28-688: The Gryffe Reservoirs , also spelled ' Gryfe' , take their name from the River Gryffe , name deriving from the Gaelic garbh meaning "rough stream". are two reservoirs , known as Gryffe No. 1 and Gryffe No. 2, located in Inverclyde in the west central Lowlands of Scotland . The larger reservoir, Gryffe No. 1, is adjacent to Loch Thom with Gryffe No. 2 connecting immediately to the east. Together, they are occasionally known as Loch Gryffe . Both reservoirs are impounded by earthwork dams, No.1 has
56-655: A charter for a priory to be set up on land owned by him in Paisley. It was dedicated to SS. Mary , James , Mirin and Milburga . Around 13 monks came from the Cluniac priory at Much Wenlock in Shropshire to found the community. Paisley grew so rapidly that it was raised to the status of abbey in 1245. Monks from Paisley founded Crossraguel Abbey in Carrick, Ayrshire , in 1244. In 1307, Edward I of England had
84-593: A community on this site in 7th century. Sometime after his death a shrine to the Saint was established, becoming a popular site of pilgrimage and veneration. The name Paisley may derive from the Brythonic ( Cumbric ) Passeleg, 'basilica' (derived from the Greek ), i.e. 'major church', recalling an early, though undocumented, ecclesiastical importance. In 1163, Walter fitz Alan , the first High Steward of Scotland issued
112-712: A number of places named after the river including Gryffe Road in Kilmacolm, Gryffe Avenue in Bridge of Weir and Gryffe Crescent in Paisley, Gryffe High School – a state secondary school in Houston. There are organisations which refer to the river and its environs, such as the Gryffe Valley Rotary Club . The BBC also favours the Gryffe spelling. Paisley Abbey Paisley Abbey is a parish church of
140-412: A rear panel of an altar before being put up as a frieze on the wall. A succession of fires and the collapse of the tower in the 15th and 16th centuries left the building in a partially ruined state. Although the western section was still used for worship, the eastern section was widely plundered for its stone. From 1858 to 1928 the north porch and the eastern choir were reconstructed on the remains of
168-531: A surface area of 63.9 hectares (158 acres) and No.2's area is 28.8 hectares (71 acres). The average depth of Gryffe No.2 is 5.2 metres (17 ft), the deepest point being near the wall of the dam where it is 10.4 metres (34 ft). The reservoirs are fed from a stream rising on Creuch Hill. Their outflow, the Gryffe Water flows east into the valley of Strath Gryffe, joins with the Green Water to form
196-574: Is by John Clark. The Abbey organ is reputedly one of the finest in Scotland, and was originally built by the most distinguished of all 19th-century organ builders, Cavaillé-Coll of Paris in 1874. This is one of only six in the UK. Since 1874 it has been rebuilt and extended four times. The organ as rebuilt by Walker in 1968 has 4 manuals, 65 stops and 5448 pipes.(National Pipe Organ Register; "The Organ at Paisley Abbey", booklet pub. Paisley Abbey) In 2009
224-594: Is conveyed to Greenock in a tunnel, the route of which is marked with air shafts, which ends at the Whinhill Water Treatment Works. The reservoirs were originally run by the Greenock Water Trust but are now owned and managed by Scottish Water . There are fisheries on both reservoirs. One the lower reservoir, Gryfe No2. Fishing is only allowed from the bank and the water is stocked with farmed brown trout which are larger than
252-460: Is thought to date from AD 1350-1400 and is up to 2m wide and up to 2.2m high. The drain contains stonemasons marks on the walls, and marks where gates used to be. Before accessing the drain, water has to be pumped out. Paisley Abbey Drain is designated by Historic Environment Scotland as a Scheduled Ancient Monument and has similarities to other monastery drains, such as Fountains Abbey , Dundrennan Abbey and Melrose Abbey . A virtual tour of
280-541: Is thought to date from the 10th century. In the abbey's nave, the Wallace Memorial Window, which depicts the image of Samson, was donated in 1873. The earliest written record of a tunnel around Paisley Abbey dates from 1829, when workmen digging in the garden of one John Crawford in Ellis Lane, fell through into a tunnel. Early maps show Ellis Lane being in the region of the modern manhole leading to
308-657: The Church of Scotland on the east bank of the White Cart Water in the centre of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire , about 7 miles (11 kilometres) west of Glasgow , in Scotland . Its origins date from the 12th century, based on a former Cluniac monastery . Following the Reformation in the 16th century, it became a Church of Scotland parish kirk . It is believed that Saint Mirin (or Saint Mirren) founded
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#1732801227218336-583: The River Gryffe near Kilmacolm . The Gryffe Reservoirs were constructed following an Act of Parliament in 1866 to improve the drinking water supply for the town of Greenock and its environs, the impetus for this was a typhus epidemic in 1864 that had resulted in the deaths of thousands of people in Greenock. Construction of the Gryffe Reservoir was completed in 1872 and it is still primarily used to provide Greenock with drinking water. The water
364-507: The Gaelic garbh meaning 'rough stream'. The name is variously spelt with one 'f' or two; both spellings appear in official usage. The churches of Stragrif (Strathgryffe) are mentioned in the 1169 charter of Paisley Abbey . In 1968, Independent Labour Party politician Thomas Taylor was made a life peer as Lord Taylor of Gryfe, of Bridge of Weir in the County of Renfrew. There are
392-405: The abbey burned down. It was rebuilt later in the 14th century. William Wallace , born in nearby Elderslie, is believed to have been educated in the abbey for some time when he was a boy. In 1316, Marjorie Bruce , daughter of Robert I of Scotland and wife of Walter Stewart , the sixth High Steward of Scotland , was out riding near the abbey. During the ride, she fell from her horse and as she
