RENFREW, a parish and burgh and market-town, in the Upper ward of the county
of Renfrew, of which it is the capital; containing 3079 inhabitants, of whom 2027
are in the burgh, 3 miles (N. E. by N.) from Paisley, and 48 miles (W. by S.) from
Edinburgh. This place appears to have derived its name, which is of British
origin, and signifies "a point of land in the midst of the waters
of the ancient town near the conflux of the rivers Clyde
and Gryfe, which, before they were confined to their
present channels, almost surrounded its site. The appellation
was subsequently given to the parish, and
also to the county. The origin of the town may be
justly attributed to the family of Stuart, afterwards
kings of Scotland, to whose ancestor, Walter, the adjacent
territory was granted by David I., who appointed
him steward of the royal household, and invested him
with many honours. The town gradually rose up around
the castle of Renfrew. This castle was erected on one
of the numerous islands which at that time divided the
channel of the Clyde, for the residence of the lord of the
manor; and since the accession of the Stuarts to the
crown, the isle has been distinguished by the name of
the King's Inch. Walter instituted a Benedictine monastery
near the site of the castle; but the monks were
during his lifetime removed to the abbey of Paisley,
founded by him previous to his decease in 1177. In that
year he was succeeded both in his office and estates by
his son Alan, who died in 1'204. Walter, son of Alan,
was seneschal of Scotland under William the Lion, which
office was hereditary in his family; and on his demise
in 1246, he was succeeded by his son Alexander, who
in 1255 was made one of the regents of the kingdom,
and subsequently commanded the Scottish army at the
battle of Largs, in 1263. James, son of Alexander, who
came to the barony on the death of his father, took a
distinguished part in the contest between England and
Scotland; and, dying in 1309, was succeeded by Walter.
This Walter was then only sixteen years of age, but
soon afterwards appeared at the head of his vassals previously
to the battle of Bannockburn, in which, taking
the command of a part of the Scottish forces, he greatly
distinguished himself. He was knighted in consequence
by Robert the Brute, and by his marriage with Bruce's
only daughter the family became heirs to the throne of Scotland.
Renfrew Castle was for many years the residence of
the Stuarts; and there are memorials of its having been
a royal residence, in the names of several localities, as
the King's Inch, already mentioned, being the site on
which it was built; and the adjacent ground called the
King's Meadow. The manor was subsequently granted
by the crown to Sir John Ross, of Hawkhead, as a reward
for his prowess in overcoming a champion of the
English court who had challenged the most valiant of the
Scottisli knights to meet him in single combat. Sir John,
in addition to the grant of the manor, was made constable
of Scotland; and the office became hereditary in
his family. The castle, which thus became the residence
of the Hawkhead family, was eventually taken down;
and nearly on the site was erected the present mansion
of Elderslic House, the residence of Alexander Speirs,
Esq. Few other events of historical importance are
connected with the place. The Earl of Argyll, in 1685,
having posted his troops in part of the county of Dumbarton,
crossed the river Clyde on his way to this place,
when, having forded the Gryfe near the bridge of Inchinan,
he was attacked by some soldiers who wounded him
and took him prisoner. A stone near the spot where he
fell is still called the Argyll Stone, in commemoration of the event.
The TOWN was formerly situated on a branch of the
river Clyde; but the waters retired from their ancient
channel, and a canal has been cut, which for the last
half century has opened a comnnmication between the
town and that river. Renfrew consists principally of
one street; the houses are neatly built, and tlie whole
presents an appearance of comfort and respectability.
A library, which is maintained by subscription, has
been established many years, and forms a valuable collection
of well chosen volumes; there is a news-room
supported at the expense of the corporation, and an
association has been formed for the cultivation of the
useful arts and the study of natural history. The trade
of the town was once considerable, but it has greatly
diminished; the port was at one time the principal on
the river Clyde, and possessed an extensive foreign and
coasting trade. A small number of vessels still frequent
the harbour, and discharge their cargoes, consisting
chiefly of grain from Ireland, dye stuffs for the Paisley
weavers, and sometimes potatoes and fish from the Highlands;
potatoes and other agricultural produce are occasionally
shipped. There are no vessels belonging to the
port, except a few employed in conveying coal and
manure to the neighbouring places. A very convenient
quay was constructed a few years since, at an expense
of £800; it extends chiefly along the bank of the canal,
and the harbour might be greatly improved at a moderate
cost, so as to facilitate the access of vessels. The
weaving of muslin is carried on to a considerable extent
in the town, and many females are employed in tambouring
and flowering muslin. A large bleach-green is established,
affording occupation to more than one hundred
persons, of whom ninety are women and girls. There
are also a large iron-foundry, a yard for building iron
steam-vessels, and some extensive works for manufacturing
British gum for the use of calico-printers. The
trustees for improving the navigation of the Clyde have
their chief establishment at this place, and give employment
to a number of smiths, engineers, carpenters, and
builders, and nearly one hundred labourers who are employed
in the dredging-machiues. A distillery for malt
whisky produces on an average 140,000 gallons annually,
and employs nearly thirty men; the spirit is sent chiefly
to Glasgow, and in connexion with the distillery is a
dairy of about one hundred milch-cows, which are during
the winter partly fed with the grains, and turned into
the pastures during the summer. The fisheries, though
less extensive than formerly, owing to the establishment
of numerous works on the banks of the river, yet produce
an aggregate rent of more than £200 per annum.
