SCRAPYARDS AROUND GLASGOW Part Two – By Roger Johnson

ARDMORE STEEL CO., MOSS ROAD, CARDROSS, DUNBARTONSHIRE.

During WW2 a set of sidings was constructed by the government on either side of the Helensburgh to Dumbarton line, well out in sticks, about half way between Craigendoran and Cardross Stations. For what purpose is not recorded. After the war they passed into railway ownership and were used, at least throughout the 1950s, to break up obsolete old carriages. BR did not do this themselves, but employed a two man band, who grandly called themselves Ardmore Steel Co. In 1963 Ardmore Steel Co. legitimately purchased the sidings on the N.E. side of the line from BR, apparently as a site for their scrap metal business. In November 1964, the only steam engine that Ardmore Steel are recorded as having anything to do with, arrived in the form of J38 65919 from St. Margarets. It was apparently broken up over the next two months, and the site settled down as a small scrap yard.

However that was not the end of the story. In 1976 the local planners got to hear about this “illegal scrapyard” in the green belt! There followed a protracted dispute about the site which was finally settled in favour of Ardmore Steel in 2010!!! All this can be followed through many, many pages on the internet! There is of course no reference as to how much this all cost the good people of Dunbartonshire! If there’s a God up there, I think he would bless Ardmore Steel!!

W.H. ARNOTT, YOUNG & CO. LTD., FULLARTON IRON WORKS, CARMYLE, GLASGOW. G.R. 646627

The first of four yards in Scotland. The Company headquarters were in Central Glasgow, but they also had yards in the Midlands and the north of England.

This yard was on the N.W. Side of the Glasgow Central (Low Level) to Coatbridge and Airdrie line about half way between Tollcross and Carmyle stations. The line is now closed N. of Carmyle station, which has been moved a few hundred yards further W. because of the M74 motorway. Passenger trains now run from Glasgow Central (High Level).

About 80 locos were disposed of here starting in 1959 and ending in 1968. The largest locos to meet their end here were nine A3s, 60037/41/42/57/77/87/96/99/101, most coming via Bathgate dump. The site has now totally changed character and is part a small housing estate, and part landscaped parkland.

W.H. ARNOTT, YOUNG & CO. LTD., OLD KILPATRICK WORKS, ERSKINE FERRY ROAD, GLASGOW. G.R. 466724 & DALMUIR WORKS, GLASGOW G.R. 483709

Arnott Young had two sites on the north bank of the Clyde only about a mile apart, and started to take locos in 1959. The smaller of the two was off the Erskine Ferry Road and accessed from the ex. Caledonian Dumbarton line, (now closed), 500 yards south of Old Kilpatrick station. Two known photos show 61790 & 62676 in this yard in 1960 and another 1962 shot shows 2 Glasgow trams in the process of being dismantled. After October 1964 rail access ceased, so no further locos would have been cut up here after that date.

The second larger site was acquired by Arnott Young from William Beardmore in 1934. Beardmore was a long established engineering firm mainly concerned with the shipping industry. They had diversified into building steam locos in the 1920s. Some of their output went abroad, particularly to India, but they built 90 0‑6‑0 tanks (Jinties) for the LMS and 20 B12s and 20 N7s for the LNER. Until 1959 Arnott Young used the site solely for ship breaking, usually dismantling the superstructure and removing fittings, before towing the lower hull round to Troon, where it could be beached under the protection of the north wall of the harbour, and the rest of it cut up. Siding access was maintained here, and cutting steam locos continued through to 1967, by which time over 80 locos had been reduced to scrap on the two sites. Some diesels locos were also scrapped at Dalmuir through until the early 1970s.

This site was just south of Dalmuir Riverside station also on the ex. Caledonian Glasgow to Dumbarton line, and was accessed from sidings from that station. A new connection was put in some time ago to the ex. North British line and the station and the ex. Caledonian lines have been abandoned west of Clydebank. “Steam for Scrap” are wrong in their statement that “The Old Kilpatrick Yard at GREENOCK was served by a siding from the station” —‑ etc ; the yards were definitely on the north bank of the Clyde, not the south. The Dalmuir site is now part of Clydebank Industrial Estate and the Erskine Ferry Road site, light industry.

W.H. ARNOTT, YOUNG & CO. LTD., TROON HARBOUR, TROON, AYRSHIRE. G.R. 315312

The yard had been used for many years as a ship breaking yard, and went under the name of the West of Scotland Ship Breaking Co., though it was a wholly owned subsidiary of Arnott, Young & Co. The yard started to cut up steam locos towards the end of 1962, some 3 years after the other two Arnott Young Scottish premises. At first most of the locos were from local Ayrshire sheds, but after 1963 many came from further afield i.e. Carlisle Kingmoor/Upperby and the Glasgow/Motherwell areas. Perhaps the most well known occupants were the eight Coronation pacifics :‑ 46225/26/37/38 46244/50/55/57, which arrived from Carlisle in late 1964. In all around 110 locos met their end here, the last ones in the summer of 1968. The area where part of the yard was, is now occupied by a town bypass, which is used by vehicles heading for the Larne ferry.

