1925 High Blantyre Post Office

How about this for a fantastic photo! The 1920’s and a little boy sits on the pavement staring into the High Blantyre Post Office at 84 Main Street in Kirkland Place. This tenement was on Main Street near the corner of Cemetery Road. The postbox is missing from 1910’s photos and was likely added in the early 1920s. The postmistress at this time was Miss Catherine Brown.

In the background, a woman and child stand outside the door of Andrew Gilmour’s grocery shop beside a little girl in  pram. The address of Andrew’s shop was 82 Main Street.

There’s a boy leaning on the postbox. Speaking of this picture, Gordon Cook who shared this copy told me, “It’s the first postcard I ever got. The lady who gave me it when I was a boy was born in the block of tenements (beyond these) without shops (she remembered getting sent over to the Apothecary Hall opposite for medicine). Mrs Mackenzie who gave me the original card, was born during the Great War, and said she spoke to the boy leaning against the pillar box, who told her that he was hanging around in the hope that a telegram might be needing delivered to one of the big houses like Greenhall or Crossbasket, and he would maybe get a tanner for delivering it.’

Featuring Blantyre Project Social Media with permission. Strictly not for use by others on or offline, our visitors said:

Marian Maguire Great story.
Marion Anderson Fabulous photo
Ann Higgins Crossar Brilliant photo and great that you have a wee story to go with it!
Irene McKeown Great info for everyone. Well done for all your hard work
Jiae Jiae Just think, my mother lived there, born 1920, she may even be the wean in the go chair or the wean in the wifie’s arms
Maisie Whittaker A great photo and the wee story
Rita Stewart Docherty I reckon someone’s asked that wee yin take keep an eye on his bike for him..!
Carolyn Whittaker Love all the pictures and the stories that go along with them. It’s hard to imagine what life was like back in the ‘good old days’ however you have managed to give us a glimpse into a simpler time that I want to jump into the scene and live that life for a while. My family is from Blantyre and when I look at some of the pictures I can just see my grandparents going about their daily lives, coming home from the Pit for my Papa or my Gran taking my Mum round ‘Timber Town’ in her pram. I live up north now and you help keep a piece of my heart where it belongs in Blantyre. Thank you for your dedication and hard work.
Elizabeth Weaver This is the row of shops where our Mum Jean Scott had her drapery/wool/ baby shop (Kiddiwear) in the 50s and 60s, just along from the PO. Mum’s own granny Jessie Gibson Campbell – the local midwife – lived in the cottages across the road. There will be lots of us imagining that one of the weans in the photo is a family member! I can still feel the atmosphere of that wee row on a summer’s day – it was on the sunny side and people would stand around having a blether as they did their messages. Lovely memories, thanks Paul.
Heather Mcwilliam Great picture with an even better story.
Margaret Elma Griffin The Tenements Post Office and Shops were all part of my Childhood in the 50s Mrs Darling was the Post Mistress in those days seems strange to see how it is today happy memories
Anne Leech I love the Scots words used here. Adds to the ‘feel’ of the story of the postcard. Great post
Janet Cochrane Mrs Darling was the potmistress on the 50s my father was always getting into bother for going in at 1oclock just as they were shutting for lunch
Nan Burrows Another piece of Blantyre history.Thank you