Love this next wee story! Blantyre Project reader Duncan Slater (85), was recently returning from a family reunion in Rugeley, England and on the way home met up with a childhood pal. A Blantyre School pal he hadn’t seen…… for 71 years! Duncan is pictured on the left after meeting up with John Gillespie (also […]
Duncan Slater shared this family photo earlier this week. From 1937, this picture was taken at his dad’s plot at the former “Merry’s Raws” before the family all moved to the corner of the brand new Priory Street in the same year. As such, this photo represents the end of an era and start of […]
Priory Street dates from 1936 and runs in a northeast to southwest position linking Glasgow Road to Calder Street. At its junction with Glasgow Road, nearby stands the Stonefield Tavern. With the slum clearance of the mid 1930’s demolishing many of the most northerly homes of Dixon’s Rows, a County Council programme of […]
From the book, “Blantyre Glasgow Road South – The Real Story” by Paul Veverka (c) 2017 Merry’s Rows Merry’s Rows or Raws were built in 1876 to 1878 by coalmasters, Messrs Merry & Cunningham to house the workers of their nearby Auchinraith Colliery at Auchinraith Road. A local dialect of that time had them […]
Margaret Campbell shared this lovely family photo taken during the early 1940s. Margaret told me, “This is one of Mum & Dad taken from 1 Priory Rd with the old air raid shelter. The photo was taken during the Second World War when they were courting. The roof line of buildings behind were the shops […]
With thanks to Duncan Slater who sent in this photo of his family in 1937. Pictured outside Blantyre’s Merrys Rows that year is Duncan’s parents, sister Sadie, brother Alex and Duncan himself in the picture, a baby held by his mother. The dogs name was Major. This treasured photo is one of several Duncan has […]
This treasured family photo was kindly shared by Duncan Slater and was taken outside #1 Priory street in 1938. In the photo is Duncan’s mother with her children. Duncan is actually the baby and in the photo also is his elder sister, Sadie. The Slater family were amongst numerous families to move from the […]