Old Travel Blog Photograph Man Fishing Harbour Girvan Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of a man fishing by the harbour at Girvan in South Ayrshire, Scotland. The old town of Girvan stood on the left bank of the Girvan Water where its lowermost reach curves from South and straightens out westwards to finish its course to the sea. It was the seaward part of this reach that formed the original harbour. In 1794, while it was still unimproved, the harbour was considered reasonable, as its entrance gave from 9 feet to 11 feet of water at high tides and vessels were able to get out in all moderate winds. Profits accruing from a glut of herrings which occurred in the 1760s, as well as from the contraband trade, had resulted in the growth of what had previously been a very small town. By 1837 a quay on a very limited scale¿ was constructed, which improved conditions for the trade in coal and grain, and further improvement was contemplated. Further improvement was recorded in 1847. The harbour could accommodate vessels up to 10 feet draught, and Girvan ranked as a large fishing station, supporting 34 boats and 90 men.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Lyle Road Greenock Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of Lyle Road in Greenock near Glasgow, Scotland. Named after Abram Lyle of the Tate and Lyle sugar company, who was Provost of Greenock when the road was built in 1878. Abram was born on 14 December 1820 in Greenock, and at twelve years old became an apprentice in a lawyer's office. He then joined his father's cooperage businesses and in partnership with a friend, John Kerr, developed a shipping business, making the Lyle fleet one of the largest in Greenock. The area was heavily involved in the sugar trade with the West Indies, and his business included transporting sugar. Together with four partners he purchased the Glebe Sugar Refinery in 1865, and so added sugar refining to his other business interests. When John Kerr, the principal partner, died in 1872, Lyle sold his shares and began the search for a site for a new refinery. Together with his three sons he bought two wharves at Plaistow in East London in 1881 to construct a refinery for producing Golden Syrup. The site happened to be around 1.5 miles from the sugar refinery of his rival, Henry Tate. The sugar refiners Abram Lyle & Sons soon merged with the company of his rival Henry Tate to become Tate & Lyle in 1921. Sugar refineries belonging to Tate & Lyle continued as a major industry in Greenock until the 1980s, then declining sugar consumption and a shift away from cane sugar led to closure of the last refinery in 1997. There is still a warehouse that was used in the past to store sugar in the town's Ocean Terminal. Abram Lyle was Provost of Greenock from 1876 to 1879. An elder of St Michael's Presbyterian Church in Greenock. He was a pious man and a strict teetotaller, who once declared that he would " rather see a son of his carried home dead than drunk. " Abram Lyle was the son of Abram Lyle and Mary Campbell. He married Mary Park, daughter of William Park, on 14 December 1846 and the couple had five sons and one daughter. He died on 30 April 1891 and has a large memorial in Greenock Cemetery. Of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to visit one day.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Charabanc Edinburgh Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of a Southern Circular Tourist Route Charabanc near the castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. A charabanc, often pronounced " sharra-bang " in colloquial British English, is a type of early motor coach, usually open topped, common in Britain during the early part of the 20th century. It has "benched seats arranged in rows, looking forward, commonly used for large parties, whether as public conveyances or for excursions. It was especially popular for sight seeing or " works outings " to the country or the seaside, organised by businesses once a year. The name derives from the French char à bancs, " carriage with wooden benches ", the vehicle having originated in France in the early 19th century.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Wishing Stone Pass of Killiecrankie Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of the Wishing Stone above the Pass of Killiecrankie, Perthshire, Scotland. The Battle of Killiecrankie, Gaelic: Blàr Choille Chnagaidh, also referred to as Rinrory by contemporaries, took place on 27 July 1689 during the First Jacobite uprising between a combined Scottish and Irish Jacobite force and those supporting the new government of King William III. The Jacobites achieved a stunning victory but suffered heavy casualties, including their leader. Towards the north end of Killiecrankie Pass is the famed Soldier's Leap, where one of Mackay's fleeing men managed to jump the foaming cataract between two fearsome rocks, and so escape the pursuing enemy during the Battle of Killiecrankie in 1689.



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Old Travel Blog Photograph Mousemill Bridge Scotland

Old travel Blog photograph of Mousemill Bridge near Kirkfieldbank, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. Mousemill Bridge is a crossing of the Mouse Water on Mousemill Road, just north of Kirkfieldbank. There are two bridges at the site, the present day road bridge and the old Mousemill Bridge which previously formed part of the road between Lanark and Hamilton through Kirkfieldbank but is today solely used by pedestrians. The old Mousemill Bridge originated as a wooden bridge and was first mentioned in 1587. A stone bridge replaced the wooden one around 1649.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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