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25-521: Balloch may refer to: Places [ edit ] Scotland [ edit ] Pronounced /'bɑləx/ [ edit ] Balloch, West Dunbartonshire , Scotland Balloch Castle Balloch Country Park Balloch railway station Balloch Central railway station Balloch Pier railway station Balloch, Cumbernauld , Scotland Kenmore , Scotland, formerly called Balloch Pronounced /bə'lox/ [ edit ] Balloch, Highland Scotland,

50-444: A residential village four miles east of the city of Inverness United States [ edit ] Pronounced /'bɑːlək/ [ edit ] Balloch, New Hampshire People [ edit ] Alexander Balloch Grosart (1827–1899), Scottish clergyman and literary editor Howard Balloch (21st century), former Canadian diplomat See also [ edit ] Baloch (disambiguation) Belloch Topics referred to by

75-595: Is a large hillfort sitting west of Renton. Despite its impressive size, a lack of detailed archaeological investigations make the timing of its inhabitation and many other basic details uncertain, but its close geographical proximity to the major fortress of Alcluith at Dumbarton Rock (sited where the River Leven meets the River Clyde) suggests a relationship with this important iron age centre. After incorporation of Alcluith's successor state, Strathclyde, into

100-540: Is a terminus of the North Clyde electric train service from Glasgow . Balloch is served by Balloch Primary School and St Kessog's Primary school, both located at the newly built Balloch Campus. Balloch Primary School is the result of a merger between Haldane Primary School and Jamestown Primary School In 2018. 2. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/incoming/wwii-rescue-boat-skylark-ix-7446557 Vale of Leven The Vale of Leven ( Scottish Gaelic : Magh Leamhna )

125-642: Is an area of West Dunbartonshire , Scotland , in the valley of the River Leven . Historically, it was part of The Lennox , the name of which derives from the Gaelic term Leamhnach , meaning field of the Leven . Leamnha is thought to mean elm-water. Geographically the valley of the Vale of Leven runs from Loch Lomond in the north to Dumbarton in the south. However, the term "Vale of Leven" or just "The Vale"

150-606: Is at the southern end of the first Scottish national park , Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park . There is a Sea Life Centre in the village. The Loch Lomond Youth Soccer Festival used to take place in the village. "Lochfoot" in the Jean Robertson novels of Jane Duncan is partly based on the village. The PS Maid of the Loch is currently being restored at Balloch pier and the Balloch Steam Slipway

175-414: Is commonly used locally to refer to the urban area towards the north of the valley that consists of a number of communities. These were historically separate villages but have expanded into one conurbation . The largest of these communities is the town of Alexandria , which sits on the west bank of the Leven. Alexandria is connected to the village of Renton to the south and to the village of Balloch in

200-502: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Balloch, West Dunbartonshire Balloch ( / ˈ b ɑː l ə x / BAH -ləkh , Scots: [ˈbɑləx] ; Scottish Gaelic : Am Bealach ) is a village in West Dunbartonshire , Scotland , at the foot of Loch Lomond . Balloch comes from either the Gaelic word baile which means village or hamlet, or

225-488: Is home to the Vale of Leven Golf Club, the Vale of Leven Cricket Club, the Loch Lomond Rugby Club, a swimming pool, several bowling clubs, and the Vale of Leven & District Angling Club. The latter reflects the River Leven's historic recognition as a salmon and trout river. Two major walking and/or cycling routes cross the Vale of Leven. National Cycling Network route 7 ( Glasgow to Balloch) runs along

250-685: Is located nearby. The A811 road (based on an 18th-century military road) goes from Balloch to Stirling , and the A813 goes from Dumbarton to Balloch. The Glasgow to Loch Lomond cycle path (part of National Cycle Route 7 ) ends at Balloch. The West Loch Lomond Cycle Path also runs from Balloch. The village was formerly served by two railway stations on the Caledonian and Dunbartonshire Junction Railway : Balloch Central , and Balloch Pier , which closed in 1988 and 1986, respectively. The village now has one railway station opened by British Rail , which

275-741: Is the valley of the River Leven between Loch Lomond in the north and the River Clyde at Dumbarton in the south. To the east are the Kilpatrick Hills . The western hills form a minor off-shoot of the Scottish Highlands , comprising Ben Bouie, Mount Mallow and Carman muir. The valley was shaped by glacial action associated with the last glacial period in Britain, the Loch Lomond Readvance . Carman Hill

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300-412: The Kilpatrick Hills . To the east of the town lies the major local authority housing scheme in the area known as 'The Haldane' or 'The Mill of Haldane'. Glasgow is located around 16 miles (26 km) to the southeast. Balloch lies on the 56th parallel , at about the same latitude as Moscow . With its accessible location at the southern end of Loch Lomond and just off the main road from Glasgow to

