Maid of the Loch celebrates 65th birthday with new lease of life
THE SCOTTISH Government has awarded Balloch-based 1950s paddle steamer, the Maid of the Loch, £950,000 through its Regeneration Capital Grant Fund (RCGF) to help with the vessel’s full restoration, creating jobs and boosting tourism visits to Loch Lomond.
Loch Lomond Steamship Company’s chairman John Beveridge, who has driven the restoration project for the last 22 years, explained: ‘This is a major milestone moment for the Maid of the Loch. It is absolutely wonderful news and a complete game changer for The Maid’s full restoration. This takes us significantly closer to reaching our £5.5 million target, but we still have a way to go.’
Built by Glasgow shipbuilders A&J Inglis of Pointhouse, The Maid is the only known example left in Britain of an ‘Up and Doon’ ship – where she was built and launched right away in the shipyard, and then disassembled and transported to her final destination of Loch Lomond, being rebuilt, riveted and then launched into Loch Lomond in March 1953.
The Maid of the Loch was given to the Loch Lomond Steamship Company in 1996 and this project is the culmination of 22 years of voluntary effort to get her sailing again. The £5.5 million project will restore her to her 1950s condition, but with 2018 safety and comfort. She will offer cruises from Easter to October and be open as an events and function venue the rest of the year. Mr Beveridge added: ‘This is the culmination of 22 years’ hard work by a dedicated team of volunteers, our board, our sponsors, our supporters, and the public who have given time and money to get where we are. I cannot thank everyone enough.
‘The Maid of the Loch was launched 65 years ago, in March 1953 – what a fabulous birthday present. No retirement for her, but a new lease of life.’
The restoration of the Maid of the Loch is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Scottish Enterprise, Forth Valley & Lomond LEADER, West Dunbartonshire Council, The Wolfson Trust, The Hugh Fraser Foundation, and a recent public crowdfunding campaign.