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Gourock
Scottish Gaelic: Guireag
Gourock  Gourock shown within Scotland
OS grid reference	NS242770
Council area	Inverclyde
Lieutenancy area	Renfrewshire
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	GOUROCK
Postcode district	PA19
Dialling code	01475
Police	Strathclyde
Fire	Strathclyde
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Inverclyde
Scottish Parliament	Greenock and Inverclyde
List of places: UK • Scotland •

Gourock

As far back as 1494 it is recorded that James IV sailed from the shore at Gourock to quell the rebellious Highland clans. Two hundred years later William and Mary granted a Charter in favour of Stewart of Castlemilk which raised Gourock to a Burgh of Barony. In 1784 the lands of Gourock were purchased by Duncan Darroch, a former merchant in Jamaica. He built Gourock House near the site of the castle in what the family eventually gifted to the town as Darroch Park, later renamed by the council as Gourock Park.

From a small fishing village in the traditional county of Renfrewshire, Gourock grew into a community involved in herring curing, copper mining, ropemaking, quarrying and latterly yacht-building and repairing.

When the competing railway companies extended their lines to provide fast connections to Clyde steamer services the Pierhead was built as a railway terminus. Nowadays Caledonian MacBrayne car ferries sail from the pierhead to Dunoon, a Clyde Marine ferry serves Kilcreggan and Helensburgh, and electric trains provide a service to Glasgow from Gourock railway station at the pierhead. A rival car ferry service is run by Western Ferries from McInroy's Point on the west side of the town to Hunter's Quay to the north of Dunoon.

Like many Scottish seaside towns, Gourock's tourist heyday was in the latter half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th. Evidence of this part of its past is gradually disappearing - The Bay Hotel and Cragburn Pavilion and The Ashton, three local landmarks, disappeared towards the end of the last century. At the same time, Gourock has continued to expand along the coastline, almost to the Cloch lighthouse which overlooks Innellan on the western shore.

Gourock boasts one of the few remaining public outdoor swimming pools in Scotland. Gourock Outdoor Pool was built in 1909 and reconstructed in 1969, it was once tidal and had a sandy floor, but is now a modern, heated facility, with cleaned sea water used in the saltwater pool.

The megalithic Kempock Stone, popularly known as "Granny Kempock Stone", stands on a cliff behind Kempock Street, the main shopping street. The supersition was that for sailors going on a long voyage or a couple about to be married, walking seven times around the stone would ensure good fortune. A flight of steps winds up from the street past the stone to Castle Mansions and St John's Church, whose crown steeple forms a landmark dominating Gourock. Kempock Street itself has a good variety of traditional shops including baker's and greengrocer's shops.

Gourock park was formerly the grounds of Gourock House, now demolished, and lies to the east of the town. Gourock Burn runs down to the west side of the park, and the Scout Hall of the 1st Gourock and 6th Renfrewshire Scout Troop, known as Colonel Darroch's Own, is on that side of Gourock Park. Within the Park lies Gourock Park Bowling Club, one of two bowling clubs in the town,the other being The Gourock Bowling Club in Barrhill Road. These clubs have strong links and also a healthy rivalry as can be seen on their respective websites.www.Gourockpark.com and www.Gourockbc.com

Gourock also has a golf course, which stretches from behind Trumpethill to Levan estates.

The head of the Scottish clan Darroch is titled Duncan Darroch, 7th of Gourock, Lord of the Barony of Gourock. He is retired, was formerly a captain with the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, and lives in Camberley, Surrey.^[1]

Gourock's principal industry, apart from tourism and fishing, was small craft repair and chandlery. An eponymous ropework opened in the town but later moved to Port Glasgow. More recently Amazon.com opened a distribution centre at Faulds Park, an industrial estate to the south of the town.

Ashton, Cardwell Bay, Levan, McInroy's Point, Midton, Trumpethill

Sunset view from Lyle Hill

The Waverley in front of the old Bay Hotel	Caledonian MacBrayne ferries at the pierhead	Granny Kempock Stone
Greengrocer's shop in Kempock Street	Baker's shop in Kempock Street	Outdoor heated pool	Ashton Front promenade

Iain Banks (1954– ), author

Charlie Barr (1864–1911), yachtsman and three-time America's Cup winner

Catherine McPhail, author

George Wyllie (1921– ), artist