Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway
The Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway was an early railway, which merged with the Caledonian Railway. It was created to provide train services between Greenock and Glasgow.
1837 July 15th. The railway company was formed by Act of Parliament
1841 March 31st. The line opened having been delayed from the previous year after difficulties constructing a tunnel at Bishopton. The contract for the first seven miles of the railway was agreed in 1839, the engineer being Joseph Locke and the contractor Thomas Brassey. This was to be the first work of Locke in Scotland; and Brassey's fourth contract.
The company was set up to provide through train services between Greenock and Glasgow. Its line originally ran from Greenock to Paisley, where it joined the Glasgow and Paisley Joint Railway: a line it jointly owned with the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway. Both companies received their Act of Parliament on the same day, and had been advised that the necessary Acts of Parliament to build their lines between Glasgow and Paisley could only gained by forming a joint company to build and run that portion. The anticipated problem was obtaining the necessary agreement from the land owners. Due to the failure of the Glasgow, Paisley and Ardrossan Canal to be completed beyond Johnstone, both railway companies were required to start work from both ends of their respective lines.
1847 The Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway merged with the Caledonian Railway
1869 The Caledonian Railway bought Gourock Pier and the surrounding land
1878 March 21st. Obtained an Act of Parliament to build a railway line and a quay.
1889 Built an extension to the existing line, which was opened on 1 January 1889. The line provided several new stations from Greenock to Gourock, and allowed the Caledonian Railway to have their own rail-connected steamer pier in the area, directly competing with the Glasgow and South Western Railway's Princes Pier.
See Also
Sources of Information
- [1] Wikipedia