FROM MANX STEAM RAILWAY NEWS ISSUE No. 65

WINTER ISSUE 1983

George Granville Levson Gower, born in 1758 became the second Marquise of Stafford in 1803 and was created First Duke of Sutherland in 1833. Under the Will of his uncle the Duke of Bridgewater (the canal duke) the income from the Bridgewater Canal became his from 1803 until his death in 1833. Soon after Christmas 1825 it was announced that he had bought a thousand shares in the Liverpool & Manchester Railroad - one fifth of the total - this amount in the railway being increased in 1829 - and because of this he had the right to nominate three directors of the company. In this later years the Duke’s support was solicited for other railway projects.- without major results. He also had major interests in the new Birmingham & Liverpool Junction Canal Company. On the death of the first duke in 1833, the money from the Bridgewater company passed from the hands of the Dukes of Sutherland. Near Golspie on the top of Beinn in Bhragie (1,256 feet) can be seen the statue by Chantry to the First Duke of Sutherland which is visible for many miles around. On a clear day it can be seen from the train on the way to Tain, 20 miles away and was said, when erected, to be the largest statue in Europe.

The Second Duke was now in charge; after 1845 he played very little influence on the construction of new railways and was little more than the recipient of dividends; he possessed 250,000 (at par) of railway stock which at the prevailing market price was worth £526,593; after the formation of the London & North Western Railway, he retained the right to nominate one director to that body. In 1860 at the formation of the Inverness & Perth Junction Railway , he subscribed £335,000 towards the building of that railway, naming his son as a director. The duke died in 1861.

The third duke was born on the 19^th December 1828, possibly at Trentham in Staffordshire and as the Marquis of Stafford was married in 1849. he represented Sutherland as member of parliament from 1852 to 1861. he was nominated by his father as his director on the London & North Western Railway in 1852 and served in this capacity until his death. In this was in the early days of his directorship, he came into contact with Mr. J.E. McConnell, then the Locomotive Superintendent of the southern district of the L.N.W.R. and spent much of his time in the shops at Wolverton, it even being asserted that he served as a pupil of Mr. McConnell. Be this as it may, it is certain that he became a highly competent mechanician, thoroughly conversant with the design and construction of steam engines and often driving locomotives as a recreation. In 1857 with the formation of the Inverness & Aberdeen Junction Railway, be became a director of that company. On the death of his father he became the Third Duke of Sutherland. Shortly after this, he became deputy chairman of the Highland Railway and one of the leading lights in the building of the Dingwall - Strome Ferry Branch. He is more closely identified with the extensions of the Highland Main Line north of Bonar Bridge. On the first section from Bonar Bridge to Golspie he contributed £94,200. The second section from Golspie to Helmsdale was made entirely at his own expense. It cost £72,100 and became known as the Duke of Sutherland’s Railway. To the cost of the third section from Helmsdale to Wick and Thurso, he contributed some £60,000. thus these three sections of the railway received from him no less a sum than £226,300. he at the time reopened a pit at Brora for the supply of coal for the portable engines used on the Sutherland land reclamation and for the locomotives of the Duke’s Railway.

The Duke’s stretch of railway line was, until the Highland Railway reached Golspie, run as a shuttle service between Dunrobin and Gartymore with the duke’s own engine and coach, purchased at his own expense and named Dunrobin. It was a dainty little 2-4-0 side tank with outside cylinders built by Kitsons. It had 10” x 18” cylinders and coupled wheels of 4ft diameter. This was sold to the Highland Railway in 1895 when the fourth duke purchased a second locomotive of the same name.

Over the period of years from 1853 to 1882 the sum of £900,000 was spent on estate works at Dunrobin. It was not, however until 1873 that the great work of reclamation was practically begun, the implements being two 16 h.p. traction enginesand a plough specially designed for the purpose by Messrs. John Fowler, on plans in a great measure furnished by the duke. By these means over 2,000 acres of arable, and 9,000 of acres of pasture land were reclaimed in less than four years. In 1877 a similar undertaking of land reclamation at Kildonan was embarked upon; the ground selected included a range of moors of some 10,000 acres.

He was one of the promoters of the original Mont Cenis (Summit) Railway on which Mr. Fell’s system of locomotives was adopted which worked successfully for several years preceding the opening of the tunnel. He was also interested in the possibility of railways in Constantinople to the head of the Persian Gulf and on to India. He advocated the cause of railways in China, and was connected with the pioneer line from Shanghai to Woosung. At home, the duke was an enterprising colliery owner in Staffordshire. Another facet of his earlier days was his liking for serving as an amateur fireman and made a point of being present at most of the great fires in London as well as any practical test of fire brigade efficiency.

In 1872 with Sir John Pender accepting a seat on the board of the Isle of Man Railway, other leading financiers with railway interests gave their support to the railway. These included the Duke of Sutherland whose activities at that time were legion among railway schemes. Quickly the shares were taken up and all was clear for future progress. The Duke of Sutherland was given the chair of the company which he held for seven years. On the 1^st May 1873, returning from Ireland for a party which included the duke, George Sheward, etc., called at Port Erin and was conveyed to Douglas from there by road carriages. The duke was said to have travelled from Douglas to Peel on the footplate of the engine. On Thursday 1^st July 1873he managed to get over to the island for the official opening of the railway, travelling in the directors’ saloon. Contrary to Boyd’s book on the railway, the telegram “what are our takings? Sutherland”; it was sent on 3^rd July and read “what did we take yesterday?”. What happened to the duke’s shares and the amount of them I have not as yet discovered.

But in addition to his railway interests, he also found time for his other pursuits. He accompanied the Prince of Wales in his visit to India in 1876. in his yacht, he frequently visited Norway for salmon fishing. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the Suez Canal scheme and was present at the opening. As the Marquis of Stafford, he attended the coronation of the Tsar of Russia in 1856. He delighted in the display of a magnificent hospitality: kings, princes, philosophers, garibaldi one day, the kedure of Egypt the next, a cardinal of tsar of Persia the next, all were treated alike. He was an enterprising colliery owner and iron-master in Staffordshire. He made a prolonged visit to the Western States of the U.S. in 1861 with a large party of friends. It is believed that his death, which occurred on 22^nd September 1892 after an illness of only a few days, was remotely connected with these extensive journeys. He was buried, in Trentham, Staffordshire.

The Duke of Sutherland, who was a fellow of the Royal Society, was elected and honourary member of the Institiute of Civil Engineers on 2^nd May 1865 and was at one time a frequent attendant at the meetings of the institution. He was made a knight of the garter in 1864.

GEORGE GRANVILLE WILLIAM SUTHERLAND LEVESON GOWER, K.G.

THIRD DUKE OF SUTHERLAND

Born: 19^th December 1828 Died: 22^nd September 1892.