This old photo is Glasgow Road looking eastwards around 1910. It got me thinking just how different Glasgow Road has changed in over 100 years. Nobody from that era would ever recognise what is there today and of course it’s all changing again with the construction of the new retail units at Asda.
Putting this scene into context, here’s what it looked like in 2017 from exactly the same location. Of course the ‘Shopping centre’ is now demolished and how green it looks by comparison, with a notable absence of retail and commerce.
Featuring Blantyre Project Social Media with permission. Strictly not for use by others on or offline, our visitors said:
Tom McGuigan Ruined by ASDA
Lon McIlwraith A lot more life in the 1910 photo.
Mary Watt I agree Asda has ruined Blantyre in its greed for money
Elaine Speirs If only some of the old town hAD been saved. We could havd a great wee high street like Bothwell or Uddingstone
Henry Hambley I find these two pictures very interesting. The first is about 40 years before I was born and new picture is about 50 years after I left Blantyre. There seems to be no connection with a very urban scene in 1910 and a scene that seems to have more greenery in it. But I think this misses the point about Blantyre: it was the people that made the town.
Carol Crombie Looked better then
In this 1910 photo, would St. Joseph’s RC Chapel be behind the camera man? My maternal grandparents were married there in 1911 – Tom Dolan and Helen/Ellen Girvin. This is what they would have seen when leaving church.
It would Mike, but much further back up the road. They would have had a different view. I’ll show you exactly right there on the scene when you come over!
Paul – can’t wait to finally come over in 2020 please God. Love reading ALL your posts and stories and seeing the photos. Please keep it up Champ.