Imperial gazeteer of Scotland, or, Dictionary of Scottish topography > Volume 1

ALLOA.
36
ALLOA.
the centre of the river, is 17 miles, and to the bridge
of Stirling 19A miles; whereas the distance, by
land, from Alloa to the bridge of Stirling, does not
exceed 7 miles, though the turnings in the road are
numerous.
The situation of the town is pleasant. Some
strata of rock run a considerable way between the
carse and the high grounds, and break oft" about the
ferry, a little above the harbour. On part of this
rock is built the tower and the ancient part of the
town. The tower marks the ancient residence of
the family of Mar. It was built prior to the year
1315; but the entire building, with the exception of
the square tower still standing, was accidentally
burnt to the ground in the year 1800. The highest
turret is 89 feet; and the thickness of the walls is
1 1 feet. The gardens were laid out by John, Earl of
Mar, in 1706, in the old French taste of long ave-
nues and dipt pledges, with statues and ornaments.
The town formerly almost surrounded the tower;
and in rude ages they afforded mutual benefits to
each other. Most of the streets are narrow and
irregular. There is one, however, on a regular plan,
in a line parallel to the gardens of the tower, called
John's-street, which is between 76 and 80 feet
broad. A row of lime-trees, on each side, affords
an agreeable shade in summer, and a comfortable
shelter in winter. The town has of late years ex-
tended rapidly to the west, and it is adorned in that
quarter by some elegant villas. The buildings of
the town, as a whole, have a pleasant appearance.
The parish church isalike conspicuous and elegant,
a structure in a pointed style, 124 feet by 78, with
a tower and spire soaring to the height of 207 feet.
The Episcopalian chapel is a neat Gothic edifice.
The Academy is a small but handsome Grecian
building. The chief inns are the Royal Oak Hotel,
the Crown Inn, and the Ship Inn.
Directly abreast of the town, and looking up to a
pleasant view of it, is the harbour. The water here
rises at neap tides from 14 to 16 feet, and at spring-
tides from 22 to 24; yet it has been ascertained that
the bottom of Alloa, harbour is nearly on a level
with the top of the pier of Leith. There is a double
tide at each flowing and ebbing. The quay is built
of rough hewn stone, and forms a pow, or small
creek, where the rivulet that runs through the
north-east end of the town falls into the river. A
little above the harbour there is a dry dock. Above
the dry dock there is a ferry, sometimes called the
Craigward, and sometimes the lung's ferry. The
breadth of the river here, at high tide, is above half-
a-mile; and there are good piers carried down to
low- water mark on each side, and two large steamers
are employed; but the rapidity of the tide some-
times renders the passage tedious. The scheme of
building a bridge across the Forth here has often
been talked of, and has been ascertained to be quite
practicable; and some little time ago, measures
were taken to form a company, -with a capital of
£100,000, to carry it into effect." The water here at
ebb-tide is almost quite fresh, and at full-tide is
nearly half fresh and half salt. The depth of the
river for a considerable distance below the harbour
has, in recent years, been injuriously lessened by
the throwing of ballast out of vessels, by the floating
of masses of matter from mosses, and by the lodg-
ment which these substances give to the natural
silt; insomuch that vessels formerly frequented
Alloa of larger burden than any which can now fre-
quent it. This port was for a long time an indepen-
dent and head one, with admiralty jurisdiction on
the north side of the Forth from Stirling-bridge to
Petticur, and on the south side from Stirling-bridge
to Iliggin's Nook ; and it lost this dignity, and was
suffering inconvenience and loss for want of it, but
has recently regained it. The port was long ago an
important one, and at the end of last century had
115 vessels of aggregately 7,241 tons; but though
still ranking as the seventh in Scotland, it has not
at all prospered either in the ratio of its own advan-
tages or in the proportion of some other Scottish
ports. The harbour, all things considered, is the
best in the Forth above Granton; and it commands
an immense sphere of trade, in the way of both ex-
port and import. Yet the aggregate tonnage of its
shipping, including sub-ports, at the end of 1860,
was only 13,671 tons; and the dock and quay walls
are not in good condition. The harbour revenue is
derived from very light dues on goods and shipping ;
and in ]846, it amounted to £725 at Alloa, and £50
at Cambus; but is not levied at Clackmannan Pow,
Kennetpans, and Fallin. The arrivals and depar-
tures at Alloa, in 1846, amounted to 439, of aggre-
gately 31,940 tons, and paying customs duty £1,859 ;
and 78 of the whole were to or from the colonies, or
foreign. The arrivals and departures, in the same
year, at Clackmannan Pow, Cambus, Kennetpans,
and Fallin, were respectively 235, 28, 18, and 7.
The vessels belonging to theport in 1864 were 49,
of 10,512 tons; the coasting trade of 1860 comprised
a tonnage of 2,302 inward, and of 13,754 outward;
and the entire trade of 1863 comprised a tonnage of
11,385 inward in British vessels, 13,979 inward in
foreign vessels, 16,546 outward in British vessels,
and 25,225 outward in foreign vessels. The imports
consist chiefly of corn, timber, wool, fuller's earth,
and miscellaneous small goods; and the exports
consist chiefly of coals, pig-iron, woollen-manufac-
tures, glass, ale, whisky, leather, and bricks. The
customs in 1S63 amounted to £6.997.
The town and its environs contain many and
various extensive manufactories. Camlet weaving
was long a prominent department of industry, and
employed about 100 looms, but became extinct.
The manufacture of plaiding, tartans, shawls, blan-
kets, druggets, and other similar fabrics, is of some-
what recent origin, yet sprang up so vigorously _ as
soon to give rise to six large factories. The making
of glass is carried on, and long has been so, in works
which occupy a space of about six imperial acres,
westward of "the ferry, and fitted with a pier. Ale,
of great celebrity, not only in Scotland but in dis-
tant lands, is made, to the amount of about 80,000
barrels a-year, in eight breweries. Whisky, in
vast quantity, is produced at Carsebridge and Cam-
bus. Tobacco and snuff were once very exten-
sively manufactured; and are still a considerable
object. The other chief articles of production or
labour are leather, bricks, stoneware, machinery,
and flour. Weekly markets are held on Wednes-
day and Saturday; but only that on Saturday is
well attended. Fairs are held on the second Wed-
nesday of February, May, August, and November;
but they are ill-attended and of very trifling conse-
quence. The town has a stamp-office, an excise-
office, a custom-house, offices of the Commercial
Bank, the Union Bank, the National Bank, the
Clydesdale Bank, and offices of ten insurance com-
panies. Two newspapers are published in it, —
the Alloa Advertiser and the Alloa Journal, both
weekly on Saturday. Abundant communication is
enjoyed up and down the Forth by the Stirling
and Granton steamers, to Tillicoultry by branch
railway, to Stirling, Dunfermline, and places be-
yond, by the Stirling and Dunfermline railway,
and to Edinburgh, Glasgow, and connected places,
by the Alloa junction of the Scottish Central rail-
way. A line of railway was once projected direct
between Alloa and Glasgow, to proceed by way