An absolutely cracking photo of Blantyre Works Mills, taken in the 1890’s. Previously unseen, this is part of a larger photo which was captured in marvellous quality, a little snapshot of the last years of the mills and before their mass destruction in 1903.

Lets put it in context. This is down the village. The River Clyde is immediately out the picture to the right as is Shuttle Row. The building on the far right foreground was on the riverside, not far from where the Hydro building/fish ladder is today. Every single building in this photo is now gone, including the two large buildings at the back, which were shortlived. They lasted no more than 40 years and were once situated on Station Road where Anderson Gardens is today. The trees in the background is the riverside woodland on the Bothwell side.

Such a shame all this has been gone. If only we had the foresight such that was made at New Lanark, we can only imagine what a leading tourist attraction these old buildings could have been now. Whenever I see old photos of Blantyre Mills and despite some new homes there today, I still think “we probably went too far” in the early 20th Century and missed huge opportunity to put Blantyre on the map.