Who remembers these tenements on Hunthill Road? These 3 brilliant photos were recently shared to Blantyre Project by Drew Semple who had the foresight to photograph them in 1975. It’s hard to imagine now, but these double storey stone houses and shops lined the top end of Hunthill Road for over 80 years. There appeared to be little safety for pedestrians as these buildings came down, as was the case for most demolitions in the 1970’s.
In the foreground is Robert Thomson’s grocers’ shop within the former building known as ‘Calderview’. Beside it, the other tenements have their roofs removed, the demolition more advanced. At the back, the upper entrances had brick and wooden covered porches. In the immediate following years 1976 and 77, the land was sold to private house owners, amongst them the Hanlon and Ritchie families, who each built a modern home, which are still standing today.
