its surface is
very irregular and hilly; and immediately behind the
town the land rises in two precipitous ridges to a great
height, overlooking the river, and commanding an interesting
prospect of the shipping in the harbour, the
venerable ruins of the baronial castle of Newark at the
extremity of the bay, and the finely- varied scenery of
the surrounding country. These heights, covered with
verdure, and crowned with flourishing plantations, present
a strikingly beautiful and picturesque back-ground
to the view of the town from the river. Nearly on a
level with the summits of the ridges, the lands extend
for about half a mile inland, and are divided into farms
which, from the sterility of the soil, are not very valuable.
The richest land in the parish is along the banks of the
river, which are laid ovit in garden-ground, and are
abundantly productive of fruit and vegetables of excellent
quality, for the supply of the town and neighbourhood.
The principal landed proprietors are, Lady Shaw
Stewart, and the corporation of the city of Glasgow: the
former holds the rural district of the parish, with part
of the land on which the town is built, and the gardens
on the bank of the river; the latter are superiors of
that portion of the town which may be properly regarded as the port.
The TOWN is regularly built, consisting of well-formed
streets crossing each other at right angles; the houses
are nearly uniform, and, being whitewashed, wear a
cheerful appearance. The streets are well paved, and
lighted with gas, for which convenient works have been
established by the corporation; and the inhabitants are
amply supplied with water, conveyed by pipes to their
houses. A public library is supported by subscription;
and in che town-hall is a news and reading room, which
is well attended. The environs are pleasant, and abound
with objects of interest. At the eastern extremity of
the bay are the remains of Newark Castle, the residence
of the ancient barons of Newark, which, when entire,
must have been a place of no ordinary strength; it is
situated on an elevated, though small, promontory boldly
projecting into the river, and presents an imposing memorial
of feudal grandeur. The port carries on a very
extensive trade with the East and West Indies, North
America, the Mediterranean, and other parts: the coasting-
trade is also pretty considerable. On the deepening
of the Clyde, which afforded to vessels of large burthen
a facility of access to Glasgow, a great portion of the
traffic of Port-Glasgow was transferred to that place;
but the trade here is now steadily increasing. The
principal exports are British manufactures, which are
shipped in great quantities, and exchanged for foreign
produce of every kind, including timber from North
America. The trade was formerly carried on exclusively
in vessels belonging to the merchants of Glasgow; but
for the last few years the merchants of this place have
had ships of their own. In 1S43 there were seventyfour
registered vessels, of the aggregate burthen of 12,952
tons. The number of vessels that entered inwards in
1834 was eighty-two, and their aggregate burthen 28,693
tons: of these, three were from the East, and twentysix
from the West, Indies, forty-two from North America
(including six from the United States), and eleven from
the Mediterranean. During the same year, eighty-six
vessels of the aggregate burthen of 28,530 tons cleared
outwards, of which number twelve were to the East,
and twenty-nine to the West, Indies, thirty-four to
North America (four of them to the United States), and
eleven to the Mediterranean. The duties paid at the
custom-house amounted to the sum of £140,284, which
was less than the amount in previous years: the decrease,
however, did not originate in any diminution of
the foreign trade of the port, but in the removal of the
duties on tobacco to Glasgow, which were previously
paid at this place. In 1843 the customs' duties amounted
to £92,906; in 1844, to £151,472. This is one of the
principal ports on the Clyde for the importation of
American timber, of which, in a late year, 27,975 tons
were landed on the quays, and for the reception and preservation
of which capacious ponds have been constructed
along the shores.
