STRATHLEVEN HOUSE, Vale of Leven Industrial Estate, Dumbarton.
ACCESS : Open to visitors on Doors Open Days. Stairs to main entrance. Lift within building.
Listed A.
Also see : STRATHLEVEN HOUSE DOOCOT, Vale of Leven InD eSTate
STRATHLEVEN HOUSE STABLES, Vale of Leven Ind eST
Strathleven House seems marooned amongst industry. But as you approach it you realise that it retains much of its original dignity across landscaped lawn and framed by some large trees. It is a stunning historic Palladian mansion of the 18th century. There is some ambiguity with regards the architect, but it is thought to be James Smith, a proponent of the Palladian style in Scotland. And William Adam is thought to have been involved in the panelling of one of the rooms. No surprise then that it is A-listed.
This map was published in 1864 (surveyed in 1860). If you look at the original map (see link below) you will see that the grounds are extensive. What we show here is an extract focusing on the house, its outbuildings and gardens and has been overcoloured for clarity. The main house is clearly identified by the word "Strathleven". Immediately to the right/east of that is "offices" which included the stables. Just north of that was the doocot and a duckpond. The approach driveway sweeps in dramatically and continues to formal gardens down towards the Leven. This includes a walled garden that may have been used to grow household vegetables and fruit. If you look closely you will see reference to several statues, a vase, a gateway and a dial. One wonders where these are now. © NLS
Lairich Rig (see link below) notes : Long ago, there was a wash-house nearby, on the bank of the Leven, serving what is now called Strathleven House. That wash-house was still here in the 1820s.
The land had been purchased by William Cochrane, 1st Earl of Dundonald who bequeathed it to his grandson William and it was he who built the present house, then named Levenside, in 1700. After his death in 1717 it was acquired by Archibald Campbell of Stonefield, a kinsman of the Duke of Argyll. In 1830 it was sold again, to a Glasgow merchant with connections as an agent to the textile industry in the Vale of Leven, James Ewing. He was to serve as Lord Provost of Glasgow and as a Member of Parliament.
He changed the name of the estate to Strathleven, and enlarged it extensively in 1841. Besides some alterations to the house, he added new stables, and perhaps the doocot is from that period. His widow lived in the house until 1900, when it was inherited by the Crum-Ewing family.
But it was to become severely derelict as the industrial estate was established around it. This though was also a period in which interest in conservation was growing. It was listed in 1971. The Scottish Historic Buildings Trust was established in 1985 with the saving and restoration of Strathleven House its then main objective. The next year it managed to purchase the house. Work on stabilising it and replacing the roof followed a few years later. That was followed by the drawing up of a conservation plan in 1997 with full restoration completed in 2000. A long, but successful project for which we can thank those involved for the elegant premises that we see now.
The stable block is outwith this restored area and ownership, but it is hoped that it too will one day receive such attention. The tall doocot though, while not fully restored, is stable and reminds us of what all large households had on the menu.
There is talk of a secret tunnel below the house. It is yet to be located, although it appears in some records as almost central from rear to front. It could have been a pipe sourcing fresh water from the Leven and/or a drain back of waste water into it. If not a pipe then perhaps a covered channel such as over a lade. Lades occur elsewhere alongside the Leven to supply both water and power to the mainly textile industries that once stretched along much of the west side and a few on this east side. A mystery that still to be resolved.
Today Strathleven House stands proudly in its patch of landscaped lawn and trees, undeterred by the industry around it; providing office accommodation to several small businesses. Still owned and run by the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust which saved it.
The panelled room used for events
This is where the formal gardens and walled garden were located. To the far left is the current industrial estate road and to the right out of sight here is the River Leven. The site was cleared in 2024.
Up towards the current road we still find the boundary wall with its curved edge.
On the map above you can see a small pond adjacent to the stables which are labelled as "offices". That was evidently intended for the horses and is quite independent of the duck pond. This stables pond is still there albeit overgrown and fallen in.
The Strathleven House duck pond is rather overgrown. A sign noting NO SWIMMING seems incongruous.While another sign notes DEEP WATER the main danger is of sharp debris that has been dumped in it.
The other end of the pond is less overgrown. You can see the island. This was not so much an aesthetic touch, but a deterent to foxes and other predators going after nesting ducks and geese. Such ponds served as a support for the kitchen, a source of fowl for the dinner table.
There are some great trees around the house, many which were planted when the house was built. Here are some yews.
An everygreen yew.
A birch sprinkles its golden leaves over all who pass by in November.
There is a useful and indeed popular hall extension to the west side of the historic building. Unfortunate though architecturally.
BRITISH LISTED BUILDINGS : https://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/200330320-strathleven-house-leven-ward
CANMORE : https://canmore.org.uk/site/78875/strathleven-house
LAIRICH RIG : Geograph.com : https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3833029
NATIONAL LIBRARY OF SCOTLAND - Maps : Dumbartonshire, Sheet XVIII. Survey date: 1860, Publication date: 1864. https://maps.nls.uk/view/228777145
SCOTTISH HISTORIC BUILDINGS TRUST : http://www.shbt.org.uk/projects/past-projects/shbt-projects-2000-onwards/strathleven-house-dumbartonshire/
WIKIPEDIA : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strathleven_House
