Without this structure in the Firth of Clyde, Glasgow could never have become a dominant force in shipbuilding, engineering and trade. Until the late 1700s, the Clyde was unpassably shallow east of Dumbarton. This all changed when John Golborne designed and built the 800-yard long Lang Dyke in 1773. It effectively narrowed the width of the main channel, so increasing its depth.
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To solve this problem, an engineer by the name of John Golborne proposed a massive project to deepen it. Part of this involved building the Lang Dyke, a 4 metre thick training wall 2.4 kilometres in length to funnel the Clyde through a single narrow channel past the Dumbuck shallows. Completed in 1773, it helped create the deepwater channel which is still used to this day by ships sailing up the Clyde towards Glasgow.
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A ship passing the remains of the Lang Dyke opposite Dumbarton Rock as it heads down the Clyde from Glasgow and out to sea.
This is impressive bit of engineering was built by John Golborne in the 1770s as part of efforts to create a deep water channel all the way up to Glasgow. It still helps keep the channel open to shipping to this day.
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The Lang Dyke, along with other major engineeeirng projects, allowed ships to sail right into the heart of Glasgow.
Prior to this, ships could only get as far as Port Glasgow before having to be unloaded with their cargo finishing their journey by horse and cart.
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#dumbartoncastle #glasgowhistory
The Clyde at Dumbarton Rock, with channel markers showing the position of the Lang Dyke, (lower right to middle left).
Constructed in 1773, the Lang Dyke aimed to constrain and speed up the flow of water, and so help deepen the channel by scouring.
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#dumbartoncastle #glasgowhistory
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