Let Glasgow flourish, but do not let her forget the example of the curlers to whom she owes so much of her success, and who owed so much of their success to the curling by which they lightened the burdens of civic and commercial care. [1.]

The remaining pond

I was taking a walk through the woods on the south side of the White Cart in Pollok Park. I’d just got hold of a new camera and wanted an explore. Crossing over the Pollok Toon (aka Pollok Toun and Pooktoun) Bridge, I took the path up towards the golf course, and then jumping over a stile on the left, crossed a field down to the woods by the river.

Through the woods, there was some pretty treacherous and swampy undergrowth with a fair number of cowpats. In the distance, there was an obviously man-made area that was about the size of a bowling green. The sunlight was hitting the tall grass and with the water flooding the site, the scene looked quite strange, obviously man-made and yet almost ethereal as the sun lit up the wet grasses amidst the gloom of the surrounding trees.

The site itself was bordered by another set of smaller dark brown, gangly beech trees across three of the sides of the square. They looked tortured as they reached out towards the light. With closer inspection you could see that their equal spacing and linear planting was once a formal hedge row.

Turning back towards the base of the hills and trees, there was a concrete base from a square building. Covered with undergrowth, slate tiles were also scattered around the site. Under the canopy, there was another feature – a deep circular stone structure, filled with rubble, that was about 2 meters in diameter.

All this mystery was the site of a curling pond belonging to Pollok Curling Club, with its accompanying clubhouse. From an earlier age, an icehouse was built nearby to serve the 18C grand building of Pollok House.

This article explores the reasons for building a curling pond in such a hidden area, the way curling grew across the south of Glasgow, and the tensions just playing as simple a game as curling might have caused.

Before the Pollok Curling Club [2.]

The History of Curling [3.] has been written up before. In the often-meandering style of history books written in the Victorian era, Curling historians recorded that Pollokshaws Curling Club was one of the first clubs in what they termed the modern era of Curling, although the suggested date of their formation varies between 1801 and 1808 [4.].

Before any man-made pond came into existence, curling would take place on frozen ponds and rivers, and the White Cart was one such place. In front of what was then the newly built Pollok House are two weirs built in 1757, the largest was built to power the sawmill before being used to generate electricity for Pollok House.

The weir downstream, just beside what’s now the car park, artificially raised the level of the river in front of the House, adding to an improved and fashionable rural landscape from Pollok House for the 3rd Baronet. Whether by accident or by design, when the conditions were cold enough to freeze, the raised watercourse would allow level playing on the river.

The Royal Caledonian Curling Club Annual for 1898-99 recalled that in 1836 such a match took place on the river between players from Govan and Eastwood Parishes. [5.]

By 1844, the club was playing in what would become the Cowglen Curling Pond. It had an accompanying clubhouse and was located close to what is now the 1st hole of Cowglen Golf Course. The present course itself was not built until 1906.

Two years later in 1850 The Glasgow Gazette confirmed that the Pollokshaws Curling Club may well have existed for quite some time and had developed a well-earned reputation:

The club would play at other locations where the ice was playable, in 1865 they played against a team from North Woodside at the Flag Quarry Loch or Hart’s Muir or Moor in Giffnock [6.]. Hart’s Muir wasn’t an actual place, but maps and the Scotland Places website show that Wellwalls, a farm in Giffnock, was occupied by James Hart at the time.

By 1869, Eastwood Pond formally opened in January, it was just 5 minutes from Giffnock Station with hourly buses from Pollokshaws.

The split

By 1879 an acrimonious disagreement took place between two teams of the Pollokshaws Club at a match played at the Giffnock Curling Pond. The dispute arose over which team would order and pay for a meal for the poor of Pollokshaws burgh. [8.] [9.]

The case ended up in Paisley Court with the judge ruling in favour of the match winners who were instructed to pay for the costs of the meal. The subsequent court expenses cost more than the meal.

The two teams fell out and eventually, two separate clubs were formed. Confusingly, the winners carried on as Pollokshaws and played their games at Giffnock and the losers, who were officially formed as Eastwood on November 25, 1879, carried on playing at Cowglen [10.]. This was the club that would eventually become Pollok Curling Club.

The new Eastwood club was keen to keep in with the Stirling-Maxwell family. After the death of Sir William Stirling-Maxwell in 1878, the young John Stirling-Maxwell, who had just finished his schooling at Eton, was invited to be the Pollok Club’s patron in 1883, unfortunately, he didn’t reply. Four years later, the committee repeated the invitation and this time he accepted. He served as President and Patron from 1896 to 1899.

The two clubs, Eastwood and Pollokshaws improved their relations and would often play across the same parish. In an attempt at unity, the Eastwood Club made an approach in December 1889 for members of the Pollokshaws Club to join as ordinary members and to curl on the Cowglen Pond, however despite this ‘very neighbourly action’, there was no reply.

By 1895, the club finally changed its name from Eastwood to Pollok Curling Club. The name change had a dual purpose: firstly, to reflect where most of their activities were taking place, and secondly, to make a new start from the ill-feeling still being felt from the split a generation before.

So Pollokshaws played in Giffnock and Eastwood played in Pollokshaws?

Amongst all the factories of Pollokshaws, another privately owned skating pond was constructed on Cogan Street and was available for matches as early as 1879 [11.]. The Paisley and Renfrewshire Gazette in 1886 reported a match on the new curling rink and the next week another game took place despite severe snowstorms.

“An enthusiastic game was played on Thursday on the Cogan Street Skating Pond between several of the members of the Pollokshaws Curling Club. There was one rink, four men a-side, and notwithstanding the severe snowstorms the ice was in a fair condition.” [12.]

Curling was growing fast in the late 19C. newspapers such as the Glasgow Evening Post [13.] would carry regular condition reports for all the curling and skating ponds across Glasgow on their front page.

Despite the attentions of non-players taking advantage of the ice, curling was said to be open to all. Landowners were playing alongside the labourers who prepared the ice. The Herald in 1844 described ‘a republican simplicity’ where ‘the only distinction recognised is that of skill and ability’.

By 1867, The Glasgow Herald [14.] reported that curling had reached the workers of Pollokshaws where a match took place on the private Pollokshaws Curling Pond between teams from the Auldfield and Auldhouse textile and dye factories.

An advert in the Evening Citizen for the Giffnock Pond’s opening came in 1869 with a warning: ‘all persons found sliding upon the ice or trespassing the fields adjoining will be prosecuted‘. [15.]

Cowglen also had an issue with the pond sluice gates being tampered with by persons unknown. It caused the club so much concern that 2 guineas were offered in 1887 in reward for evidence leading to the conviction of the guilty parties.

Another problem the club faced was the presence of the locals taking advantage of the ice before the members could play their matches. This was so much of a problem that by 1896 the Pond Committee were: “authorised to take whatever steps they thought necessary to protect the ice from Skaters, Sliders, etc…”

The Pollok Club’s hunt for a new pond

Cowglen also had its own practical problems, it required manpower to create the ice, so whenever there was the prospect of ice, a team from the club would be delegated to dam up the site to create a suitable playing surface.

Whatever their final reasons, the membership felt that Cowglen wasn’t felt to be the ideal location for the club’s curling, and by 1901 the Pond Committee was tasked to find a new home.

The first choice was towards the far west of the estate at Hippingstone. While the site was located on a flat plain and the site was regularly flooded so it had the potential for a level site with plentiful water, it proved to be unsuitable due to subsidence in the area.

After more investigation, the woods on the south banks of the river on the western boundary of the Sheep Park [16.] were identified. The chosen area beside some old north-facing woods and the existing 18C icehouse would have already been known to be a cold place in winter.