325-769: The Wars of Independence , Robert the Bruce purchased land in Cardross and the Vale of Leven. He lived and ruled from there until his death in 1329. There is a small King Robert the Bruce Heritage Centre situated at the train station in Renton. The Vale of Leven was an area of small farms and relatively low population until industrialisation started with the establishment of a bleach-field at Dalquhurn, Renton in 1715. Both dyeing and bleaching industries were attracted to

350-652: The West Highlands (A82), it is an important centre of tourism , especially from Glasgow. The village has a number of hotels, inns and pubs, and there are cruises from Balloch up Loch Lomond, and other services, including to nearby locations like Luss , and the Renfrew Ferry service. The largest number of boats cruising on Loch Lomond leave from Balloch. The village is also the home of Dunkirk vessel Skylark IX which helped rescue 600 troops during WWII . It contains Balloch Country Park and Balloch Castle , and

375-463: The 1920s and 1930s, which gave it a radical reputation, with Communism and Socialism being popular political philosophies in particular. During that time it was known as one of the " Little Moscows " in Britain i.e. an area where the Communist Party of Great Britain had exceptional strength. The Vale of Leven District Council (which disappeared in the local government reorganisation of

400-586: The 1970s) could have had the distinction of being the only local council in Great Britain where the Communist Party were ever the largest single party, although unlike most of the "little Moscows" it was not a coal mining area. The Communist Party went into serious decline locally in the 1950s under the influence of the Cold War , more quickly than in some other "little Moscows". However, there

425-450: The Gaelic bealach meaning "a pass". Using the former derivation, Balloch means "village on the loch", i.e. the nearby Loch Lomond, but this would be Baile Loch. Balloch is at the north end of the Vale of Leven , straddling the River Leven itself. It connects to the larger town of Alexandria and to the smaller village of Jamestown , both of which are located to its south. It also borders

450-432: The Leven ward of West Dunbartonshire council since 2007. The Vale of Leven was a hotspot for the early development of Scottish football. This relatively small area gave birth to numerous football clubs, of which the most successful were Vale of Leven FC and Renton FC . Neither is currently a senior team, but by 1888 the 2 clubs had won 5 Scottish Cup finals between them. As well as football teams, The Vale currently

475-750: The United Turkey Red Company. The last dyeworks in the area was the British Silk Factory which closed in 1980. Current notable employers include Loch Lomond Distilleries, Chivas Brothers distillers, and Aggreko Generators. The tourism and hospitality industries are also important local employers. The area is traditionally industrial, based particularly on the dyeing industry, but with the decline of manufacturing in Scotland has had to look to new areas for employment. The area had exceptionally high levels of unemployment in

500-518: The area by the reliable and fast flowing waters of the River Leven. By the 1830's dye works had spread along the river from Renton to Balloch. Individual works included those at Dalquhurn, Cordale, Bonhill, Alexandria, Milton, Dalmonach, Dillichip, Ferryfield and Levenbank. People emigrated from the Highlands, from Ireland and from northern England to staff this industry, and the five villages of The Vale grew. In 1897 several of these works amalgamated as

525-542: The kingdom of Scotland, the Vale of Leven became the political centre of the Earldom of Lennox . By the 13th century nearby Dumbarton was centrally controlled by the crown as a royal burgh , however the Vale of Leven remained a relatively wild area. As an example, in 1230 when the Earl of Lennox granted valuable fishing rights on the River Leven to local monks, he had to promise them protection to enable them to work there. After

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550-620: The length of the River Leven and the John Muir Way crosses the northern end of the valley. There are also many local hill walking routes leading to Cardross , Helensburgh and Glen Fruin to the west and into the Kilpatrick hills to the east. Train links to Glasgow with railway stations at Balloch, Alexandria and Renton. Bus links to Glasgow via Dumbarton and Clydebank . Also bus routes to Drymen , Helensburgh, and Luss . The A82 trunk road from Glasgow to Fort William runs through

575-411: The north. Across the river from Alexandria Is Bonhill which is connected to Jamestown to the north. The combined population of these areas in 2020 was approximately 22000. The area's name lends itself to Alexandria's local football club, Vale of Leven F.C. ; the secondary school, Vale of Leven Academy ; the Vale of Leven District General Hospital and other local organisations. The Vale of Leven

600-502: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Balloch . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Balloch&oldid=1079368420 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Place name disambiguation pages Disambiguation pages with surname-holder lists Hidden categories: Short description

625-757: Was an important industrial struggle during the early 1970s when the Plessey factory experienced a lengthy sit-in, objecting to its proposed closure. In recent years the Labour Party and the Scottish National Party have been the dominant parties in the area, though Jim Bollan of the West Dunbartonshire Community Party and formerly the Scottish Socialist Party has been a councillor for

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