GREENOCK. 



eivliLT 

 can be had 

 iiler exten- 



liflicd by Cromvvell. It is diftant .^7 miles S.E. from Edin- 

 burgh, and contains 1270 inlmbitaius. 



GREENOCK, the principal lea-port town on tl)C iu-tli 

 of Clvde, llti.ated on the fonth bank of the river, abont 

 21 m'iles below the city of Glafgow. The town of 

 Greenock, is pretty well fituatod for commercial purpoles, 

 but in other refpeAs it is neither pleafant nor io circum- 

 . anced as to afford the profpcft of any great mcreale eitlier 

 of extent or population. Indeed th.e great numDer of young 

 men, who, from habits of imitation as in other fea port 

 towns, early attach theml'elves to a feafaring life, mull pre- 

 fent of itfelf a great obllacle to the latter. The town ot 

 Greenock is held under and is entirely furrounded by the 

 lands of fir .John Stewart of Blackball, bart., who is feudal 

 fupcrior, and no purchafe or accpiifitioii of ground, 

 fcr the purpofes of extcnfion or improvement, c 

 from any other pcrfon. This mull of itfelf reiu! 

 fion a matter of more dilBcult)- than where there are many 

 landed proprietors, the lands of fome of whom, from the 

 common cafualties and viciffitudes of human affairs, mull 

 be occafionally in the market. 



The harbour of Greenock is divided into two compart- 

 ments, and is entirely furrounded by well-built and commo- 

 dious quays of freeftone. The entrance is narrow, and in 

 the centre oppofite to the end of the mid quay, which ferves 

 as the divifion of the harbours. The eallern harbour is 

 Ihallow, and is therefore mollly freciuented by coafting 

 vefl'els, herring bulfes, filhing boats, and other fmall craft. 

 The well harbour, being conliderably deeper, is the general 

 refort of Weft Indiamen, American traders, and other 

 veifels of greater burthen. In the well harbour is a very 

 capital dry or graving dock, with Hood gates to exclude the 

 water, and capable of containing two large fliips at the lame 

 time. It has been long in contemplation to improve the 

 harbolir of Greenock by the ereftion of wet docks, fimilar 

 to thofe of London, Liverpool, Hull, and Leith, but pro 



and with Ireland, and thccxtcnfive herring fidierj-, lias raifed 

 Greenock to a high rank among the commercial ports of 

 Fn-itaiii, and has been producf ive of the acquiiition of fplen- 

 did fortunes to many of the principal inh;ibitants. As 

 Greenock is not the feat of any llaplc manufadory, this 

 carrying trade is her chief, and indeed may be fairly called 

 her only fupport. During the American war, when the 

 carrying trade was entirely fufpended in fome channels, and 

 greatly impeded in all the otliers, a number of (hip-owners 

 iittcd out their veifels as privateers, but in general tliefe fpe- 

 culations were not productive of gain to the adsenturers, 

 and in fome inftances with ferious lofs. In the recent wars 

 no attempts at privateering have been made. 



The town of Greenock is governed by two magill rates, 

 elefted annually, and a council ; befides whom, the baron 

 baillie, nominated by the fuperior, alfo pofreffes a jurifdic- 

 tion. The flierifl court of the county of Renfrew is held 

 at Paidey, to which the inhabitants of Greenock are ame- 

 nable, the fame as the rell of the county. 



In the external appearance of Greenock there is little 

 elegance or fplendour to be feen. In the centre of the town 

 there is a fmall fquare, immediately fronting the mid-quay, 

 which divides the harbour. In this fquare is a very hand- 

 fome church of modern arcliitefture. The other buildings 

 are the inns, of which the chief, recently built upon a ton- 

 tine fcheme, like that of Glalgow, is a very fpacious, and 

 even fpleudid houfe. There is alio a fmall neat theatre, the 

 private property nf Mr. Steplicn Kemble, the manager, and 

 fome dancing-halls for the occalional recreation of the in- 

 habitants and ftrangers, of whom, from the maritime fitua- 

 tion, there is, at certain feafons, particularly at the arrivals 

 of the Weil India fleets, a confidcrablc influx. 