The Stirling-Maxwells agreed, and estate labourers started building in October 1906. The rink – the same one I stumbled on the remnants of last year – with accompanying paths and bordering hedges was completed in less than three months.

The early years

Membership of the Pollok Club had grown by 1904 with 54 playing members. The club was tied closely with local freemasons, local politicians and the Church of Scotland and they displayed the utmost of early 20c respectability and hospitality, they liked the big occasion and played a full part in the Royal Caledonian Curling Club.

They would attend bonspiels and host grand dinners toasting the great and the good from Royalty downwards; they also kept to ancient curling tradition by holding what were called Courts where they would welcome new members and invited local chaplains to be honorary post holders.

The connection between the House and the players local connections with politicians and society is hard to ignore. In 1907 a local newspaper marked the occasion:

“The new pond of the Pollok Curling Club was formally opened yesterday. It is conveniently situated within the policies [17.] of Pollok, a short distance from Pollok House. The first two stones were thrown by Lady Stirling Maxwell for whom Sir John Stirling-Maxwell acted as skip. Cake and wine having been served, Provost Macdougall proposed the health of Lady Stirling Maxwell, and this was heartily pledged.

Thereafter Mr J Campbell Murray, Haggs Castle, President, in the name of the Club, presented Lady Stirling Maxwell with a beautiful silver inkstand as a memento of the occasion. Play was then begun, a match taking place between sides representing Sir John and Mr Murray. Sir John won by a majority of 41 to 25.” [18.]

Playing both ends

Unfortunately, the pond wasn’t as playable as the club might have hoped. Mild winters meant playing was unpredictable and limited with dark nights, fog, thin or rough ice. Even on good days and with good ice, play would have only been playable during the short winter daylight or with lamps in the evening.

Not that far away more impressive rink started construction. Crossmyloof already had an open-air curling pond played by the Glasgow Lilybank Club [19.], but then in 1907 the indoor ice rink at Crossmyloof opened.

With two indoor curling rinks, as well as ice-skating and ice-hockey areas, it was described as pristine. What they also had was year-long, with all-day opening and lighting to allow play from morning until the evening. The club Pollok Curling Club took advantage of the new facilities as soon as 1908 and would play regular matches and tournaments in the new venue.

Even so, play would continue in the estate when the ice permitted. In 1911, a small clubhouse was donated by the Stirling-Maxwells and erected between the pond and the icehouse. As well as shelter, it provided a practical location to store stones and brooms as well as allowing players to change or clean muddy boots to play on the ice.

The clubhouse opening ceremony was worthy enough to invite reporters and the occasion was marked in The Scotsman and Barrhead News, who reported the Provost giving Miss Anne Stirling-Maxwell, the daughter of Sir Stirling-Maxwell, a gold key to commemorate the occasion [20.]. Again, it was a highly respectable occasion, with Ladies and Gentlemen present.

In the 1920s permanent lamps were installed to allow evening play, something ponds in more urban locations already had through gas lights. Even so, the path back to Pollok House along the riverbank would still need portable lamps so players could make their way back safely in the dark.

Further tournaments took place in 1933, and in 1935 two hours play was achieved on smooth ice before the surface started to melt. Further tournaments were held in 1941 and 1951.

Despite numerous attempts to deal with weeds who loved the moist conditions and open light in the summer, the playing surface became more difficult, and together with recurring drainage problems the pond became unplayable.

Attempts at revival

As the years passed, club members kept dear memories of the rink. In 1982 the committee was tasked with creating a fundraising plan and costed plans were created to revive the pond. To make the scheme more viable membership would be available beyond the Pollok Club to the wider Glasgow curling membership.

Over £18,000 was raised through grants and personal donations, however just before work commenced the contractor went into liquidation and no new contractor could be found to undertake the work.

The club continued to play at Crossmyloof despite frequent disputes with the owners over the playing conditions. In 1986 Crossmyloof became unplayable with a dangerous roof and the loss of seven playing sheets. Play then transferred to a new rink at Finnieston.

The club continues and has meetings within the Pollok Golf Club’s clubhouse with the Pollok Curling Cup on display in the clubhouse’s trophy cabinet.

Revisiting the site

I returned to the site in mid-October, the mid-morning sun was barely coming over the hill of Pollok Golf Course just to the south.

The water from a spring in the hillside was still filling the pond, while a drain to channel excess water into the White Cart was either damaged or not working effectively. The drains are still present and can be seen at various points emptying from the banks of the river into the Cart.

With a hill just to the south, it was clear that the site would certainly be cold in winter, and any ice, snow, or frost would be the last to thaw under any apricity or the warmth of the winter sun.

Looking around the site, I tried to imagine what it must have been like at the start of the Pond’s life. The location is quite private, there would have been little room for spectators watching from the paths at the side.

While other side of the river was still private land and on the edge of Pollok House’s private grounds – which had been opened up to public access in 1911 by Sir John Stirling-Maxwell – any passers-by on the footpath on the other side of the river would only have been able hear the roar of the stones on the ice and chatter amongst the players from some distance through what was then a young tree plantation.

Getting nearby to the pond for a closer look would have been quite impractical. It certainly wouldn’t have been as much in view or publicly accessible as the old site at Cowglen, the skating pond amongst the factories in Colgan Street, or the new ice rink at Crossmyloof.

At home and using the Google Maps measuring tool, the pond was 47m (150ft) by 43m (140ft) with the total area including paths and bushes measuring 49m (160ft) by 53m (175 ft) and so just slightly shorter than the length of a modern curling rink. To help you visualise, it’s almost identical to Springhill Gardens in Shawlands, which has also been identified as the former site of another curling rink.

Visiting the site

Pollok House occasionally hosts an interesting and very knowledgeable guided tour called ‘A Story of Water and Ice’ which includes the rink as well as some other hidden histories of the park including the lost village of Pollok Toon. If they continue after Glasgow Life takes over the management after the lease to the National Trust for Scotland ends and as Pollok House undergoes its refurbishment programme in 2024-2027, the tour is highly recommended.

As a side note, the site while falling into neglect, still attracts interest from specialists looking at the biodiversity in the park. In 2016 the Glasgow Local Biodiversity Action Plan designated the pond as a swamp. [21.]

For those who prefer exploring on their own or as a group, accessing the site can be quite challenging and may involve climbing over fences or navigating old stiles and gates, as well as tackling very uneven and muddy ground on the approach. There are slopes, trees with low-hanging branches, and fallen tree trunks everywhere. Even in the middle of a dry spell, most of the site is difficult. If you are walking your dog, you would really need to keep them on a leash. The local highland cattle may also take an interest in you.

by Stephen Fyfe

Published 13th March 2024

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References

1. The History of Curling, John Kerr, 1890, Glasgow, p183

2. Three particular websites have been invaluable in researching this article. Pollok Curling Club (https://pollokcc.weebly.com/) includes a treasure trove of timelines as well as some historical accounts of the club in their online archives. Alongside newspaper archives, the second is the website Historical Curling Places (https://sites.google.com/view/historicalcurlingplaces/home?authuser=0) which has plotted the location together with contemporary evidence of the locations of thousands of curling ponds across the UK.

