David MacBrayne is a limited company owned by the Scottish Government. Formed in 1851 as the private shipping company David Hutcheson & Co. with three partners, David Hutcheson, Alexander Hutcheson and David MacBrayne, it passed in 1878 to David MacBrayne.
It became the main carrier for freight and passengers in the Hebrides, with a co-ordinated network of shipping, road haulage and bus operations. In 1973, it was merged with Caledonian Steam Packet Company as state-owned Caledonian MacBrayne. Since 2006 it has been the holding company for ferry operators CalMac Ferries Ltd (operating as Caledonian MacBrayne) and Argyll Ferries, and is classified as an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government.
Formation
In 1851, Burns Brothers, G. and J. Burns of Glasgow, passed their fleet of Hebridean vessels to their chief clerk, David Hutcheson. David Hutcheson was married to Margaret Dawson, who was born at her parents home 'Bonnytoun House' in Linlithgow. She was the sister of Adam Dawson, who owned the St. Magdalene Whisky Distillery in Linlithgow, and James Dawson, who were also born at 'Bonnytoun House'. In 2011 Glasgow historian Robert Pool added over 200 letters and documents to his collection relating to David Hutcheson and the Dawson family.
The new company, David Hutcheson & Co., had three partners, David Hutcheson, Alexander Hutcheson and David MacBrayne (1817-1907), nephew of Messrs. Burns. In 1878, the company passed to David MacBrayne (and was renamed David MacBrayne).
The company rapidly became the main carrier on the West Highland routes, providing passenger and freight services to most islands. It initially operated from Glasgow down the Firth of Clyde through the Crinan Canal to Oban and Fort William, and on through the Caledonian Canal to Inverness. It added the mail run to Islay, Harris and North Uist from Skye and then the Outer Isles run from Oban to Barra and South Uist. As each opened, the company added the railheads at Oban, Mallaig, Kyle of Lochalsh and Strome Ferry.
MacBraynes remained in the hands of the family until 1928, when it was unable to support a bid for the renewal of the mail contract and effectively became bankrupt. No other operator was found for the contract and the company was reformed, with ownership divided between Coast Lines and the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS).
Expansion
The new owners rebuilt the ageing fleet with motor vessels such as , and . After the Second World War, and were added.
In 1948 the shares in the company owned by the LMS Railway passed to the British Transport Commission, thus partially nationalising it.
In 1964, the rising number of motor vehicles led to the ordering of three purpose-built vessels, , and MV Columba for the Uig-Tarbert-Lochmaddy, Mallaig-Armadale and Oban-Craignure-Lochaline routes.
Bus services
Motor bus services began with a Fort William to Ballachulish route in 1906, and by the outbreak of the First World War several other bus routes had been established around Inverness, Fort William and Ardrishaig. No routes actually connected these detached operations with each other at that stage, and road operations remained a very small part of the business until after the reconstituting of the company in 1928. The new owners provided capital to modernise the business, including setting up a substantial road haulage division to replace cargo shipping services at many of the smaller ports. Expansion of the bus division was gradual, and mainly achieved by acquisition of existing small operators.
In 1929 Link Line of Glasgow introduced a coach route from Glasgow to Tarbert (Kintyre) in competition with MacBrayne's steamer service, and MacBrayne quickly responded by introducing its own coach service, which would become one of the firm's principal routes. Coaches were timed to connect at Tarbert with MacBrayne's steamer to Islay and McConnachie of Campbeltown's bus service to that town. Link Line sold out to MacBrayne in 1932 ending the competition, although from 1935 onward West Coast Motors of Campbeltown provided an overnight passenger and mail coach service between Campbeltown and Glasgow. MacBrayne's own buses did not reach Campbeltown until 1940, when they replaced the Glasgow to Campbeltown steamer. MacBraynes and West Coast co-existed on the route thereafter.