The first annual show of honey was held by the Blantyre Bee-Keepers Association on Saturday 19th October 1895. The venue was the Masonic Hall, High Blantyre an appropriate location given there were several beekeepers nearby.
The entries, considering the season were very satisfactory for a first show and amongst the Blantyre entires were some from Hamilton and Lesmahagow. The exhibits were extra fine, especially the heavy boxes of heather honey and in which, the first prize went to Mr. Thomas Scott of adjacent Back Priestfield. The different classes did well, especially the run honey. There were also exhibits for equipment for the working of bees and how to collect honey, preparing it for the market.
There were 4 special classes just for members of the Blantyre Association. Silver medals for heather and clover honey were awarded to Mr. J.B Struthers (the owner of the venue) and Mr. J. MGire. The judges were Mr James Buchanan and Mr Marshall, Jamestown. A full list of prizewinners was given in the Hamilton Advertiser the following week on 26th October, 1895.
The British Beekeeping Association was instituted in 1874 initially as a London based club, spreading throughout England in the 1880s, though it appears it took a couple of decades before a branch was established in Blantyre. By 1895, the year of this show, many members were at loggerheads with the government about how far they should be going to help prevent the spread of American and European diseases amongst British bees. The local bees at hives at Priestifled and Lint Butts in High Blantyre would have been used to flying near an industrial landscape of collieries, though they clearly still had wide, open beautiful landscapes around like the Calder, Auchentibber and beyond into which I’m sure they ventured often!
Remarkably, I have a photo of one of the beehives at Back Priestfield from this year, 1895 but that features in tomorrow’s story. My photo from 2014 shows the Masonic Hall, the venue of the show.
