Ferries and Piers

History Ferries Kilcreggan

Before the era of villa and pier construction, local people and also travellers had made use of the ferries and other craft, and several places had stone built jetties or wooden slipways where passengers and goods could be landed.

Thus, just to the south of Kilcreggan pier can be seen the old stone jetty.

History Ferries 2

Piers in the area were generally wooden structure and were mostly built in the Victorian period (1837-1901). Paddle steamers well suited to the Clyde had developed from their introduction in 1812, and by 1830 or so were powerful enough to reach the Peninsula from Glasgow in around 3 hours. When the railway from Glasgow to Greenock was opened (1841) and that from Glasgow to Helensburgh likewise (1858), connecting ferries made the journey even quicker.Local piers were used  over many years, though a number had fairly short lives, usually because of competition from better-sited piers nearby (as at Clynder and Shandon), or because captains found the approach to be unsafe (as at Coulport).

History Ferries Garelochhead

Yet others were re-built, as at Garelochhead (1879), Rosneath (1893) and Kilcreggan (1897). The piers were still very much in use into the twentieth century, but times were changing and one by one they were closed and eventually demolished, with the exception of Kilcreggan pier, which is the last of the traditional wooden piers still in daily use.

Photographs

Garelochhead Pier: