The Ferries

Index

Early Crossings – from the end of the last Ice Age boats have criss-crossed the Forth, with some of these carrying goods and passengers in exchange for barter or money – the earliest ferries. Around 1070, Queen Margaret of Scotland bequeathed an income to grant free passage to pilgrims, so naming the Queensferry Passage.

1809 – The Trustees – the early boatmen were an unruly lot until an Act of Parliament which gave control to the Trustees.

1820 – 1860 The Post Office, Competition, The Railways – despite their charter, the trustees did not have everything their own way. They faced pressures from their customers and competition.

1863 – 1883 Private Hands – eventually the trustees went bankrupt and the ferry transferred to private companies.

1890 to 1920 – Impact of the Rail Bridge – the private companies thrived, but in turn they faced new competition with the arrival of a new crossing – The Forth Bridge.

1920 to 1947 – back to the NBR – the ferries were transferred to the North British Railway Company – they carried motor vehicles, while passengers and freight went by train.

1947 to 1964 – The End – but the arrival of the Forth Road Bridge spelled the end of thousands of years of ferry traffic.

Hey day of the ferries