3. The third is History of Curling: Scotland’s Ain Game and Fifty Years of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, John Kerr, 1890, p174 (Internet Archive) https://archive.org/details/historyofcurling00kerruoft/mode/2up

4. Pollokshaws Curlers Society formed in 1808 and were said to play on a site in Afton Terrace (Pollokshaws Road) Pollokshaws A brief history. Jack Gibson, 1980; Essay on Curling, and Artificial Pond Making By J. Cairnie, 1883, p141; Fowler’s Commercial Directory Of The Principal Towns And Villages In The Upper Ward For Renfrewshire, 1836, p233)

5. Royal Caledonian Curling Club Annual for 1898-99 (Google Docs link) https://docs.google.com/document/d/1omB9kBYPrqUZtE4uB5KbzExIczhEJcOPEerB4HQWar0/edit?usp=sharing

6. Hart’s Muir would become the first location of Eastwood Golf Course, a 9-hole then 18-hole course located to the west of Fenwick Road between Orchard Park Drive and Burnfield Road which opened in 1891 (Evening Times 28 September 1891)

7. The owner James McHaffie had farm steadings across the area including Robslee, Giffnock, and Orchard as well as one of the Giffnock quarries. Renfrewshire OS Name Books, 1856-1857, OS1/26/5/53

8. Pollokshaws was a Burgh of Renfrewshire, with its own councillors, Provost and their own Pollokshaws Fair holidays which included horse racing on the site of Cowglen Golf Course where one of the holes is known as the Race Course Hole.

9. Pollokshaws Burgh was incorporated into Glasgow in 1912 although they did resist suggesting that the burgh would be in a better position to take over the running of the city.

10. The Eastwood club was also reported as hosting a match against Cathcart in 1881 on one of the two ponds within the grounds of the Broom Mansion (now occupied by the Belmont School).

11. Glasgow Herald, 4 December 1879, p1

12. Paisley and Renfrewshire Gazette, 6 February 1886

13. Glasgow Evening Post, 12 February 1889 and 6 January 1891

14. January 21, 1867

15. Glasgow Herald, 24 February 1865; Evening Citizen, 23 December 1869

16. Also known as Sheep-pecks or Shapaks on some old maps, the Sheep park extended from behind the current Pollokshaws Railway Station up to the woods almost in the centre of the estate, the current woods nearer the station were still to be planted. The cottages beside the bowling club are still known as the Sheep Farm.

17. Estate boundaries. The Pollok estate was private. Walls, fences and gates are still present alongside the river pathway.

18. Unknown publication, 29 December 1906

19. Before Crossmyloof, Lilybank Curling Club played at Mr Murphy’s Field on Pollokshaws Road (Glasgow Herald, 14 November 1870); the Historical Curling Places website suggests that the field is now known better as Springhill Gardens opposite Queen’s Park between Strathbungo and Crossmyloof.

20. After Sir John’s death, Anne donated Pollok House along with its art collections, gardens, and the estate to the City of Glasgow in 1966.

21. ‘Glasgow Local Biodiversity Action Plan, Pollok Country Park Management Plan 2016 – 2019’, p31 (Glasgow City Council, PDF document) https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=31514&p=0

All contemporary photographs of the site © Stephen Fyfe, 2023

The post Curling on the Pollok Estate appeared first on SGHET.

If you’ve ever been to Pollok House and stood on the old bridge across the White Cart River you might be forgiven for believing that the view you see is timeless. On one side sits the stately mansion, high on its mound surrounded by rich foliage; on the other side, empty fields with an old pathway linking the house to the golf-course hidden by the high hedges.

Yet the unpeopled tranquillity of the scene over the river is misleading, for on the open field immediately across from Pollok House for at least three hundred years stood the small village of Pollok Toon – made infamous due to the Witches of Pollok – but which apart from that has remained largely forgotten.

Like the rest of Renfrewshire, the river banks of the White Cart have been populated since as long as the county had permanent human habitation. In his early 20th history of Eastwood, the Minister of Eastwood Parish Church George Campbell argued that at the same time as Columba was in Iona, St Conval set up a chapel just south of Pollok Toon site, where the Auldhouse Burn met a small spring that arose beside the old manse. (This area is now Eastwood’s Old Cemetery).

Regardless of whether we accept this rather picturesque idea of early Celtic saints living near the White Cart’s banks, what we should have in our minds as we move towards the Middle Ages is of a landscape already long populated.

This means that when the first Pollok Castle was errected in the early 14th century the Maxwell family were building in a long-inhabited landscape, and as Pollok Toon grew up to support the new seat of local power, its inhabitants almost certainly included some descendants of people who had already lived in the area from time immemorial.

Pollok Toon only first explicitly appears in the historical record in 1654 where a ‘Pook’ can be found just south of the river Cart on the Blaeu Atlas of Scotland. But it is the famous Witch Trial of 1677 that really puts Pollok Toon onto the record.

As another article on the SGHET website touches on the Witches of Pollok I shall not discuss the witch trial beyond noting the fact that as many of the main actors in that tale both lived in Pollok Toon and worked at Pollok House we can therefore sketch out a picture of life in the village at the time.

What we can discern from this outline is a small village where the inhabitants are a combination of farm labourers and domestic servants, with a number of different trades represented in the village. Many of the villagers would have worked part-time at Pollok House, coming home to maintain small lots of crops and animals.

So we might know the 17th century Pollok Toon for the tragedy of the Witches of Pollok, but the world of Bessie Weir, and John and Janet Stewart was a typical Scottish farming one. Between the big house across the river, and Eastwood Kirk up the brae, their world was defined by the land and the passing of the seasons.

And yet the passing of time would bring changes that eventually Pollok Toon would not withstand. In 1750-52 the current Pollok House was built, alongside a programme of development that would transform the woodlands surrounding the house into the gardens we know today. Industrialisation would spread across Scotland as a succession of technological breakthroughs would rapidly reduce the energy needed to make manufactured items.

Finally in Scotland the spirit of Improvement fostered an environment where landowners looked at ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their assets. This could be achieved in numerous ways from improved agriculture yields through to moving cottars and other labourers – most notoriously in the Highlands – to the new industrial concerns of the Central Belt.

Sir John Maxwell, the 7th Baronet, was deeply involved with this spirit of Improvement, with his involvement in the development, sponsorship and funding of the settlement that would become Pollokshaws Burgh in 1812. In turn, it was this same so-called spirit of Improvement that would ultimately spell the end for Pollok Toon…

Local legend has it that the village was destroyed to improve the view from the new Pollok House, but Aileen Smart probably gets closer to the truth in Villages of Glasgow when she mentions that the village (with its 36 houses) was destroyed to build the road to Hurlet.

The villagers were moved to Pollokshaws where the booming cotton mills were desperate for new labourers and Pollok Toon faded into history… Like the Highlanders facing the Clearances, Pollok Toon was just one victim in a process of economic consolidation and rapidly expanding industrialisation that was taking place across the entirety of late 18th century Scotland.

That is the tale of Pollok Toon, a village largely forgotten, preserved in memory largely by way of the story of some of its inhabitants’ involvement with the Witch Trial of 1677. But I think the village deserves to be remembered for more than its dark past, as it’s a tale of obscurity followed by destruction at the hands of industrialisation – a story that was repeated many times throughout the Scottish landscape.

When Sir John Maxwell cleared Pollok Toon he left no plaque or statue to mark the village’s passing, yet by us choosing to remember the village and looking more closely we can bring alive again the inhabitants of Pollok Toon not as background characters for the story of the Maxwell family, but as historical actors in their own right. We may not know much about them directly but what we do know helps us start to build a better picture of Scottish history and everyday local life than we had before.

By Stephen Watt
Published 17th January 2023

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Further Reading:

George Campbell, Eastwood: notes on the ecclesiastical antiquities of the parish (Alexander Gardner: 1902)

T. M. Devine, The Scottish Clearances: A History of the Dispossessed, 1600 – 1900 (Penguin: 2018)

Andrew M’Callum, Pollokshaws Village and Burgh, 1600 – 1912 (Alexander Gardner: 1925)

William Fraser, Memories of the Maxwells of Pollok (1863)

Aileen Smart, Villages of Glasgow: The South Side (John Donald Publishers: 2002 edition)

Jen Anderson, The Maxwells of Pollok (SGHET, 27th July 2020)

The post Pollok Toon – Glasgow Southside’s vanished village appeared first on SGHET.

