Inveraray Castle

The home of the Duke and Duchess of Argyll. The Castle was built between 1745 and 1760. It is a short walk from the town and is open to the public between April and October.

Inveraray Bell Tower

This tower was built by the Duke of Argyll as a noble memorial to all sons of Clan Campbell who fell in World War I. Its famous bells, weighing nearly 8 tons and are the second heaviest in the world after Wells Cathederal. The tower is open to the public.

Argyll Hotel

Orignally known as the Great Inn and was completed in 1755. Many famous people stayed here, including James Boswell and Samual Johnson. Robert Burns and Dorothy Wordsworth. A less than delighted Burns wrote of his stay in 1787:

There's nathing here but Highland pride, And Highland scab and hunger; If providence has sent me here, Twas surely in an anger.

The Avenue

It is named after an avenue of beach trees planted in 1650. This historic avenue, and later a high wall, seperated the Duke of Argyll's estate from the land where the new town of Inveraray was eventually built. The old beech trees had to be felled in 1955-57.

Visitor Information Centre

This building completed in 1757, was orignally designed to be a courthouse and county prison. From the outset the courtroom proved to be too small, and the prison most insecure. After many delays, a new courthouse and prison (Inveraray Jail #12), were completed in 1820.

Cross Green

The town's cattle markets were held on the green until the 1950's. It is now a pleasent place to spend an hour or two admiring the wonderful views across Loch Shira and Loch Fyne.

Mercat Cross

This mediaval cross once stood in the mercat square of the old town of Inveraray.

Parish Church

Two churches in one, the parish church was built to house both Gaelic and English speaking congretations. Completed in 1802, long after the rest of the new town, the church has a solid central wall which orginally divided the two congregations. In the 1950's with few Gaelic speakers left, the Gaelic part of the church was adapted for use as a church hall. The pulpit is a copy of the one in the Baptistry at Pisa in Italy.

Arkland & Relief Land

These two blocks of houses with individual flats on each floor, were built between 1774 and 1776 to house the last of the people removed from the old Town. Relief land, as the name implies, housed the poorer people. Concerned that these new tenants would accidentally set fire to the houses, the Duke of Argyll insisted that all floors in Relief Land should be of stone flags supported on stone arches.

Newton

This row of houses was once known as the Gallowgate. In the mid 1700's the many masons and labourers working on the Duke of Argyll's new castle were logged here. Where the Garage now stands, there was once a gasworks. It provided the town with gas for street lighting and operated from 1844 to 1964.

Crombie's Land

This row of houses was built between 1822 and 1825. Neil Munro, the well known Scottish writter and author of Para Handy Tales, was born here in 1863.

Inveraray Jail

The former county courthouse and county prison for Argyll, it was completed in 1820. The courthouse was used by the Sheriff Court and less frequently by the High Court from Edinburgh. The prisons closed in 1889. With few people living in Inveraray, the Sheriff Court was moved to Dunoon in 1954. The Jail is open to the public all year.

Factory Land

Built by the Duke of Argyll in 1774 to house a wollen factory, the building orginally consisted of a large upstairs workroom with housing below for 11 workmen. The factory, producing a course yarn of woolen cloth, was so successful that after only three years the operation was moved to larger premises to the west of the town.

Ferry Land

This house went with the job of running the ferry from Inveraray to St. Catherine on the opposite shore of Loch Fyne. At the turn of the century the ferry was operated by the town council with a paddle steamer called Fairy. The service continued until the 1960's. The ferry transported livestock and people across the loch.

First House Hotel

The first house in the New Town of Inveraray, it was built in 1753 by Provost John Richardson.

Coffee House

Built by the Duke of Argyll in 1878 in memory of his wife. The orignal house had a coffee and tea room on the ground floor, and a public library and reading room above.

The Pier

Started in 1759 the pier was extended several times to accommodate the herring fishing fleet, and later the large paddle steamers that linked Inveraray to Glasgow.

The Maritime Musuem

Housed in a former lightship converted to look like a schooner, the musuem tells the story of ship building on the clyde, and gives an insight into the mariners life in the past. Open to the public.

The Paymaster’s House

The house was built by Provost James Campbell in 1773. His three sons all joined the army. John, after whom the house was named, was Captain and Paymaster in the Northhamptonshire Regiment. Dugald rose to the rank of Major General, and calum comanded the Royal Scots at the Battle of Waterloo. On leaving the army all three brothers returned to live here with their sister Mary.

The George Hotel

Built in 1770 the ground floor was used as a church untill the parish, acroos the road was complete in 1802.

Dun na Cuiache

The Watch Tower on the hill behind the castle is a folly built by the Duke of Argyll in 1748. It has always been a popular place to visit. Today a circular track leads up to the tower from near the castle. See the To Do section above for walk details including maps.