River Forth

For another river, seeRiver Forth (Tasmania).

Forth
The River Forth meanders through fertile farmlands near Stirling
Course of River Forth
Location
Country	Scotland
Councils	Stirling
City	Stirling
Physical characteristics
Source	Confluence ofDuchray Waterand the Avondhu River belowLoch Ard
• coordinates	56°10′52″N4°24′30″W
• elevation	33 m (108 ft)
Mouth	Firth of Forth,North Sea
• location	UK
• coordinates	56°03′54″N3°43′39″W
• elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Length	47 km (29 mi)

TheRiver Forthis a major river in central Scotland, 47 km (29 mi) long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Itsdrainage basincovers much ofStirlingshireinScotland'sCentral Belt.TheGaelicname for the upper reach of the river, aboveStirling,isAbhainn Dubh,meaning "black river". The name for the river below the tidal reach(just past where it is crossed by the M9 motorway) isUisge For.

Name

Forthderives fromProto-Celtic*Vo-rit-ia(slow running), yieldingFoirthein Old Gaelic.

Course

The Forth rises inthe Trossachs,a mountainous area 30 km (19 mi) west ofStirling.Ben Lomond's eastern slopes drain into theDuchray Water,which meets with Avondhu River coming fromLoch Ard.The confluence of these two streams is the nominal start of the River Forth.From there it flows roughly eastward throughAberfoyle,joining with theKelty Waterabout 5 km further downstream. It then flows into the flat expanse of theCarseof Stirling, includingFlanders Moss.Just west of the M9, it is joined by theRiver Teith(which itself drainsLoch Venachar,Loch Lubnaig,Loch Achray,Loch Katrine,andLoch Voil). The next tributary is theAllan Water,just east of the M9. From there the Forthmeandersinto the ancient port of Stirling. At Stirling the river widens and becomestidal.This is the location of the last (seasonal)fordof the river. From Stirling, the Forth flows east, accepting theBannock Burnfrom the south before passing the town ofFallin.It then passes two towns inClackmannanshire:firstlyCambus(where it is joined by theRiver Devon), closely followed byAlloa.Upon reachingAirth(on the river's south shore) andKincardine(on its north shore), the river begins to widen and becomes theFirth of Forth.

Settlements on the river

The banks have many settlements along them, includingAberfoyle,Gargunnock,Stirling,Fallin,Cambus,Throsk,Alloa,South Alloa,Dunmore,Airth,andKincardine.Beyond these settlements, the water turns brackish, and is usually considered part of the Firth of Forth.

Port activities

ThemeanderingForth viewed from theWallace Monument.The river flows from right to left, and the former limit of navigation was in the left distance.

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries,Stirlingharbour was a busy port, with goods coming into Scotland and being exported to Europe. As a result, Stirling had very close ties with theHansatowns, withBrugesinBelgium,and withVeere(known at the time as Campvere)in theNetherlands.After 1707, trade with America became the new focus, and so a lot of trade activity shifted from Stirling in the east to theport of Glasgowin the west. During World Wars I and II, Stirling harbour began thriving again: It became a gateway for importing supplies of tea into Scotland. After the wars, other trade activities slowly returned, but growth was slow because the harbour's owners levied heavy shore duties on shipping, making it less economically attractive to the few agricultural merchants who were based at Stirling. Today, Stirling's harbour has fallen into disuse, but there are plans to redevelop it.

Bridges

Main article:History of the Forth Crossing

River Forth passingCambus,Tullibody Inch,andAlloa Inch.Beyond thatAlloaand Kincardine. The water is known as theFirth of Forthbeyond theClackmannanshireandKincardinebridges although the transition point is unclear.

Upstream from Stirling, the river is rather narrow and can be crossed in numerous places. (Crossing used to be more difficult before the installation of modern drainage works, because the ground was often treacherously marshy near the riverbank.) However, after itsconfluencewith the Teith and Allan, the river becomes wide enough that a substantial bridge is required. At Stirling, there has been a bridge over the river since at least the 13th century, and it was the easternmost road crossing until 1936, when another road crossing was opened atKincardine.TheClackmannanshire Bridge,just upstream of the Kincardine Bridge, opened on 19 November 2008. A railway bridge, theAlloa Swing Bridge,previously connectedAlloaon the northern shore withThroskon the southern shore. It opened in 1885 and was closed and mostly demolished in 1970: Only the metal piers remain.

Much further downstream, joiningNorth QueensferryandSouth Queensferry,is another railway bridge, the famousForth Bridge,which opened in 1890, and theForth Road Bridge,which opened in 1964. To the west of the Forth Road Bridge isQueensferry Crossing,construction of which began in 2011: It finally opened on 4 September 2017.

List of bridges

There are a total of 24 bridges crossing the River Forth:

• Manse Road Bridge
• Footbridge near Doon Hill and Fairy Knowe
• Gartmore Forth Bridge
• A81 Road Bridge
• Disused Railway ViaductnearGartmore railway station
• Cardross Bridge
• Poldar Bridge
• Bridge of Frew
• Gargunnock Bridge
• Old Drip Bridge
• New Drip Bridge
• M9 Road Bridge
• Old Mills Farm Footbridge and Pipeline
• Stirling Old Bridge
• Stirling New Bridge
• Stirling Forth Viaduct
• Cambuskenneth Footbridge
• A91 Road Bridge
• Alloa Swing Bridge
• Clackmannanshire Bridge
• Kincardine Bridge
• Queensferry Crossing
• Forth Road Bridge
• Forth Bridge

Islands

Main article:Islands of the Forth

Two islands (known as "inches" ) lie in themeanderingestuarinewaters downstream fromStirling:Tullibody Inch,nearCambus,andAlloa Inch,nearAlloa.Both islands are fairly small, and are uninhabited.

On film and television

1. River Forth(1956): A silent, 15-minute, black-and-white film that includes scenes of animals being herded through the streets.
2. Britain's Lost Routes with Griff Rhys Jones(2012): Episode 3 explores the difficulties that cattle drovers might have encountered at Frew, shows cows being taken across the Auld Brig, and includes aerial shots.
3. Sruth gu Sal,Episode 1: A 25-minute look at the Forth River (2 Nov 2009).

See also

• 275 kV Forth Crossing
• List of rivers of Scotland
• Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland(RAFTS)
• Shipping Forecast

External links

Template:Attached KML/River Forth

KML is from Wikidata

• Scottish Parliament: Forth Crossing Bill Committee Report, March 2010
• River Forth Crossing: House of Commons debates 18 May 2009
• British Waterways: River Forth
• Gazetteer for Scotland: River Forth
• SCRAN image: Steam dredger, River forth, late 19th Century
• Stirling Council: River Forth
• Forth Ports PLC
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA): River level data for River Forth
• Forth Estuary Forum, a Scottish Charity
• Forth District Salmon Fishery Board
• River Forth Fisheries Trust
• Forth Bridges Visitor Centre Trust
• FYCA Alloa Swing Bridge
• RIVER FORTH (1956)FORTH – POWERHOUSE FOR INDUSTRY (1968)(archive films about the River Forth from the National Library of Scotland: Scottish Screen Archive)