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Lying on the southern shore of
the Firth of Clyde, Greenock has always been
associated with ships. In the 17th century it was
home to the infamous pirate Captain Kidd. Some 100
years later it was the site of the first dock to
be created by John Scott on the Clyde, and at one
time was the embarkation point for thousands of
people setting out for new lives in America.
During War World 11 it was even the base of the
Free French navy.
From its pier visitors can be ferried to a number
of places on the Clyde, including Largs and
Rothesay on the Isle of Bute. The McLean Museum
and Art Gallery charts the history of both steam
power and the local shipping industry while the HM
Customs & Excise Museum looks at, among other
things, the history of illicit whisky distilling.
Greenock’s most famous son was James Watt
(1736-1819), the pioneer of steam power. Painter
Sir James Guthrie, one of the ‘Glasgow Boys’, was
also born here and it was the setting for Ken
Loach’s movie ‘Sweet Sixteen’.
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