The market has fallen into disuse; but fairs are held
annually, for cattle, on the third Tuesday in May, the
second Friday in June, and the third Friday in October.
Facility of intercourse with the neighbouring towns is
partly afforded by the Clyde, and a railway from Renfrew
Ferry to Paisley has been constructed; the line is three
miles in length, and has a station with accommodation
for passengers by the Glasgow steamers, which touch
here on their way. An act was passed in 1847, authorizing
the sale of this railway to the Glasgow and Ayrshire
railway company, and empowering that company
to improve the line, and construct new quays. Facility
of communication is also presented by various roads;
there are bridges over the Gryfe and Black Cart, and a
swing-bridge of iron thrown across the canal. The postoffice
is a branch of that of Paisley, and has two deliveries daily.
The town of Renfrew, formerly the head of the barony
of Renfrew, was, on the separation of that barony from
the county of Lanark, of which it previously constituted
u ])art, made the capital of Renfrewshire. It was creeled
into a uoYAi. iiukgii in the year 1396, by Robert III.,
who granted the inhabitants a charter of incorporation,
investing the burgesses with many privileges and immunities.
Among these were, the holding of a market and
fairs, the exclusive fishery on the river Clyde within the
limits of the burgh, and the right of having courts with
jurisdiction extending to all offences not capital; all of
which were confirmed by successive charters till the
reign of James VI., who added the privilege of a ferry
on the Clyde, the small duties, customs, and tolls within
the barony, a free port and haven, a guild-merchant,
and various other grants. A confirmatory charter was
in 1703 bestowed on the burgesses by Queen Anne, in
which, as the representative of the Prince and Steward
of Scotland, she recites the charters of Robert III. and
James VI., and gives to the corporation certain property
in lands, and the right of e.\acting certain payments
from each ploughland in the barony. The corporation
consists of a provost, two bailies, and a council of sixteen
burgesses, assisted by a treasurer, town-clerk, and other
officers. The only trade incorporation at present is that
of the tailors; it is governed by a deacon who is not
a member of the council, and the body is strict in
enforcing its privileges. The provost and bailies hold
weekly courts for determining suits to a small amount,
and a court of requests for the recovery of debts under
twenty shillings; also a court for the trial of misdemeanors,
in which they act without an assessor. In
this last court the judgments are generally small fines or
short terms of imprisonment. The police are under the
exclusive direction of the magistrates, and the expense
of maintaining the force is paid out of the burgh funds.
The quarter-sessions for the county, and the election of
the county member, are held in the Incorporation
buildings, which form a plain but convenient structure,
containing the gaol, town-hall, and council-chambers.
Previously to the passing of the Reform act, the town
united with Glasgow, Rutherglen, and Dumbarton, in
returning a member to the imperial parliament; but a
representative is now returned in conjunction with Kilmarnock,
Rutherglen, Dumbarton, and Port-Glasgow.
The PARISH is intersected by the Clyde, and bounded
on the west and north-west by the rivers Black-Cart
and Gryfe, which separate it from the parishes of Kilbarchan
and Inchinnan. It is about five and a half
miles in length and about two and a half in breadth,
and comprises 4540 acres, of which two-thirds are
arable, and the remainder meadow, pasture, woodland,
and demesne. The surface is generally even, rising in
some few places into hills of very moderate elevation, the
highest of which is Jordan Hill: this eminence attains
the height of 180 feet above the level of the plain, and
is situated in that division of the parish north of the
Clyde. On the south side of the river the lands form
one continuous plain, relieved only by a low hill called
the Knock. The banks of the Clyde, on both sides, are
ornamented with handsome seats and thriving plantations,
giving an interesting and picturesque appearance
to the parish, which is seen to great advantage from a
small hill near Scotstown. The channel of the stream
is studded with numerous islands, of which the King's
Inch, the Buck Inch, the Sand Inch, and the Ron at
the mouth of the Gryfe, are within the parish; but from
the great improvements that have been made in the
Clyde navigation, they are now nearly connected with
the main land. Salmon abound in the rivers, in which
the right of fishing is secured to the inhabitants of the
burgh by charter.
In general the soil is fertile, and in tolerable cultivation;
the corn- crops are wheat, oats, and barley, with
potatoes, &c. There are some dairy-lands, and many
head of cattle are fed in an extensive meadow belonging
to the corporation; the cows are usually of the Ayrshire
breed. The sheep are from the Highlands, and the
horses of the Clydesdale breed. In this parish the farms
are mostly from sixty to 100 acres in extent, but some
few comprise more than '200 acres; and the buildings
and offices, inferior to many, are nevertheless commodious
and comfortable. Little more than one-fourth of
the inhabitants are employed in agricultural [lursuits;
the remainder are engaged in the various trades and
manufactures connected with the burgh and the adjacent
towns, in the mines, and in the salmon-fishery on the
Clyde. The substratum of the parish is chiefly clay-slate,
with boulders of trap rock, resting on the coal formation
common to the whole of this district. Limestone is also
prevalent, and was formerly wrought at intervals, but not
to any great extent: a fossil fish of large size was found
embedded in the limestone; and in the sand, which frequently
alternates with the clayey substrata, have been
discovered shell-fish of various kinds. Coal has been for
some time worked on the estates of Jordanhill and Scotstown.
