WoSAS Pin 61202
NS 2460 9259
merican Road was built under the auspices of the U.S.. Navy in 1942. About 4 mi1es / 6.5 km in length, its purpose was to serve as an access and service road for the initial stretch of a new oil pipeline. A specially constructed jetty and oil storage facility was being developed at Finnart, Loch Long, along with a plan to run a buried pipeline from there to Old Kilpatrick, a distance of Some 25 miles / 40 km. At the latter, there was an existing pipeline connection to an oil refinery at Grangemouth. The Road was built to terminate at the junction with the public road at the summit of Glen Fruin: from that point onwards, access to the pipeline could be gained by means of the existing road network. In contrast, the initial section had no existing roads near the planned pipeline, while at the same time it also had the roughest and most challenging landscape of the 25 miles.
The way the Americans came to be involved is interesting, since the project was one which had been planned by the British Government. A new deep water port for oil tankers and refuelling vessels on the Clyde was seen by strategists as filling a vital role in the War effort. Finnart offered deep yet sheltered water where sizeable vessels could berth, while the surrounding hills gave a measure of protection from possible air attack. Also, the depth of water meant that any ships which were sunk would not block the approach to the facility.
An American consortium known as TAF had become known to the British authorities as a body which could get things done quickly and efficiently, and they were entrusted with the whole project. TAF had its origins in the circumstances under which the United States came to be involved in the Second World War. Prior to their formal involvement, the Americans had been covertly supplying assistance to Britain through what were known as Lend-Lease arrangements. One aspect of this was that U.S. bases were built in this Country from 1941, but the actual construction work was carried out by civilians, to comply with the status of the U.S. as a neutral power. Two construction companies, George A. Fuller, Inc., and Merritt Chapman and Scott, Inc., had been combined under the heading of Temporary Aviation Facilities, or TAF, and an assemblage of well over a thousand U.S. engineers, along with many shiploads of equipment, machinery and supplies were secretly brought here in the summer of 1941. The undertaking was reinforced by the recruitment of some 5,000 Irish workers, with additional local labour being used as necessary.
One of the projects with which TAF had been involved was the construction of a U.S. naval base at Rosneath, on the Gareloch, in 1941-42, and they began work with "a concentration of effort not familiar to this country". Of Course, in fairness to the British authorities, who were also very active in the area, the Americans were greatly assisted by the massive resources available to them. Once the Rosneath Base was well established, the use of TAF for other projects could now be contemplated. One of those was the oil terminal and supply route at Finnart.
A perusal of Dennis Royal's excellent book "United states Navy Base Two: Americans at Rosneath 1941-45", provides a fascinating insight into the "can-do" approach of the Americans. Several graphic incidents are described involving encounters with householders when TAF was at work. While these relate to an auxiliary pipeline which TAF also built from Finnart to Rosneath, this focussed approach was doubtless similar to that employed on the main pipeline, and the service road running close by. Here however, there were few houses in proximity, and none at all over the stretch covered by the American Road.
This is not to say that the project was all plain sailing. Quoting from an American account, we learn that: " .... It had been hoped to get as much as possible accomplished through good weather and long summer days. However, a more difficult terrain for pipeline construction could scarcely be imagined than this route through the Southern Highlands of Scotland. Scarcity of adequate highways necessitated the building of access roads, a task made especially difficult by the rugged country, peat bogs and sub-soil drains the incessant rainfall .... kept the earth perpetually saturated the route rose to more than 600 feet (at Glen Fruin summit)".
The Finnart project began in May 1942, and was completed after the arrival of special pumps from the U.S. in 1943. By this time, of course, the U.S. had entered the war, obviating the need for a "cover", but TAF existed, and was seen as the ideal choice for the job in hand, especially as they were conveniently based at Rosneath. Control of the new facility was vested in the British Petroleum Board, working in conjunction with the American authorities. At this stage, the facility dealt with processed oil, as opposed to crude.
After the War, the Finnart installation was seen as surplus to requirements, and in fact most of it was demolished. However, salvation came in the shape of the Anglo-Iranian oil company. In 1951, a new jetty and storage tanks were built at Finnart, with running of the operation being handled by Scottish Oils Ltd., the Scottish wing of Anglo-Iranian.
