Port-William Harbour

The presence of Dourie Bank house and the Bank of Scotland (originally British Linen Bank) building together with the absence of any warehouses on the quay suggests that this photo of Port William harbour was taken in the 1870’s. The village and harbour were founded around 1775 by Sir William Maxwell, 4th baronet of Monreith. As this view illustrates, the harbour flourished until the advent of the internal combustion engine. Apart from a busy local, coastal trade, ships brought bones from Mexico and North Africa for the Elrig mill and cargoes of guano from South America.