There are two extensive and secure harbours, easy of
access at all times to vessels of 600 tons, and so completely
sheltered from the winds that in the severest
weather they sustain no injury. Ships drawing twentyone
feet water may be towed up the channel of the
river, which at this place is about two miles broad: in
common tides the water rises to the height of nine, and
in s|)ring tides to the height of eleven, feet above lowwater
mark. The quays arc commodious, and ample
sheds have been erected for the warehousing of merchandise
i there is also a capacious graving-dock for
repairing vessels, which has been improved at a considerable
cost. Some years ago the greatest number of
vessels in the harbours at the same time, gave the large
aggregate burthen of 12,000 t(ms; but the harbours
being found insufficient for the trade of the port, the
trustees for their improvement obtained an act for
converting the bay of Newark into wet-docks; and funds to
the amount of £35,000 were raised, which enabled them
to commence the undertaking. These works, from their
spacious quays, easily accessible to vessels drawing
twenty-five feet water, and their extensive warehouses
built of stone, for bonding merchandise, are a vast acquisition
ti) the port, and the only floating-docks on
this part of the coast of Scotland. There is a large area
for bonding timber, as also warehouses for the preparation
of refined sugar for exportation to the Mediterranean.
The revenue derived from the harbour dues, in
the year ending April .5, 1845, was £1900. Ship-building
is carried on to a very considerable extent; and
a great number of steam-vessels, some of them of the
largest class and of the most elegant workmanship, have
been built at this port: about 200 men are constantly
employed in the yards. An extensive manufacture of
ropes and sail-cloth has been long established by the
Gourock Company: in the latter branch, which has
much increased, about 300 men, and more than that
number of women and children, are employed; and in
the former, fifty men, and nearly an equal number of
boys, are engaged. The refining of raw sugar is carried
on to a great extent: the method of refining by steam
is adopted in the works, which afford employment to
more than fifty men. A savings' bank was established
in 1818, and has met with due encouragement. The
market is on Friday, and a fair is held on the third
Tuesday in July. The road from Glasgow to Greenock,
and the Glasgow, Paisley, and Greenock railway, both
pass through tlie parish.
This town, which, by its charter in the reign of
George III., had enjoyed the privileges of a burgh of
barony, was by act of the 2nd and 3rd of William IV.
raised to the rank of a parliamentary burgh. The government
is vested in a provost, two bailies, and a
council of six burgesses, assisted by a town-clerk, harbour-
master, and other officers, the whole chosen agreeably
with the provisions of the Municipal act of the
3rd and 4th of William. A treasurer and procuratorfiscal
are appointed by the council. The provost and
bailies have jurisdiction in civil actions to any amount,
and a considerable jurisdiction in criminal cases; but
very few civil causes come under their decision, as
parties in matters of dispute generally solicit and are
governed by the advice of the magistrates, which prevents
much litigation; and no criminal cases have been
tried for many years, except in the police-court. Port-
Glasgow unites with Kilmarnock, Rutherglen, Dumbarton,
and Renfrew, in returning one member to the imperial
parliament; the right of election is vested in the
resident householders and proprietors to the amount of
£10 per annum, and the present constituency, parliamentary
and municipal, is 184. The town-hall is a neat
and commodious edifice of modern erection, with a portico
of four columns of the Grecian-Doric order, from
the centre of which rises a spire. Its interior is well
arranged; on the ground-floor are several handsome
shops, and the upper story contains the council-chamber,
offices for the town-clerk, counting-houses for merchants,
and a reading-room supplied with periodicals
and newspapers.
Ecclesiastically the parish is within the bounds of the
presbytery of Greenock, synod of Glasgow and Ayr,
and in the patronage of the city of Glasgow: the mi-
Ulster's stipend is £250. The corporation receive the
seat-rents, which produce on an average nearly £150
per annum. The present church was erected in 1823,
partly by subscriptions of the parishioners, amounting to
£1500; it is a plain neat edifice, and is adapted for a
congregation of 1200 persons. There is a chapel of
ease, erected in 1774, and adapted for a congregation of
1500: the minister has a salary of £100, secured to
him by bond. There are also a Free church, and a
place of worship for the United Presbyterian Synod.
Three parochial schools were supported, the masters of
which had each a salary of £20, paid by the corporation;
but for some years they have all been united under
one master, who receives a salary of £20, with the fees.
There is also a school endowed by Mr. Beaton, in 1814,
with £1400 for the instruction of poor children and
the erection of a school-house; the master has £60 per
annum, with a house rent free, and the school is attended
by about 150 children of both sexes.