Also constructed at this time was a new oil pipeline running from Finnart to Grangemouth, a distance of 57 miles. By now, Finnart was seen as a port for the handling of crude oil. The idea was to pump up to 1.5 million tons of crude oil a year through to Grangemouth for refining. oil would be delivered to Finnart by the use of Tankers of up to 28,000 tons, coming from the Middle East. Many of the new houses being built at Garelochhead at this time were provided to house employees of the oil company.
In 1957-59, further jetties and storage tanks were built by what was now British Petroleum. Very large tankers could now berth, and in keeping with the raised profile, the facility was re-designated Finnart Ocean Terminal. Massive pumps were installed, capable of pumping crude oil all the way to Grangemouth with the assistance of only one booster pump at Balfron.
By 1963, further oil storage tanks were built at Finnart. The use of these and existing tanks was for the temporary storage of crude oil. Soon the biggest tankers in the world were calling, including in 1967 the "Torrey Canyon', with 120,000 tons of crude. The following month, she was destined to become one of the most notorious shipwrecks in history, off Land's End.
Still more capacity was developed in 1971, and tankers like the "Universe Kuwait", weighing 150,000 tons, and carrying 300,000 tons of crude oil, were calling. Such gigantic vessels required the assistance of 6 tugs, and had to turn round at the junction of Loch Long and Loch Goil. Often, they would discharge only part of their cargo, thus lightening them sufficiently to proceed to ports like Rotterdam and Bantry bay for further discharge.
Throughout all this, as can be imagined, the American Road, essentially unchanged since its inception, continued to play a vital role in providing access to the buried pipeline, which by now had assumed almost legendary status. This fame was further enhanced from around 1970, when B.P. pictured a recently-constructed cairn near the termination of the American Road, in an iconic publicity poster. The cairn itself had been erected in 1967 to mark the site of the Battle fought here on 7 February 1603 between the forces of the Colquhouns and the MacGregors.
Yet the seemingly unstoppable growth at Finnart was soon to be halted. A mixture of factors conspired to bring this about. There were the Middle East Wars in 1976 and 1973, which raised fears over security of supplies, and at the same time increased the price of oil. In addition, North Sea oil was coming on stream for example the large Forties Field, opened in 1975. Correspondingly, East Coast oil supply routes to Grangemouth began to assume a new importance. Again, there had been concern about structural aspects of very large tankers and some high profile cases of oil pollution through shipwreck had occurred. The sight of huge tankers coming up Loch Long became rarer as time went on.
New circumstances dictated new measures in order to survive. A new pipeline was laid to Grangemouth from Finnart, this time allowing refined oil to be pumped in the opposite direction. In a reversal of roles, tankers now called at Finnart to load such oil, for re-distribution elsewhere. However, the capacity to discharge crude oil as before was retained.
In recent years there have been further changes. In 2005, the Grangemouth refinery, along wlth Finnart, were sold to Ineos. In 2006, there was a major refurbishment of the control room at Finnart, enabling the whole pipeline system to Grangemouth, including the detection of leaks, to be managed at the Finnart end. Some existing buildings have been demolished, one effect of which has been to make visible from the public road the fine mansion of Finnart House, whose policies, along with those of nearby Ardarroch, were swallowed up by the oil installation.
With several pipelines running close to the American Road, its importance as a means of access has, if anything, increased over the years. To begin with, it climbs steeply uphill from within the compound at Finnart. Once beyond the security gate, it continues uphill, soon passing under a graceful viaduct which carries the West Highland Railway over the Finnart Burn. A short distance beyond that, there is a junction with another road which comes in from the left. Built as a forestry road to service various conifer plantations established from the 1970's, this road, along with the remaining portion of the American Road to the top of Glen Fruin, is now used fairly intensively by Army vehicles, as the surrounding area is used extensively for military training.
