Malcolm Dow recalls his family’s history, highlighting his grandfather’s railway work and farming in Bridge of Dee. His mother began working as a maid at twelve, while his father became a successful butcher after serving in World War I. Dow’s father was elected RWM of Lodge Blantyre Kilwinning in 1934.
Here’s a strange little story from 131 years ago. On Tuesday 5th December 1893, Blantyre man James Downs stood before the judge in Hamilton Sheriff Court. The charge? Selling “unsound” meat to the public. The strange part however, was that James wasn’t a butcher, nor worked in a butchers. He owned his own premises, but […]
From the heavily researched illustrated book, “Blantyre Glasgow Road – The Real Story” by Paul Veverka (c) 2017 Moving again northwestwards, further into Springwell, we next arrive at the former Smellie’s Land or Smellie’s Buildings (pronounced ‘smiley’), a surname well known throughout Lanarkshire. Smellie’s Buildings at Springwell should not be confused […]