Dumbarton, Castle Road, William Denny And Brothers Ltd
Shipyard (19th Century)
Site Name Dumbarton, Castle Road, William Denny And Brothers Ltd
Classification Shipyard (19th Century)
Alternative Name(s) Thompson's Yard; River Clyde; Firth Of Clyde
Canmore ID 187789
Site Number NS47SW 91
NGR NS 4015 7485
NGR Description Centred NS 4015 7485
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/187789
- Council West Dunbartonshire
- Parish Dumbarton
- Former Region Strathclyde
- Former District Dumbarton
- Former County Dunbartonshire
NS47SW 91.00 centred 4015 7485
NS47SW 91.01 c. 401 747 Watching Brief
NS47SW 91.02 4002 7488 Roll on-Roll off facility
NS47SW 91.03 centred 4005 7467 Tidal Dock
NS47SW 91.04 centred 4001 7491 Jetty
NS47SW 91.05 centred 4013 7499 Works building
NS47SW 91.06 centred 4020 7480 Works building
NS47SW 91.07 centred 4000 7499 Jetty
For Denny's Ship model experiment tank, see NS47NW 16.
(Location cited as NS 402 748). Leven Shipyard, founded 1857 by William Denny and Bros. The most interesting survival at this yard is the test tank (NS47NW 16) of 1882-3, the first commercial one in the world, which is in a long single-storey brick building, with a stone frontage. Other remains are mainly modern sheds. Nearby are several streets of superior dwellings built by the company from 1882.
J R Hume 1976.
NS 401 748 An archaeological evaluation was carried out in March 2006 in advance of the proposed construction of residential housing at Thompson's Yard, Dumbarton, the former site of William Denny and Brothers Shipbuilding Yard. The evaluation trenching consisted of a 5.4% sample of the 6.2ha development area. The evaluation uncovered extensive evidence for the widespread accumulation of dumped deposits and/or truncation of alluvial and geological sand deposits. All of the deposits and materials encountered during the evaluation trenching related to 19th-and 20th-century activity associated with William Denny and Brothers Shipbuilding Yard. No artefacts or features relating to medieval Dumbarton or to earlier prehistoric features were discovered.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: Turnberry Homes Ltd.
L Dunbar 2006.
Archaeological Evaluation (March 2006)
NS 401 748 An archaeological evaluation was carried out in March 2006 in advance of the proposed construction of residential housing at Thompson's Yard, Dumbarton, the former site of William Denny and Brothers Shipbuilding Yard. The evaluation trenching consisted of a 5.4% sample of the 6.2ha development area. The evaluation uncovered extensive evidence for the widespread accumulation of dumped deposits and/or truncation of alluvial and geological sand deposits. All of the deposits and materials encountered during the evaluation trenching related to 19th-and 20th-century activity associated with William Denny and Brothers Shipbuilding Yard. No artefacts or features relating to medieval Dumbarton or to earlier prehistoric features were discovered.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: Turnberry Homes Ltd.
L Dunbar 2006
Desk Based Assessment (14 August 2017)
William Denny and Brothers Ltd., who were particularly well known for their fine cross-channel steamships and ferries, operated the most important yard on the River Leven from 1844 to 1963. Denny Brothers was founded in 1844 by William, Peter and Alexander Denny, who initially leased their fathers old premises at Wood Yard (NS37SE 31) on the west bank of the river, fitting it out for the building of iron steamers. In 1849 they reformed as William Denny and Brothers, moving to a new shipyard on the east bank of the River Leven, north of Dumbarton Rock. The Leven Shipyard was greatly extended in 1881 and in 1883 a model test tank was completed (NS47NW 16), as depicted on the 2nd edition of the OS 25-inch map (Dunbartonshire 1898, Sheet 022.06). At this time the yard measured 370m by 180m transversely, with a tidal basin to the south of the yard and numerous workshops of the various tradesmen associated with the construction of a vessel such as plumbers, carpenters, riggers and platers around the perimeter and particularly concentrated to the north of the yard, totalling an area of about 700m by 300m transversely. In 1961 the firm employed 1800 workers, but the company went in to liquidation in 1963 and the yard was later demolished, a sawmill company utilising their old fitting-out basin.
Today much of the ground has been redeveloped. The southern tidal basin (NS47SW 91.03) has since been filled in and its site is now occupied Dumbarton Football Stadium (NS47SW 134), built in 2000; A supermarket, its car park and modern housing now occupy much of the central section of the old yard and the only substantial part of Denny’s yard still existing is its model test tank (Denny Tank Museum, part of the Scottish Maritime Museum) which is housed in its original building at the north end of the yard.
The records of William Denny and Brothers Ltd. are held by the University of Glasgow Archive Services (GB 248 UGD 003 and GB 248 UGD 191/18).
Information from HES Survey and Recording (AMcC) 14 August 2017
