Fishing Boats of Campbeltown Shipyard

by SamHenderson (Author), PeterDrummond (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2009

  $8.15

  Shipbulding in Campbeltown did not begin with Campbeltown Shipyard. In fact, the origins of boatbuilding in the town are lost in the mists of time, possibly dating back as far as the creation of the town as a Royal Burgh in 1700. A shipbuilding and ship-repairing facility was situated at the head of the Old Quay during part of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The boatbuilding industry has always had its ups and downs, reflecting the changing fortunes of the fishing industry. Campbeltown Shipyard diversified its boatbuilding activities in order to survive but competition from foreign yards moved into a new dimension from the mid-nineties onwards. In addition, decommissioning restricted days at sea and shrinking quotas have left the Scottish fleet a shadow of its former self. However, by the middle of the first decade of the twenty-first century, things were beginning to look up for the remaining vessels, including several survivors of the boats built by Campbeltown Shipyard. Today the empty buildings which once comprised the shipyard betray no trace of the hive of activity which once existed there and produced some of the most successful fishing vessels ever built in Scotland, yet with surviving boats still turning in impressive performances, the fishing industry will long remember the fishing boats of Campbeltown Shipyard.