In August last year I posted an article on our blog attempting to give an overview of the story of the Pollok Free State. It spoke about the protest camp and the campaigns in the 1980s and early 1990s against the M77 motorway extension through southside communities. Since the article we have received some incredible donations to the SGHET Archive to help document and illustrate this story and piece of local heritage.

Donations of newspaper clippings, grassroots zines, posters and publications give some great details and insight into the story. Media clippings show the varying ways the media portrayed the protestors and the camp and items from the camp itself, like the PFS University enrolment form, give insight into the driving forces behind the movement. The collection also shows the work involved in organising the campaign of protest and how to inform and engage individuals and communities.

Thanks to these generous donations there is a lot to be found within the archive. The selection here speaks to the legacy of the protests and the camp, and  is punctuated throughout with memories and reflections on Pollok Free State from individuals who spent time in the camp.

Protests in the Media

A double-page spread in the Evening Times, October 1994, showing a photograph of the road construction cutting through large green fields with houses in the distance. A graphic on the left charts the route of the motorway through different communities amidst opposition, and includes an image of Arden bridge with the words “No death M-way. We don’t need” spray painted in red.

“The planned concrete will swallow up 95,000 square yards of rural land – some of it in Pollok estate. The land is recognised by Glasgow City Council as an important site of interest to nature conservation. The region can do nothing about this.”

The hotline listed also reported 68% of callers as being opposed to the road but also reported some individuals flooding the phone lines and voting repeatedly.

This poster was created as part of the S.T.A.R.R (Stop The Ayr Road Route) campaign to inform and engage Glasgow’s southside communities in opposition of the motorway extension. Designed to be hung in windows as a show of support, one side shows an image of trees in Pollok Estate and the words NO M77 overlaid. On the other, a timeline traces the proposals for and protests against, the motorway. It starts with the gifting of the Pollok Estate to the people of Glasgow and ends with the formation of the Pollok Free State camp.

The poster also details the aims of the S.T.A.R.R group, the organisations that form it, what people could do to get involved, and upcoming events of note. The events include a family day, a big shared meal at the camp, and a public meeting in City Halls. Notably, it also declares August 20^th as Pollok Free State Independence Day (by complete coincidence we were only 4 days off sharing our original blog post).

This 1994 photograph from The Scotsman shows protestors sitting with the NO M77 posters outside a council meeting. The story below reports on protestors breaking into the meeting.

The Scottish Daily Mail (March 1995) has a front-page banner dedicated to the “dramatic report and pictures.”

Researcher Dr Wallace McNeish on the legacies of Pollok Free State:

“While the anti-M77 alliance was ultimately unsuccessful in achieving its aims of stopping this particular motorway from being built, it was nevertheless part of a successful UK-wide protest movement against the then Tory government’s £23bn Roads for Prosperity programme. At its height in the mid-1990s, this movement included over 300 local opposition groups, with high-profile direct-action protests taking place at Twyford Down, Wanstead, Batheaston, Newbury and Fairmile as well as the south-side of Glasgow. What protests like those centred on the Pollok Free State showed was that very different constituencies of people can be together in dialogue and united action around a common cause. In the run-up to the 1997 General Election the government was under such political pressure that it slashed its unpopular road-building programme by more than two-thirds to £6bn and abandoned the most contentious of its remaining plans.”

Photograph showing women wearing face masks and holding a hand-painted banner that reads “for our children NO M77” with the lower half of the banner obscured. The article states that the protest was part of International Women’s Day and notes that the Pollok area is above average for asthma rates in children.

Women’s Environmental Network flyer with overleaf giving information on air pollution and offering advice on how to protest and take action against air pollution.

An image in the Daily Record (1994) shows a pair of protestors passing the time with some music at the offices of a construction firm Tarmac on Nithsdale Road.

Wallace McNeish:

“Sometimes environmentalism is painted as a middle-class type of politics that is cut off from the lives of so called ‘ordinary people.’  What the Pollok protests showed was that this is far from always the case. The residents of the Free State were often locals themselves – including its founder Colin MacLeod – and it simply could not have been developed over approximately two years without support from the adjacent working-class estates. Indeed, a key legacy of the Free State is the Gal-Gael Trust which grew out of Colin and Gehan Macleod’s commitment to providing training for the unemployed in Glasgow’s south-side communities.”

“It is notable that the eco-activism of the mid-1990s around the roads issue did not tend to frame the issue in terms of climate change – instead the issues of sustainability, pollution and amenity were to the forefront. It is also the case that new non-violent direct-action tactics were pioneered by Free State activists and other anti-road protesters, and have become part and parcel of the tactical repertoire of subsequent generations of eco-activists protesting unsustainable development, like the Extinction Rebellion movement.”

Inside the Camp

The Pollok Free State Passport above shows the symbol of PFS with figures in a circular emblem and details of foliage, animals, plants, and tools. In August 1994, when PFS declared independence these passports were handed out to over 1000 “citizens.”

The passport has sections inside to fill out details of passport number, Pollok name, adopted tree, and folds out into the Declaration of Independence, featuring a quote from Robert Burns’ “The Tree of Liberty.” The declaration references the history of land ownership in Scotland and outlines the need for connection to place and land for health and wellbeing.

Local protestor Helen Melone on her memories of a Free State:

“When I first visited Pollok as part of the protests, my favourite area was a patch of trees which were all cut down at the St Valentine’s Day Massacre. I’d adopted one of those trees as my own friendly tree and climbed it every time I went, even though there were a few rotten branches at the top. I’d put a rope round the trunk to help me climb it more easily.”

Above is a 3D scan of a stone carving by Colin Macleod from Pollok Free State. You can view the model in ‘matcap’ through the model inspector to see the skill of the stonework and the detail of the design. The design features Pollok Free State symbols, Earth First logos, elements referencing Native American and Aboriginal land rights, and Celtic stone carving akin to the medieval Govan school of design featuring interlace and hunter figures.

Feature on Pollok Free State campsite in the Spectrum section of Scotland on Sunday (1995). Images show a treehouse in Pollok Free State, with windows and a tarpaulin roof, and a banner hanging from the tree reading ‘RESPECT’, and view of the camp with a fire in the centre, seats, ladders, sculptures and sun coming through the trees. The journalist recalls spending time in the camp and speaking to those involved, giving a feel of the atmosphere:

“The gain outweighs the sacrifice. It’s a community, with warmth, companionship, shared meals around the fire, the healthy tiredness of the fresh air at the end of the day, the self-esteem of doing something worthwhile […] for every set of dreadlocks, every Visigoth t-shirt or willie winkie knitted hat, there is a campaigner in a Gore-tex anorak with newsreader hair. The startling thing is how wide a cross-section – of nationality, class, subculture – the campaigners represent.”

Wallace McNeish:

“During 1995 and 1996 I was a young Glasgow University PhD student who spent considerable time researching the protests against the M77 extension as part of a wider sociology project on the then burgeoning anti-roads protest movement in the UK. The Pollok Free State was the epicentre hub that facilitated and sustained a vital alliance between young radical eco-activists and community activists from the surrounding estates of Pollok and Corkerhill. I observed as the Free State morphed from a few tents around a campfire into a fortified encampment with outposts along the M77 route during its protest-action phase, to eventually become a colourful education oriented eco-hamlet with a wood-workshop, large central tree-house, public artworks, gardens, paths, and even a compost-toilet. My daughter Catriona was only a toddler at the time, and I remember her joy at the totem poles, walkways, and colourful spectacle of this ‘dear green place’ in the woods. Most of all though I remember the warmth and helpfulness of the people involved.”