420-540: The choir incorporating a much-restored female effigy is widely believed to be that of Marjorie Bruce. Although there is no evidence that she is buried at exactly that location, her remains are thought to be within the abbey. The tomb is reconstructed from fragments of different origin - the base, is likely to have originally formed part of the pulpitum of the Abbey (a stone screen separating nave and choir), such as survives at Glasgow Cathedral . Opposite Marjorie Bruce lie
448-502: The drain is available on YouTube. Archaeological investigations and excavations took place in 1996, 3–16 September 2009, 2–12 September 2011 and 4 September 2013 and many items discovered. Some of these are now on display in the abbey. These include: Events to involve the public in the archaeological investigation of the drain have been held, with the Renfrewshire Local History Forum . A tomb in
476-465: The drain. As the significance of this discovery was not realised at the time, access to the hole was quickly covered, and soon forgotten about. That was until 1879, when The Glasgow Herald mentioned the discovery of the subterranean passage. This was also forgotten about, and not ‘re-discovered’ until 1990, when a 90 metre stretch of tunnel was found running from the abbey to the White Cart. The drain
504-481: The iconic Robert the Bruce statue at Bannockburn . The ceiling bosses are designed by Sir Robert Lorimer and carved by James A Young. The choir stalls, with their wealth of carved animals are by William and Alexander Clow. Paisley Abbey has been rebuilt and its original design modified as a result of the building being destroyed in 1307, its tower's collapse in the 16th century, and general disrepair that occurred as
532-412: The instrument underwent a major restoration by Harrison and Harrison of Durham. The work included major cleaning and servicing, the provision of a new wind system and the addition of a 32 ft contre bombarde. The latter was part of the 1968 scheme by Ralph Downes but not included in the work actually undertaken. The twelve angel corbels and stone communion table are by Pilkington Jackson , sculptor of
560-626: The latter fed via a lade (millstream) which left the River Gryfe near Bridge of Weir. The river also supplied process water to ROF Bishopton ; the water was taken near where the Linwood Moss road joins the Houston Road. The Dargavel Burn, which rises north of Kilmacolm, joins the River Gryfe near the site of the former Georgetown railway station after flowing in a south-east direction through ROF Bishopton. The name Gryfe comes from
588-419: The result of time and weather. During a restoration project that took place in the 1990s, a stonemason from Edinburgh hired to replace twelve crumbling stone gargoyles erected one bearing a strong resemblance to the space creature from the 1979 science fiction film Alien . A picture of the gargoyle went viral in 2013, though a photograph of the statue first surfaced on the internet in 1997. In 2002, it
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#1732801227218616-413: The ruined walls by the architect Macgregor Chalmers. After his death, work on the choir was completed by Sir Robert Lorimer . Paisley Abbey is the burial place of all six High Stewards of Scotland, Marjorie Bruce who was the mother of Robert II , and the wives of Robert II. The Celtic Barochan Cross , once sited near the village of Houston , Renfrewshire, is now inside the abbey itself. The cross
644-535: The south of Gryfe No. 1 Reservoir. It flows for approximately 16 miles (26 kilometres) to join the Black Cart Water near Glasgow International Airport beside the M8 motorway at Blackstone Mains Farm, having passed the north side of Quarriers Village, and the villages of Bridge of Weir , Crosslee and Houston . The Gryfe was formerly used to supply water for powering water mills at Kilmacolm and Crosslee,
672-745: The surrounding Gryffe Valley , also known as Strathgryfe . The Gryfe emerges to the south west of the village of Kilmacolm on the edge of the Duchal Woods. It is fed from a number of streams or burns on the moors above the village including the Burnbank Water, the Blacketty Water and the Mill Burn. Its main tributaries are the Green Water and the Gryfe Water, which flows through the village and begins on Little Creuch Hill to
700-501: The tombs of Robert III of Scotland and Simon fitz Alan . A Latin inscription commemorates the three children of Margaret Seton and Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley who died as infants; Margaret (1577), Henry (1585), and Alexander (1587). Stained glass (removed in the Reformation ) began to be replaced in the 1870s. Major works include a window by Edward Burne-Jones and the huge east window by Douglas Strachan . The dramatic memorial window to James D. D. Shaw dates from 1989 and
728-623: The wild brown trout which can also be found in the loch. On the upper reservoir, Gryfe No1, fishing is controlled by the Dunrod Angling Club. The water has a head of natural brown trout which is occasionally supplemented by stocking. River Gryffe The River Gryfe (or Gryffe ) is a river and tributary of the Black Cart Water , running through the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland . It gives its name to
756-532: Was granted by Abbot George Shaw, representing the Pope and in the presence of the relics, to James IV of Scotland and others implicated in the death of James III at the Battle of Sauchieburn . By 1499 Shaw had had built a new, larger pilgrims' chapel and added the sculptured stone frieze which can still be seen today, showing scenes from the life of St Miren. It was originally brightly painted and may have been part of
784-440: Was heavily pregnant at the time, she was taken to Paisley Abbey for medical care. There, King Robert II was born by caesarean section , in a time when anaesthesia would not have been available. She was later buried at the abbey. A cairn , at the junction of Dundonald Road and Renfrew Road, approximately 1 mile (2 kilometres) to the north of the Abbey, marks the spot where she reputedly fell from her horse. In 1491, absolution
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