Ghost towns of Glasgow: Eight forgotten schemes in and around Glasgow
Glasgow’s loved and lost many communities over the years - here’s just a few places around the city that no longer exist
Glasgow’s housing has gone through generations of change from the red and blonde sandstone tenementsto the imposing high-rise towers - but there was lot of housing developments that the city lost along the way.
Schemes were more than just housing or accomodation blocks, they were communities with friends and families - all linked by their common post code.
In this article we wanted to look at some of Glasgow’s forgotten schemes - whether they be derelict abandoned tenements, social housing gone wrong, or the flattened flats that used to dominate the city’s skyline - and remember how they used to be, and what they are now.
1. Clune Park
The Inverclyde community now lies derelict, with around 20 residents still clinging onto their homes in the scheme that resembles pictures taken of London’s housing post-blitz in World War II. The estate was a bustling place at one time during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, when it served as the home for shipworkers contracted at the nearby dock. The scheme was made up of 45 tenement buildings - a school that remained open for 111 years before closing its doors in 2008. A beautiful Gothic-style church was built in 1905 - but shut 92 years later in 1997 - an incredibly short lifespan for a church. You can buy some of the dilipadated housing in Clune Park for less than £10k - although the proposition isn’t exactly attractive with the neighbourhood falling down around you
2. Gowkthrapple
Gowkthrapple currently sits as a ghost scheme in Wishaw, one man is holding out. Nick Wisniewski, 67, the last person living on ‘Britain’s loneliest street’ in Gowkthrapple housing estate in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, after he refused to move has spent nearly £2,000 decorating his home â but said the area has become an eyesore. See SWNS story SWNJstreet. The last person living on ‘Britain’s loneliest street’ after he refused to move has spent nearly £2,000 decorating his home â but said the area has become an eyesore. Nick Wisniewski, 67, has no neighbours living beside him in 128 flats after the last of around 200 residents moved out more than a year ago. The eight blocks of flats and other homes on Stanhope Place in Wishaw, North Lanarkshire, are all scheduled for demolition. But Nick has refused to leave and blasted council chiefs who he claims he has not heard from since November 2021.
3. Red Road Flats
The last remaining Red Road flats were demolished in a controlled explosion on October 11, 2015 in Glasgow, Scotland. They were notable as they were only block in the scheme to be clad in red - constructed in 1966, the Red Road Flats got a reputation for anti-social behaviour. Leading to Glasgow City Council approving the demolition of all towers on the Red Road in Balornock, Greater Springburn.
4. Hutchesontown Towers
Hutchesontown was, in effect, used as a testing ground for similar schemes around the city. It was decided to divide the area into five “zones” which were given to different architects to implement a mixture of different schemes. Hutchesontown A was mostly low-rise housing which still stands today, B had 4 high-rise flats which still stand today, all of the high tower flats in C were demolished in 1993 and were infamous for their structural problems, D consisted of four tower blocks on Caledonian Road - two of which were demolished in 2006 while the other two are now scheduled for demolition, and finally Hutchesontown E consisted of an estate of five-storey deck-access blocks and two 24-storey towers at Sandiefield Road, constructed in 1968 - within a few years, however, the low-rise buildings became badly affected by dampness and declared unfit for habitation; they were finally demolished in 1987. The two towers were condemned in 2010 and were demolished in 2013.