Pollok Free State University enrolment form. Describes some of the activities at the camp that would have involved workshops and talks. The curriculum includes social history, living skills and creativity.

Postcard references the Criminal Justice Bill. Overleaf is handwritten note that reads “Hi Bigs, Got your call, hope to see you soon. I am going to Pollok this weekend. Tell Robo I miss him very much!!! Lots of love and peace, your big pal Big Ben”. The protests at Pollok Free State were also tied into protesting the Criminal Justice Act as it was passed in part to quell public gatherings and could be used to disband and remove the camp.

Helen Melone :

“I did spend a few overnights in tree houses and I’ve never been so cold in my life. My own flat in the West End was pretty poverty-stricken as well (no hot water and only a gas heater to stay warm) but it was better than staying in the camp. I remember having good conversations with Walter Morrison and he was the one who explained it best – how whole communities, like Corkerhill, were going to be cut off from each other by a huge, big road and cut off from their green spaces too. It was hard to imagine this, as plans and drawings didn’t quite convey the enormity of it all.”

Photo in Scotland on Sunday (February 1995), of carhenge stunt, showing upended and burnt out car, spray painted with NO M77, dug into the construction landscape for the motorway. The article details attempts by campaigners to drum up support, and quotes a conversation with a local woman and her children protesting in the camp.

Helen Melone:

“I remember there being a good balance of people from the local area at various points. I would meet interesting women who had different experiences of activism than me – I made some friends I’m still in touch with today many years later! The poverty-stricken flat I shared with my pal Iain hosted a load of people from Manchester Earth First, who came along to show their support and offered to help out – this was also the same night where a few of us stayed up all night making banners out of hospital sheets (saying No M77) with the intent of hanging them from the Finnieston crane the next day. All the people I met, whether fun, interesting or dangerous were worth getting to know, and all brought something different to my life.”

Earth First! “Busted in defence of mother earth?” leaflet giving advice on what to do if arrested during a protest. Offers contacts for legal support, and gives advice on rights if stopped, detained, or arrested.

The collection also holds a selection of documents from the Earth First offices (not pictured) that give great insight into the practicalities of organising the campaign of opposition to the M77, such as a booklet on how to liaise with the media, so how to contact news desks and journalists, and the importance of making sure your version of events reaches audiences. It also included different iterations of “the phone tree”’ a handwritten document with a changing series of numbers to call when security arrived at the camp, so that they could get people down to the camp to oppose eviction attempts or tree cuttings.

Helen Melone :

“I remember the day of 14th February (Valentine’s Day Massacre) where they activated the phone tree early – might have been as early as 5am, saying the diggers were coming into the camp. I don’t remember exactly how I got there from the West End, bus maybe – but I remember running through the back woods trying to get there faster, amid the awful sound of trees groaning as they were cut down (I still remember that to this day – a horrible groaning noise that could be heard from far away). When I got to the camp, all the trees on the other side of the wood (including my friendly tree) were all down and it was a mess over there – looked like a wasteland.”

Image in Scotland on Sunday (1995) of construction workers with chainsaws. Caption reads: “Chainsaw massacre…In the face of mounting protests the company is considering bypassing the gathering of tree houses, teepees and totem poles known as the Pollok Free State.”

Legacy and Changing Relationships with Green Space

This photograph of a protestor dressed as death holding sign that says M77 pollution kills, is featured in an article in The Evening Times (March 1995) written by the Secretary at the north Pollok community council. They write about the adverse effects on the low health of the disadvantaged areas involved and about media attempts to smear the camp as outsiders and rent-a-mob.

Helen Melone :

“I think perhaps people took their outdoor space for granted, until recently with COVID-19 and lots of lockdowns, people are really discovering their local areas and valuing them much more. I think Pollok Park is different from many other parks in Glasgow because it’s a country park and it really does feel that you are away from the city and the traffic when you’re in it.

I remember one night at the camp, there was a party on, and I walked along the pre-road surface right to the river Cart and I sat down at the edge of the bank for hours. It felt like a different planet.

Now, my favourite part of the park is Rhododendron Walk and the continuation Lime Avenue over the hill down towards Pollok House. If you go in May, the rhododendrons are flowering and they’re so beautiful and colourful. So my first connection with Pollok Park was a feeling of having something wild, feeling like it belongs to me and the second time it gave me the feeling of being away from the city.

While we didn’t stop the road, it showed what we can do when we work together. It also shows what power the press has (which we were speaking to as much as we could) so there’s many skills I have from that campaign – working with people who could be really difficult to engage with, and it was really difficult to get consensus and agreement on things. It felt like one of those forming experiences you have in your life – it might not be pleasant, there’s good and there’s bad but you come away from it and know that something has fundamentally changed in you.”

This photograph shows protestors on the Finnieston crane and the title accompanying it reads “I’ll go back to the peace camps!” – Stewart’s promise after an incident where the councillor brandished an axe at protestors in the camp. (Unknown paper or date).

Conclusion

We would like to extend a massive thank you for the generous donations from the people from the Earth First Glasgow offices and Helen Melone, for holding on to such a fascinating treasure trove of documents and cuttings over the years. And to Wallace McNeish for sharing documents and experiences from his research at the time. The protests and campaigns from Pollok Free State continue to have a legacy of community and commitment to your local environment and its people.

Keep an eye out for the next post in this series with Pollok Artists in Residence Hannah Brackston and Dan Sambo, who will share how they are drawing upon this piece of local heritage in workshops with young people in Pollok.

We are working to digitise aspects of our archive and create an online platform to browse the SGHET collections. In the meantime, if you would like to view any of the collection, for research or personal interests, or if you would like to donate anything, please do get in touch.

If this has brought up any memories of the time for you, we would love to hear from you, get in touch at info@sghet.com or via Facebook or Twitter.

By Romy Galloway

SGHET Board Member

Read the previous article: Pollok Free State and its Legacy

The post Pollok Free State: Archive Selections and Reflections appeared first on SGHET.

Introduction to The Maxwells

The Maxwells, particularly the Stirling Maxwells, have had a significant impact on the local area. Most people will have benefitted in some form from their generosity whether that is attending an event in Pollokshaws Burgh Hall, attending the Sir John Maxwell School (before it was closed), walking through the splendour of Pollok Park or spending a day wandering around the Burrell Collection. Like many landowners in Scotland, the Maxwell’s have not avoided controversy. Through this post, I will explore everything from witchcraft through to slavery and (at the time, legal) child marriage.

The Maxwells are the oldest proprietors in all of Renfrewshire having owned land in the area since the 1200s. It is believed that the Maxwell name came from the son of a Saxon Lord – Maccus, son of Unwin. Maccus was bestowed lands near the castle of Roxburgh by Alexander I, and he also had a salmon pool near Kelso Bridge, and it was called Maccus’s wiel/weel (wiel meaning a deep pool in a river). His descendants took the name ‘de Maccuswel’ which was later changed to Maxwell. In Dumfriesshire, the de Maccuswel’s built a church, castle and village mill and were granted the barony of Caerlaverock where they built a fortress (Caerlaverock Castle).

Sir Aymer de Macuswell of Caerlaverock

The de Maccuswel/Maxwell’s acquired the Upper and Nether Pollok Estates and the barony of Mearns through marriage. Sir Aymer de Macuswell of Caerlaverock (c. 1190- 1266) married Mary McGeachan (daughter and heiress of Roland McGeachan/McGauchen of Mearns (also known as Roland De Mearns) and so began the Maxwell’s of Pollok. Sir Aymer was the Chamberlain of Scotland, Sheriff of Dumfries and Lord Great Chamberlain of Scotland to King Alexander II.