The three principal seams are respectively
eighteen, twenty-four, and twenty-one inches in thickness;
but the last is the only one now in operation.
Two pits have been sunk to the depth of thirty-one and
thirty-eight fathoms respectively, below which, at a depth
of four fathoms and a half, is more coal, not yet worked.
From thirty to forty men are employed. About a mile
southward of the town is a manufactory of tiles for
draining, of various sorts, for which the clays found in
the district are well adapted. The number of looms at
work in the parish is 2.'i7> affording employment to
about .560 persons, of whom one half are women and
children; the weavers are engaged by the manufacturers
of Glasgow and Paisley, and the men upon an average
earn from eight to ten shillings each, and the women
and children from eighteen pence to half-a-crown, per
week. The annual value of real property in the parish
amounts to £14,99'2. Elderslie House, a handsome and
spacious mansion, is surrounded by thriving and beautiful
plantations; the demesne is extensive, and forms
one of the finest parks in this part of the country.
Walkingshaw has for some years been unoccupied, and
has consequently become dilapidated. Scotstown is a
modern house pleasantly situated. Blythswood is an
elegant mansion in grounds tastefully laid out, and embellished
with ornamental plantations; and Jordanhill,
occupying an elevated situation, commands an extensive
view of the surrounding scener}', which is finely varied,
and in many points strikingly picturesque.
Renfrew is ecclesiastically within the presbytery
of Paisley, synod of Glasgow and Ayr, and in the patronage
of the Crown: the minister's stipend is averaged
at £<278, and there is a manse, with a glebe valued at
£.54 per annum. The church, which is conveniently
situated, is of ancient date; it was repaired, and enlarged
by the addition of an aisle, in 1726, and has been since
reseated, affording accommodation to 750 persons.
There is a place of worship for members of the Free
Church. The burgh grammar-school appears to have
been originally founded by charter of James VI., who
granted to the corporation the revenues of certain chapels
and altars in trust for its support. The endowment
at present affords to the master a salary of £36. 13. 4.
per annum, which is paid by the corporation, by whom
he is appointed; and the school fees amount to £45.
The number of scholars attending the school averages
about 100. There are some district schools, the masters
of which are supported by the fees, augmented by small
allowances arising from private subscriptions. Two schools
of industry for girls are maintained by subscription;
and there are several Sabbath schools, to which are
attached libraries for the use of the children attending
them; also a parochial library, which, like the others,
is supported by donations. A society has been formed
for the distribution of Bibles, by selling them at a reduced
price; and there is a female benevolent society
for relieving the poor in cases of emergency.
Two Roman urns were in 1778 discovered on the
summit of Knock Hill, within a mile of which are the
remains of the Roman station at Paisley; the lower
edge of the hill is still called the" Butts", and may have
been a place for the practice of archery in former times.
Several antique rings and a key have been met with
among the foundations of Renfrew Castle, the site of
which is still called Castle Hill: a small street near it is
designated Dogs'-row, probably from its being the site
of the ancient kennel; and in a cottage at the end of the
street is preserved an old fire-place of great length, supposed
to have been used for boiling the meat for the
king's hounds. Near the Knock farm is a circular mound
of earth, about twenty yards in diameter, surrounded by
a moat five yards in breadth; it is called the KempeKnowe,
and is traditionally pointed out as the spot where Sir John
Ross overcame the English champion in single combat, for
which he was rewarded with the lands of the King's Inch.
In an aisle in the church are the remains of a monument
with the statues of Sir John Ross and his lady,
much mutilated; the inscription, however, is still legible
on the crown of the arch muler which the statues lay for
a long period previously to their removal into the aisle.
An ancient octagonal pillar, about ten feet high, formerly
stood at a small distance from the Knock Hill.
It was called " Queen Blearie's stone", but no inscription
recorded the purpose of its erection, which by tradition
was said to commemorate the death of Marjory Bruce,
daughter of Robert I., who was killed by a fall from her
horse near the spot. The pillar was removed about the
year 1780, and the shaft made the lintel of a barn on the
farm, the offices of which having been subsequently
rebuilt, it has altogether disappeared. There were
anciently some chantries and altarages in connexion
with the old Cluniac monastery founded by Walter, ancestor
of the Stuarts; but nothing remains of them but
their names, which have been transferred to the lands in
the neighbourhood of their site, called Monk-Dyke, St.
Mary, St. Thomas, and by other names of saints. John
Knox the Reformer is said to have derived his family
name from Knockhill estate, of which his ancestors were
at one time proprietors. His Royal Highness the Prince
of Wales, born in 1841, bears the title of Baron of Renfrew,
and is great steward of Scotland.