G. H. CAMPBELL, BOGMOOR ROAD, SHIELDHALL, GLASGOW. G. R. 529656.

The yard was situated just off the joint Caledonian & Glasgow and South Western Railway’s Renfrew branch, beside a further branch which went to the nearby King George 5th. Dock. The remains of the Renfrew Branch is still in situ as a siding to industrial premises, though it appeared disused last year. The Renfrew Branch left the main line between Cardonald and Hillingdon East Stations and should not be confused with the Renfrew Branch of the G.S.W. Rly., which closed completely in 1978. The dock branch has gone entirely. Campbell’s yard was directly under what is now an elevated section of the M8 Motorway running beside the also elevated dual carriage way of the A8. Bogmoor Road is still there, passing under the M8 and A8 and serving industrial premises. The name has been miss‑spelt in some referrals to Campbell’s as Bognor Road. It certainly does not lead to the Sussex resort of that name! Bogmoor is correct, and sounds a lot more Scottish!!

Campbell’s at Shieldhall were a much smaller operation than their other yard at Airdrie, being responsible for scrapping about 40 locos between 1963 and early 1966. Though like their sister yard, they had quite a diverse intake with the first arrivals from English dumps in the form of 2Ps, 3Fs and two Ex. L.N.W. 0‑8‑0s. Perhaps the most illustrious were five Jubilees from nearby Corkerhill, and a couple of A4s from St. Rollox and St. Margaret’s.

EDWARD CHALMERS & CO. LTD., 32‑36, NEWHAVEN ROAD, BONNINGTON, LEITH, EDINBURGH. G.R. 260759

Well established Edinburgh scrap metal merchants who purchased 2 local N15 tanks 69169 & 69222 in December 1959. At this time the ex. Caledonian Branch to Leith North was the only suburban line to the north of the city centre still carrying a passenger service. Just before Newhaven Station on this line a long goods only branch, shown as a siding on the map, meandered its way to South Leith. Chalmers’ scrap yard was situated beside Bonnington Goods Yard on this line just S. of where it crossed over the North British branch to Leith. The two locos were cut up in the Goods Yard. Although I have not been there recently, the rail link and Goods Yard have long gone; nor is there is any evidence of a scrap yard on the map.

HALBEATH WAGON WORKS, NR. DUNFERMLINE G.R. 124887

The wagon works were situated about 2 miles N.E. of Dunfermline (Lower) Station, and less than half a mile W. of the closed station of Halbeath. A branch ran N. to Townhill and Kelty and the works were in the V of that junction,. The triangle E. of Dunfermline no longer exists, with the north and west sides lifted, as is the line to Dunfermline Upper and beyond. Six locos were broken up here in early 1962, 44324, 61993/5, 64474, 64488 & 64505.

Although the area around the site is now extensively built on, the actual site of the works is currently agricultural. However, plans are afoot to build a park and ride station roughly on the site of the Old Halbeath Station (closed 1930). If that comes to pass, then no doubt the site will become part of a large car park!

P. & W. McLELLAN, BRIDGENESS, BO’NESS. G.R. 016815

P.&W. McLellan took over the “Forth Ship Breaking Co.” here in 1910. The yard was E. of the Town centre amongst the sidings at Bridgeness. Two locos, 78053 from store at Stirling in April 1965 and likewise 44921 from Perth in June 1965, were cut up here. Neither loco was from the large dump of locos stored in the sidings to the W. between 1961 and 1964. The sidings have now all gone and the site is given over to light industry.

J. McWILLIAM & SON LTD., OLD MANSE ROAD, SHETTLESTON, GLASGOW. G. R. 659642

This yard was on the S. side of the ex. North British Glasgow Queen Street (Low Level) to Coatbridge and Airdrie line about half a mile E. of Shettleston Station and half a mile W. of Garrowhill Station. It was the second largest yard for throughput after Motherwell Machinery and Scrap, cutting up around two hundred and ten steam locos. Cutting started in late 1963 going through to 1968, and consequently many of their locos were fairly modern types. The first to arrive were Crab 2‑6‑0s mainly from Carlisle sheds, followed by many class 5s. The five ex. Polmadie Royal Scots 46102/04/05/07/21 were dealt with here, along with two more from Carlisle. In the later years many locos were BR Standard types and almost half the class of Britannia Pacifics came up from Carlisle along, with two Clans. The yard only dealt with fifteen ex. LNER locos, mainly B1s. After 1968 the yard became a major player in cutting up the unreliable diesels with which Scotland seemed to have more than its fair share. This continued at least up until the mid 1980s. Today the area is still under industrial use. Note : from the mid 1980s McWilliams became the “M” of MC Metals who have been a major player in cutting up BR diesel and electric locos from a site close to the former BR St. Rollox Works.

