2014 Well at Shott House. Photo 14th Sept by Paul Veverka

At the end of High Blantyre Main Street, just as you leave the town, Shott House sits behind a large stone wall. You cannot miss the wall, standing taller than a person and it’s possibly the last thing you’ll see before heading up the road westwards to Greenhall. I must have driven and walked past it a million times.

Pictured at the very corner of the wall, about waist height is an old well, which must have been set into the wall. A plinth with a channel for the water is still visible, but the well itself looks like it’s been removed and filled in at a later date with further stone. You can just make out the outline of the stone infill here in my photos. Interestingly, the lower stone at pavement level is missing. It could be there was a drain or a stone plinth there at one time now removed as the roadway is immediately adjacent.

Looking at Blantyre maps, I cannot see any mention of the well being at

2014 Close up of the Stone well at Shott. Photo 14th Sept 14 by P Veverka

that point until 1910, when it is denoted on the corner of the wall by a small box like feature. It could have been a post box, but the channel in the plinth indicates water was present and it makes sense to put a well at the bottom of such a steep hill, for where else would you need one! On the 1935 map, the well is gone, not indicated which is a good indication that whilst the well existed in 1910, by the mid 1930’s it had been filled in. If you know more about Shott well, please drop me a note. Thanks.

With thanks to Jim Brown for rambling around Blantyre with me that day. You can read more about Shott House here

http://blantyreproject.com/2014/05/15/shott-house-high-blantyre/