The forestry road, along with the rest of the American Road to Glen Fruin, may well form part of a new, long-distance footpath, to be known as the Loch Long Way. With the publication in 2007 of a feasibility study, the plan comes another step forward to realisation. Here, tribute must be paid to the efforts of John urquhart, who has had the vision and enthusiasm to bring the project forward, and it was through his endeavour that the feasibility study was brought about. Passing through some of the finest scenery in Scotland, realisation of the route, which is planned to run between Inveruglas to Balloch, with a branch to Helensburgh, promises to be a fine addition to the paths network.
About half a mile from the railway viaduct, the American road crests a rise, and the landscape begins to open up. Vistas of the rugged Cowal hills, and the more rolling Glen Fruln hills, assume some prominence, while in the foreground to the west is the picturesque old Garelochhead reservoir (1893). Heading downhill into a hollow, we come to the MacAulay burn, which has its source high on the slopes of the towering Ben a' Mhanaich.
At this point, the Road changes its character. Until now, it has had a base of compressed stone chips, originally topped by a mixture of stone and soil, but supplemented since, from the junction with the forestry road, with surface dressings of hardcore chips. However, from this point until the end of the Road, the surface is of tarmac. The bonus is that for the next 3 miles / 5 km, the smooth surface allows the walker to savour and appreciate the surroundings. There are stretches of uphill and downhill, though generally the incline is upwards to meet the Glen Fruin summit. The vistas open up further, with Loch Goil, and later, the Gareloch, coming into view. We can see as far north as the Arrochar hills, while to the south, the Rosneath peninsula begins to take shape. In the foreground are attractive little wooded copses, interspersed with moorland, rocky bluffs, and hill burns. This is one of the few areas where birds like black grouse can still be found.
Another feature worthy of comment are the double line of pylons running parallel to the road. These were built in conjunction with the Loch Sloy hydro-electric power station opened in 1950. The pylons carry electricity from there to windy Hill near Clydebank. Notice also in this vicinity a branch line of pylons cutting across the line of the Road. These were built in the 1970's to take extra electricity to the Dunoon area.
As can be imagined, the American Road also serves to provide an invaluable service road for the electricity pylons. It is also worth noting its role in providing a service road for a water pipeline running from Loch Sloy to Faslane. This was installed as a burled 12-lnch steel pipe in 1967, the purpose being to augment water supplies in the wake of the Polaris submarine project, coupled with ever-increasing demands from the local community. The aim was to pump 650,000 gallons of water per day to the point of need. Between Glen Douglas and Arrochar, the line of the proposed Loch Long way follows the route of the water pipeline service track.
Continuing along the Road, a former quarry for road metal is reached. On the opposite side can be seen a stone-built cairn. This was erected to mark the establishment of the Garelochhead Millenium woodlands, a scheme designed to enhance the presence of native trees in the area. At this point, parts of Garelochhead come into view, nestled attractively between the hills. Further down the Loch, Faslane Naval Base is also prominent. Hereabouts we may expect to encounter grazing sheep and cattle.
As we near the end of the Road, there are yet more changes. We come to the junction with a highway, known as the Haul Road. Built in 1987 as part of a network of roads designed to assist the transport of materials for the Trident submarine project, this road runs from above Garelochhead to Loch Lomondside. Extreme care is needed in crossing the road, now part of the public road system, as it carries some very fast-moving traffic.
In this vicinity, and indeed before, we may also observe warning signs, advertising possible military activity. Traditionally, at this end, when such activity is taking place, red flags or lamps are displayed, and someone may be on duty at the sentry box. However, it is not as off-putting as one might fear, and no live firing takes place across the line of the American Road, a situation which may be verified from the excellent paths map produced by the Helensburgh and District Access Forum.
A short walk of less than 100 metres from the Haul Road brings us to the summit of the old Glen Fruin road and termination of the American Road. This is an outstanding viewpoint, and as we look back in the direction from which we have come, we can perhaps think of the run-up to the Battle here in 1603, when the forces of the MacGregors are thought to have approached Glen Fruin more or less along the line we have followed- the cairn used in the B.P. advert mentioned earlier lies just a short distance beyond at the side of the public road as it drops down into the bed of the Glen. This road sees little traffic, and the walk through the Glen is highly recommended. This is the route for those following the proposed Loch Long Way.
McIntyre, A., ' The American or Yankee Road', 2008