1905 Greenhall Lodge . Photo by David Ritchie
Pictured here in a previously unseen photo around 1905 is Greenhall Lodge and entrance to Greenhall estate. Until this picture was shared with me by Alex Bowie, I’d never seen this building before, but always wondered what it looked like.
The photo was taken by David Ritchie of Main Street, a joiner who also had an interest in photography. Developed from glass plate negative, this photo is crystal clear and in amazing resolution. The roads are rough with signs of horses travelling up and down into Blantyre. There are no obvious signs of any cars, and I recall previous Greenhall owner Ean Paul telling me that the Wardrop Moores much preferred a love of horses, always resisting buying a motor car, despite their wealth.
What is immediately apparent from this photo is just how young the estate trees are. Nowadays, these trees are triple the height! The lodge of course is no longer there. The last person to live in the cottage was a Mr. Norrie Bruce and his family. Norrie was the propagator at the
2013 Council paint Greenhall pillars
nursery in Stonefield Park when that park was Blantyre’s pride and joy. The lodge house was demolished in 1966.
As a final note to this little article, it would be amiss of me not to mention the council’s recent paintwork to these stone pillars. For some, unknown and entirely bizarre reason, the council painted them pink, a complete contrast with the green railings. There is a rule I’ve learned in the construction industry. You never paint original stonework, unless you want to be left in future years with a maintenance nightmare.