Clyde Navigation
the Clyde Navigation Trust succeeded the River Improvement Trust following the 1858 Clyde Navigation Act. It was responsible for managing the Clyde. This included maintaining the shipping channel as well as developing harbour, dock and other facilities. It was replaced in 1966 by the Clyde Port Authority.
From 1865 the Clyde Navigation Trust operated a fleet of small passenger ferries at various locations that crossed the Clyde. They introduced a steam ferry on the Govan-Pointhouse crossing in the mid-1860s, acquired the Erskine ferry in 1907 and the Renfrew Ferry in 1911. The Erskine, Whiteinch, Partick, Govan and Finnieston ferries were replaced by bridges and tunnels. The Renfrew Ferry, being at a point where both tunnelling and bridging are difficult, survived.
In the late 1870s The Clyde Navigation Trust was also allowed to run steamers up and down the Clyde in the area over which it had jurisdiction.