MOTHERWELL MACHINERY & SCRAP Co., INSHAW WORKS, WISHAW, MOTHERWELL. G.R. 775552

The yard was situated on the S.W. Side of the West Coast Main line opposite Shieldmuir Junction, about 2 miles S. of Motherwell Station. It scrapped the largest number of locos in Scotland, taking care of just under five hundred engines. A start was made in late 1959, mostly with locos brought from dumps S. of the Border and continued right through until 1968, when a number of 9Fs from Carlisle were sent north. Most major named classes were represented except for Princess Royal and Coronations ex. LMS, and A1s ex. LNER. The company appears to have been dissolved early in 2015, though the site had been developed into a housing estate for some time. Of interest is that George Cohen Ltd. were a large, (though not controlling), shareholder. Wheels within wheels!!

SHIPBREAKING INDUSTRIES LTD., FASLANE PORT, GARELOCHEAD. G. R. 245896

The Port of Faslane had been established in the early days of WW2 because of the supposed vulnerability of ports further south. A double track branch was constructed in 1941 from a point on the West Highland Line half a mile S. of Shandon Station. The branch was 2 and a half miles long and descended on a gradient, reputed to be 1 in 30, to the shoreline. The line was worked by War Department loco and staff from a substantial 3 road shed on the shoreline. The War Department had bought 6 J69s and 1 J68 0‑6‑0Ts from the LNER which were allocated to the port. At least 2 WD 2‑8‑0s and an American S160 came in 1943. Metal Industries, later renamed Ship Breaking Industries had been established as ship breakers before the war, and continued after the war at the northern end of the complex, purchasing the tank locos from the WD. These were all scrapped by 1956. In the summer of 1964 Ship Breaking Industries took delivery of their first steam loco for cutting up. For the next three years or so, some seventy five made their final journey. A few LMS 2‑6‑4 tanks and Crab 2‑6‑0s were first to come, and was followed by Class 5 and B1 4‑6‑0s. One of the Class 5s and several B1s were Eastfield based, and along with Standard Class 5 No.73077, had featured well in photos on the West Highland Line, just above where they met their end. In all over half the total cut up were BR Standard Classes. The WD line was closed in 1983, and the pens for the Trident Nuclear Submarines were built on the site of the scrapyard. The Imperial War Museum have published photographs of the railway operations, but I have only come across one distant private photo of the scrap yard with 44394 and 80025 in the shot. Needless to say the whole area is now covered in barbed wire and security fencing, and photography is positively discouraged!!

T.W. WARD, EXCELSIOR IRON AND STEEL WORKS, WISHAW. G.R. 777552

The long established Sheffield based firm of Thomas Ward took over the John Williams Excelsior Iron and Steel Works at Wishaw in 1950. The site is adjacent to the Motherwell Machinery and Scrap Co. yard, but there are no records of any corporate connection. There are also no historical records of any other T.W.Ward site in the Motherwell/Wishaw area, but there must remain a slight doubt whether the six locos were actually scrapped on this site, unless someone comes forward with concrete evidence. It also seems odd that three ex L.N.E.R. Locos 61783, 62484 & 62494 were scrapped in April 1959 and four ex B.R. 3MT 77007, 77017, 77018, & 77019 eight years later in April 1967. The site is now a large Royal Mail Depot with a rail connection, and is adjacent to the West Coast Main Line just S.W. of Shieldmuir Junction.

T.W. WARD, CRUICKNESS ROAD, INVERKEITHING G.R. 127822

Ward’s yard lay on the S. shore of “Inner Harbour” and was a major ship breaking yard in the area. It was ideally sited for this purpose as the “Inner Harbour” almost dried out at low tide. The yard was served by a branch which descended from the main line at Inverkeithing Station, also serving a paper mill and a quarry. A further branch continued to the former ferry terminal at North Queensferry to convey passengers before the Forth Railway Bridge was built. Another branch passed under the main line and went to Rosyth. On pre WW2 maps this was labelled “Admiralty Railway”, but after the war on the 1 inch 7th. series used to illustrate this article, it was left out completely, presumably as a “secrecy thing”. It has been restored to modern maps. The area E. of the main line remains much as it was in the 1960s, but to the west the landscape is much changed, particularly by the Forth Road Bridge and the connecting A90/M90 roads. Ward’s scrapped about 40 locos starting at the end of 1962 and continuing into 1963 and 1964. There was then a lull until 1968 when a batch of class 5s and standard types, including four Britannias, came from the Carlisle area. Note : some published data suggests that the yard was at Rosyth. That was definitely not so.