At this point, the lands of Upper and Nether Pollok stretched far and wide across South Glasgow, and it was Aymer and Mary’s second son John who founded the Pollok branch of the Maxwell family with his brother Herbert inheriting the adjacent lands of Mearns.

One of the reasons why it is so difficult to get to grips with the Maxwell family tree is because of the number of heirs with the name John. In total there were 18 John’s who inherited (not including the most recent John Ranald Maxwell MacDonald) out of the 27 people heirs/heiresses who have stayed at Pollok.

During their time at Pollok, the Maxwells built three castles and the Georgian mansion, Pollok House, which still stands within the estate.

It should be noted that throughout this piece I will refer to each of the Maxwells using the dates of which they inherited the estate running through to death, not birth and death dates, and any relevant titles, I won’t be covering every heir. Still, I will include a list at the end for anyone who is interested.

The Castles of Nether Pollok

Back to the beginning with Aymer and Mary’s son John – Sir John Maxwell of Nether Pollok, 1st knight of Pollok, (1270-1306) who served as the Governor of Dumbarton Castle and Lord Great Chamberlain of Scotland to Alexander III. It is believed that he was responsible for the building of the first castle which was situated where the Stable courtyard currently sits, right beside an area where the White Cart river formed a pool. The castle was built upon a rock that was washed by the White Cart. The pool that formed here is believed to have led to the name Pollok, as the world ‘poll’ means pool in Gaelic.

There was a second castle built around 1367/68 by Sir John Maxwell, 4th Knight of Pollok. This second castle was believed to have been built on higher ground in the current woodland garden to the east of Pollok House to evade the flooding. In this area, there is a mound with a fallen beech tree atop (planted in 1759 and unfortunately set alight and destroyed by vandals in 2017). It could have been that this castle was built to celebrate the marriage of Sir John and Lady Isabella as their armorial bearings were found in the castle ruins. The second castle was demolished between 1737 and 1752 by Sir John (1686-1732), 3rd Baronet.

Lady Isabella Lindsay was from Royal blood, and so Sir John was granted a lot of lands through marriage with these lands later being divided between his two sons:

Sir John (1405-1429), fifth Knight of Pollok, inherited Pollok & Carnwadric, Castlebar, Mathewbar & Dykebar, Murray & Headhouse. Other son Robert inherited Dripps, Jacktoun, Allartoun, Newlands, Calderwood, Greenhills, two Aikenheads and the overlordship of a quarter of Thornton (Lanarkshire) and Hawkshawlands, Finglen & Caterhop in Tweedmuir.

A third castle known as the ‘Laighe Castle’ (low castle), was built sometime between 1518 and 1536, on the site of the first castle, beside the river. This castle was used until 1747, and some of the remains were incorporated into the stable courtyard (by Sir John (1786-1732) 3rd Baronet). You can still see some of the original stone in the east wall of the courtyard (close to the archway through to the walled and kitchen garden).

John Maxwell, tenth of Pollok (1517-1523)

Fast forward to 1517 when John Maxwell, tenth of Pollok (1517-1523) succeeded the estate as a minor but his uncle Robert, who was the rector of Tarbolton and later Bishop of Orkney, took on the role of guardian and tutor so that John could take on the estate. He married Elizabeth Houston as a minor and had one daughter – Lady Elizabeth Maxwell who became heiress of Pollok as a baby. Her great uncle, George Maxwell of Cowglen (who was the male-heir of the family) thought it wise for Elizabeth to be betrothed to his son (John Maxwell of Cowglen) who was also a baby. As they were related in the second and third degrees, the marriage required papal dispensation so in stepped Robert, Bishop of Orkney, who used his influence to promote the marriage, so approval was given in 1535. They were married at 13 (Elizabeth) and 12 (John). This meant that John Maxwell of Cowglen became 11th knight of Pollok through marriage and owned the estate between 1524-1577 which included the Laighe castle, fortalice, manor place, gardens etc. as well as the Mains of Nether Pollok, Pollokshaws (with the mill), the village of Polloktoun, the parkland and Pollokhaugh.

Sir John Maxwell (11th knight of Pollok 1517-23)

It was this Sir John Maxwell (11th knight of Pollok 1517-23) that had lands briefly seized by the crown after the Battle of Langside in 1568. He swore allegiance to Mary Queen of Scots, and a letter that Queen Mary wrote to Sir John Maxwell on the 5th May 1568 desiring him to join her at Hamilton is still carefully preserved at Pollok. Sir John’s fidelity to Queen Mary brought him into trouble with the Regent Moray, the protector of the young King James VI. The estate was escheated to the crown and given to Alexander Earl of Glencairn. On 9th September 1568, Sir John obtained a remission from his Majesty for appearing in arms against him at the battle of Langside. He eventually paid a sum of money and got the escheat of the estate back. It seems that in the negotiation he agreed that his eldest son would marry the Earl’s cousin, a dowry of £1000 was also paid, they married in 1569. Sir John 11th died in 1577 leaving Nether Pollok estate to his wife Elizabeth even though he had six sons.

Conflict between Lady Elizabeth and Sir John Maxwell 12th of Pollok 1577-1595

Elizabeth and her eldest son (Sir John Maxwell 12th of Pollok 1577-1595) appear to have had quite a lot of conflict. It is unknown whether this conflict arose before the death of his father, but he did not obtain possession of the estate of Pollok, as it was liferented by his mother. In 1578 Lady Elizabeth complained to the privy council that her son raided the Laighe Castle, imprisoned her and hurt servants. Later that same year she complained again that he came to the maltman’s house and violently took some malt from him as well as a grey horse from Mains of Nether Pollok. In 1979 she also complained that he violently removed tenants from their houses and lands in Haggs then in 1581 he complained that his mother left the castle to rot and cut the woods, orchard and produce gardens to their destruction. 1577-1595. Sir John (12th) built Haggs Castle in 1585 with his wife Margaret Conyngham, their son Sir John Maxwell Thirteenth of Pollok 1595-1647 succeeded his father at the age of 12 or 13.

The original Baronet

Sir John (13th) succeeded to the estate as a minor as his grandmother died in 1592 and was married at 12 to Isobell Campbell, daughter of Hew Lord Loudoun. Isobell died in 1612, and he remarried in 1615 to Grizel Blair. He is sometimes considered to be the 1st Baronet of Pollok as he was made Knight baronet by King Charles I in 1633, however, the patent was to him and his male heirs. He didn’t have any male heirs, only a daughter Isobel who could not inherit as she was female, so this knight baronetcy was not carried over. In 1634 King Charles I appointed him one of the commissioners for constituting a High Court Commission for Scotland but the court was never properly established but showed the King’s opinion on his integrity and ability. He was succeeded by his cousin Sir George Maxwell (1647-1677) (would have been 8th of Auldhouse). Sir George comes down the line of Thomas Maxwell, sixth of Pollok. He was the eldest son of John Maxwell of Auldhouse.

Sir George the witch hunting Covenanter

There was some conflict in this succession as Sir James Maxwell of Calderwood had hoped that his brother Colonel John Maxwell may inherit the estate (even though they were remotely related to Sir John 13th) and when denied he vowed vengeance on Sir George. In 1647 he broke into the castle of Pollok with assailants violently with muskets, swords and pistols and vowed to kill anyone who tried to flee or resist, including Sir George’s pregnant wife. They set fires and placed armed sentries at the gates and passages. As nobody produced letters against Sir James at the court of Justiciary in 1648, he was let off. Sir James was later attacked by an acquaintance of Sir George of Pollok and held prisoner in Paisley for 11 days. The acquaintance was denounced rebel after failing to appear in court, and Sir James tried to dispossess George of the estate, unsuccessfully.

