On June 27, 1816, there was a notice in the Glasgow papers:— “We understand the Prince of Orange steamboat arrived at the quay of Paisley upon the evening of Tuesday last, and sailed next morning with passengers for Greenock and Gourock. This having been the first steamboat that had sailed up the Cart, a vast crowd assembled to witness her arrival at Paisley.” Steamboat sailings from Paisley are occasionally documented through the following years but it was in the 1830s that a regular service was introduced, leading to the first serious attempt to improve the Cart for navigation. David Napier brought out the little wooden paddle steamer Cupid in 1828. Her hull was constructed by John Wood’s yard and the 10 h.p. engine was built by Napier himself. Initially Cupid was placed on the Glasgow to Greenock and Kilmun station. However, at that time, railways were beginning to compete with the...