In 1839 Grainger paid £114,100 for the Elswick estate to west of Newcastle, intending to build a railway terminus there surrounded by factories and houses. The expense of buying the estate almost bankrupted Grainger and by 1841 his creditors were demanding payment. He was saved from bankruptcy by John Clayton, who worked at persuading Grainger's creditors to accept gradual repayment. Clayton had difficulty in persuading Grainger to restrict his expenditure, as correspondence between them shows. He even intervened in a family dispute between Grainger and his son Thomas and persuaded them to compromise.