Sir George was a staunch Covenanter, his father and grandfather having been Presbyterian ministers. He permitted conventicles (illegal services led by fugitive ministers) to be held at Haggs Castle and was fined the very large sum of £4,000 for his Covenanting activities. It is said that he often went riding on the moors, claiming to be shooting when in fact he was taking food to Presbyterians in hiding.

Sir George was also a witch hunter and took part in witch trials. In 1676 he fell ill with a “hot and fiery distemper”, and an apparently mute serving girl (Janet Douglas) accused a local widow of witchcraft. The widow’s house was searched, and effigies pierced with pins were found there. The widow, her son, daughter and three other women were arrested, tried in Paisley in 1677 and sentenced to death by burning. Only her 14-year old daughter was spared. Sir George died later that year. The Anne Downie play The Witches of Pollok is based on this.

When George was imprisoned in 1665 for his religious beliefs he was removed from the charge of his estate, he made an arrangement to put it into the possession of his eldest son and reserved liferent for himself and wife of certain parts of the estate.

Sir John Maxwell 1st Baronet (1677-1732)

In 1677 Sir John Maxwell (1677-1732) inherited the estate from his father George. He applied for restoration of the title of Knight-Baronet and King Charles II granted a new patent in 1682. This Sir John is considered to be the first Baronet even though he is technically the second. For the sake of ease and understanding, I will also refer to him as the 1st Baronet from here on in. Sir John (1st baronet) was also a staunch covenantor just like his father, and he was also imprisoned for his beliefs. He was made a privy councillor by King William in 1689 and represented the county of Renfrew in Parliament from 1690-1693, in 1695, 1696 and 1698. He was also appointed one of the Lords of the Treasury and Exchequer in Scotland in 1696 by the King and made an ordinary Lord of Session in 1699 under the name Lord Pollok before being appointed to the office of Lord Justice-Clerk. After the death of King William in 1702, he was nominated one of the commissioners for considering the Treaty of the Union between Scotland and England. Still, he was removed from the office of Lord Justice-Clerk as the queen favoured Episcopalians over Presbyterians In Scotland. Later in his life, he was chosen as Lord Rector of Glasgow Uni and held this position for 27 or 28 years. During his life as 1st Baronet, he also managed to get Queen Anne extended the limitation of heirs to succeed to the title of knight baronet to heirs of entail succeeding Lord Pollok so that all heirs of Pollok whether blood or not would be able to take the knight baronet title, hence why all succeeding heirs have inherited the baronet title. As John and his wife Marion had no children, he was succeeded by his cousin Sir John Maxwell, 2nd Baronet (1732-1752).

Sir John Maxwell 2nd Baronet (1732-1752)

Sir John Maxwell 2nd Baronet (1732-1752) had made plans for the building of a Georgian Mansion within the grounds when he took on the estate, but these didn’t come to fruition until 1752 and only lived in the house for two months before his death. He was also responsible for demolishing the second castle but kept the Laighe Castle as a dower house.
In 1751 he was elected Rector of University of Glasgow having previously been held by his cousin, his Uncle Sir George Maxwell and his grandfather Sir John Maxwell of Auldhouse. His first son John died in infancy, but he had another son (also called John), and it was this son that succeeded his father in 1752 and took the credit for the building of Pollok House.

Sir John Maxwell 3rd Baronet (1752-1758)

Sir John Maxwell, 3rd Baronet (1752-1758) became a student at Edinburgh University at 13 and stayed there for seven years, as well as taking the credit for the building of Pollok House he also built the bridge over the White Cart and demolished the Laighe Castle and built the stable courtyard for his use. Sir John (3rd Baronet) was an exceptional sportsman, and it is rumoured that he could pick up a coin from the ground while his horse was at a canter-gallop and could skate at a mile a minute. He died, unmarried at 38 and was succeeded by his brother Sir Walter Maxwell, 4th Baronet (1758-1762). He was the second surviving son of his father’s second wife and succeeded at 27. He married D’Arcy Brisbane and had one son but was only in charge of the estate for a short time as he died two years after his marriage leaving his wife with an infant son. Devastatingly Walter’s son, Sir John Maxwell 5th baronet (1761-1762), only lived for nine weeks after his father’s death, so the estate was passed to his uncle James (Walter’s brother) in 1762.

Sir James Maxwell 6th Baronet (1762-1785)

Sir James Maxwell 6th Baronet (1762-1785) was the 6th child of Sir John (2nd Baronet), and the 3rd brother to inherit the estate. Before inheriting James moved to the Island of St Christopher for ‘career opportunities’ where he served as an overseer and married the second daughter of plantation owner and treasurer of St. Kitts, Robert Colhoun. Colhoun had originally worked for the infamous plantation owner Colonel McDowall and had purchased enslaved Africans for their plantations from Glasgow’s best-known slave trader, Richard Oswald. James moved back to Glasgow, with his wife, when he inherited the estate. Unfortunately, the wealth of St Kitts that was brought to Pollok through this marriage and inheritance has been absent from the city histories. Sir James Maxwell’s brother in law William McDowall Colhoun became a very successful merchant as, apart from St Kitts, he also managed a plantation on Nevis and owned the 430-acre Mount Pleasant sugar plantation on St Croix.

The 6th Baronet’s son (Sir John Maxwell 7th baronet (1785-1844) succeeded his father at 17. He commissioned in the queen’s boys but retired when he married. He was what you expected of a landowner of this time enjoying foxhunting, grouse-shooting and coursing. He enjoyed riding so much that when he went shooting in Aberdeen, he made the journey on horseback which took 4-5 days. He had enjoyed Pollok for 59 years and died there early one morning in 1844 when he was on his way out to the carriage for his early morning airing.

Sir John Maxwell 8th Baronet (1844-1918)

His son, Sir John Maxwell 8th Baronet (1844-1918) (now the 21st generation from Undwin, the father of Maccus) was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the Renfrewshire Militia before becoming a Member for the shire of Renfrew. He addressed the house of commons on several occasions and was elected member of Lanarkshire in 1832 before retiring from Parliament in 1837. During his time as an MP, he took particular interest in the working conditions of handloom weavers with many manufacturers taking on board his recommendations. He invited His Royal Highness Prince of Wales to visit Pollok in 1859 for a much anticipated and successful state visit. He and his wife Lady Matilda didn’t have any children, and he was succeeded by his nephew William Stirling of Keir.

William Stirling of Keir

In 1865 William Stirling of Keir became Sir William Stirling Maxwell 9th Baronet (1818-1878) after combining the surnames, he was the first of the Stirling Maxwells of Pollok. William Stirling was the only son of Archibald Stirling of Keir. He studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating BA in 1839, and later an MA in 1843, before embarking on a tour of Europe. He took a particular interest in Spanish art and culture, and it was William who amassed the large collection of Spanish art than adorns the walls of Pollok House. Like Sir James Maxwell, much of the Stirling Maxwell fortune was gained through slave labour. His grandfather, Archibald Stirling, made his fortune through sugar plantations in Jamaica. His father, also Archibald Stirling, was also planter and slaveowner in Jamaica. After the British Abolition of Slavery Act of 1833, the younger Archibald Stirling was awarded £12,517 in compensation (over £50 million in today’s money) for the 690 enslaved people across his estates: Hampden in St. James, Frontier in St. Mary, Kerr or Keir Settlement in Trelawney, and Grange Hill in Westmoreland, all in Jamaica. He returned to Scotland and married Elizabeth Maxwell (daughter of Sir John Maxwell (7th Baronet) and sister of Sir John Maxwell (8th Baronet of Pollok) – Sir William’s aunt and uncle. As well as inheriting Pollok he also inherited the family estates in Scotland (Keir) and the West Indies in 1847. Sir William served as Conservative MP for Perth 1852-1868 and 1874-1878, Rector of the Universities of St Andrews (1862), Aberdeen (1870) and Edinburgh (1872) and Chancellor of the University of Glasgow. He was nominated a Knight of the Thistle in 1876.