The fcenery ofthe Clyde around Greenock is pifturefque 

 and fublime. The river is about feven miles broad to the 

 oppofite fliorc, where the village of Eleleiifburg is crefted upon 

 the property of fir James Colquhoun ot Lufs, bart. This 



bably from the difficulty of engaging the joint content village is built in a very pleafant fituation, upon a fine bay, 

 of the numerous interefts concerned, and other caufes, formed by two projefting promontories, viz. by tiic hill of 

 no fteps have been hitherto taken for carrying this Ardmore, on the call, and by Rofeneath, the property, and 

 fcheme into effedl. The principal deficiency of the harbour one of the fpleudid refidences of the duke of Argyle, on 

 of Greenock, exclufive of the fliips bottoms taking the the weft. Beyond this, to the weflward, appear the lower- 

 ground every ebb tide, arifes from want of water, there ing mountains of Argylelliire, between which is the vaft arm 

 beino- never more than feventeen or eighteen feet in the bar- ••■'<■ t 'i ,-,■ . . r ■, • 1 .1 

 bour, even at fpring tides. Hence large veffels are obliged 

 to difcharge part of their cargoes into lighters in the roads 



before they can come into the harbour at all. This is of 

 lefs confequence where the cargo is to be brought to Glaf- 

 gow, if the weather be mild, but it is very inconvenient and 

 expenfive when the cargo is to be landed, and when the 

 weather is boifterous. The whole rife of the tide at 

 Greenock is only about twelve feet, whereas at Liverpool 

 it is thirty-fix and at Brillol forty-two. This alfo forms an 

 additional difadvantage to the harbour of Greenock, and 

 prefents a very great obllacle to every plan of artificial im- 

 provement. ^Vith all thefe difadvantages, however, it has 

 many advantages over the neighbouring harbour of port 

 Claf<i"ow, fituated about three miles farther up the river. 

 The chief obftacle to veffels of great burtiien making any 

 of thefe ports, is an immenfe bank of land, accumulated 

 for many ages in tliis embouchure of the Clyde by the current 

 of the river, and which is fenfibly thougli flowly increalmg. 

 indeed nearly oppofite to port Glafgow, this bank is en- 

 tirely uncovered for miles at low water. Notwithflanding 

 thefe natural difadvantages, the favourable fituation of tli 



of the fea, Lochlong, which is twenty-four miles in length, 

 and in fome places faid to be unfathomably deep. About 

 two miles to the weft is a fmall village, called Gourock, 

 fituated on a very fine deep bay, well fhcltered by projeft- 

 ing head-lands, w'itli a very good bottom for anchorage. It 

 is the opinion of moll profefTional men, whether engineers 

 or feameu, that this fituation affords by far the greatefl 

 number of natural advantages for a large and commodious 

 fea-port upon the Clyde ; and it is almofl fingular that 

 Greenock fliould liave rifen to its prefeut commercial im- 

 portance, whilfl Gourock, fituated within lefs than two 

 miles, and pofleffing every fuperiority of phyfical ad>'antage, 

 fhould have remained an iiifi.gnificant village. However 

 this may iiave originated, too much capital has now been 

 expended upon Greenock and Port Glnfgow, to leave the 

 fmallell room to fuppofe that they will be in any refpedl 

 rivalled by a village which poffeffcs nothing but natural 

 fituation to recommend it. On the road from Greenock 

 to Gourock are many vtry fine villas, belonging to the 

 opulent merchants of Greenock. At both Greenock and 

 Gourock are extenfivc rope-works, belonging to the fame 

 company of proprietors. A little below Gourock is the 



Clyde for maritime intercourfe with every part of the Clough'light-iioufe, a very high and well-built tower, lighted 

 wellern hemifphere and the fouth of Europe, the great by refledtors, fen- the fafety of vefiels coming up, or going 

 coafting trade with the weftern parts of England and Wales, down the channel during the night. Some lujles below 



this 