Sir John Stirling Maxwell

His son is possibly the most well known of the Maxwell family – Sir John Stirling Maxwell 10th baronet (1878-1956). He was a conservative MP for the College Division of Glasgow between 1895 and 1906, Chairman of the Forestry Commission (1929–1932), Chairman of the Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland, Trustee of the National Galleries of Scotland, Chairman of Ancient Monuments Board, Lieutenant in the Royal Company of Archers, an active Freemason, founder member (and vice-president) of the National Trust for Scotland (NTS)and later President of the NTS from 1943 until his death. SJSM was very keen for the local people to have access to green spaces and so in 1911, he gave access to Pollok Estate to the people of Glasgow (and beyond). SJSM also gave land to locals for allotments (previously Bankhead allotments now Sir John Stirling Maxwell Allotment Gardens), gave land for the building of Pollokshaws Burgh Hall and Sir John Stirling Maxwell School) and was also involved in trying to resolve the problem of finding a home for the art treasures presented to Glasgow in 1944 by Sir William Burrell. SJSM made quite a few additions to the house (entrance hall, wings, pavilions) and the surrounding gardens and brought back many of the plants (particularly Rhododendrons) from his Himalayan expeditions.

Dame Anne Maxwell MacDonald (1956-2011)

After he died in 1956, the estate was inherited by his daughter Dame Anne Maxwell MacDonald (1956-2011) on her father’s death the baronetcy became dormant as there was no male heir, but Anne was recognised by Lyon Court in 2005 as its 11th holder and thus succeeded her father and became known as the 11th baroness. She gave the house, including its collection of internationally-famed paintings and 361 acres of parkland, to the City of Glasgow in 1966. It was opened as a museum in 1967 and management passed to the National Trust for Scotland in 1998. In 1969 she became the only Glaswegian woman (excluding the Queen mother) to be given the freedom of the city. The Maxwell MacDonald family kept two flats on the second floor of Pollok House, but the family have moved out of the area being spread out across Scotland and London.

Southside Slavery Legacies project 2020

South Glasgow Heritage and Environment Trust are currently working on the Southside Slavery Legacies project, including a potential heritage trail and walks, as well as blogs on our website, and published articles.

If you would like to know more or become involved, please subscribe to our mailing list, message us on Facebook or Twitter or contact info@sghet.com

Full Timeline of the Maxwells of Pollok

Roland McGeachan/McGauchen of Mearns (Roland De Mearns).

Daughter

Mary McGeachan

Husband

Sir Aymer de Macuswell of Caerlaverock

Son

1270-1306
Sir John Maxwell of Nether Pollok, Governor of Dumbarton Castle and 1st knight of Pollok

Son

1306-1330
Sir Robert Maxwell 2nd of Pollok

Son

1330-1360
Sir John Maxwell 3rd of Pollok

Son

1360-1405
Sir John Maxwell 4th of Pollok

Son

1405-1429
Sir John Maxwell 5th of Pollok

Son

1429-1450
Sir Thomas Maxwell 6th of Pollok

Son

1450-1487
Sir John Maxwell 7th of Pollok

Son

1487-1510
Sir John Maxwell 8th of Pollok

Son

1510-1517
Sir John Maxwell 9th of Pollok

Son

1517-1523
Sir John Maxwell 10th of Pollok

Daughter

1523-1592
Lady Elizabeth Maxwell, heiress of Pollok

Husband

1524-1577
Sir John Maxwell of Cowglen 11th of Pollok

Wife

Lady Elizabeth Maxwell, heiress of Pollok

Son

1577-1595
Sir John Maxwell 12th of Pollok

Son

1595-1647
Sir John Maxwell 13th of Pollok, (1st Baronet but often not considered one at all)

Cousin

1647-1677
Sir George Maxwell 14th of Pollok, (would have been 8th of Auldhouse)

Son

1677-1732
Sir John Maxwell. Lord Pollok 1st baronet

Cousin

1732-1752
Sir John Maxwell 2nd baronet

Son (technically second son)

1752-1758
Sir John Maxwell 3rd baronet

Brother

1758-1762
Sir Walter Maxwell 4th baronet

Son

1761-1762
Sir John Maxwell 5th baronet

Uncle

1762-1785
Sir James Maxwell 6th baronet

Son

1785-1844
Sir John Maxwell 7th baronet

Son

1844-18
Sir John Maxwell 8th baronet

Nephew

1865-1878
Sir William Stirling Maxwell 9th baronet

Son

1878-1956
Sir John Stirling Maxwell 10th baronet

Daughter

1956-2011
Dame Anne Maxwell MacDonald 11th Baronetess

By Jen Anderson

Published: 27th July 2020

References:

Fraser, W. (1863). Memoirs of the Maxwells of Pollok: Volume I. Edinburgh: n.p.

Pollok Country Park Heritage Trail. (PDF document): https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=31480&p=0

Pollok Park Conservation Area Appraisal (PDF document): https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=35711&p=0

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Whilst walking in Pollokshaws you may have noticed a beautiful red sandstone building that was the old Sir John Maxwell Primary School. It was built 1906-07 on a site that had been donated by Sir John Maxwell for its predecessor school of the same name.

Unfortunately the grand replacement building was closed in 2011 and has remained empty but did you know that here, between 1908 and 1915, the political activist John Maclean taught courses in Marxism to a rather large class? Did you go to this school? What are your memories?

Get in touch info@sghet.com or in the comments below.

The original Sir John Maxwell School was built after Sir John Maxwell (of Pollok House) gifted the land required to build an industrial school in Pollokshaws in 1854 after the passing of the Education Act of 1872 which meant that charitable education could no longer be provided by The Parish of Eastwood. This allowed local children to carry on accessing free education and it offered different trade lessons to each gender. The goods produced in these trade lessons, alongside vegetables grown, were sold to raise funds for the school.

In 1907 the new school was built at a cost of £16,600. John Hamilton was commissioned to design it and later an extension was designed by David Thomson, after the number of new student enquiries increased drastically.

Hamilton chose to use red sandstone (from stone hewn from the Locharbriggs Quarry in Dumfriesshire) for the building, following on from his previous school designs. Many criticised the use of red sandstone, none more so than Sir Robert Rowand Anderson (architect of Pollokshaws Burgh Hall and Pollok House) as it wasn’t in keeping with the blond sandstone used to give close neighbour Pollokshaws Burgh Hall its Baronial style.

As the land had been gifted by his ancestor, it was fitting that Sir John Stirling Maxwell officially opened the new school on 9th January 1909. You can read more about the Maxwells of Pollok here.

Between 1908 and 1915 the school was also used to teach night classes, including one on Marxist economics by revolutionary socialist John Maclean who was born in Pollokshaws. His anti-war revolutionary activism led to him being arrested for sedition in April 1918 and imprisoned in Peterhead prison in north Aberdeenshire, being released on 3 December 1918 a few weeks after the Armistice.

There is an ongoing active campaign to save the building – which is not listed and the roof of which partially collapsed in 2021 – with a current focus to turn it into the Maxwell Centre for Environmental Change. See: https://www.sirjohnmaxwellschool.com/ and follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Share your thoughts on the building and memories of the school in the comments below.

Interior pictures by Proj3ct M4yh3m

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