Glaswegians of a certain vintage will have fond memories of rag and bone men who used to roam around the city’s streets looking for anything they could get their hands on that you might of been getting rid of.
They gave away balloons, clothes pegs and wally ornaments in exchange for rags.
Speaking about his upbringing in Govan for an article for The Herald back in 1998, Jimmy Reid recalled stray dogs roaming “the piazzas of the Wine Alley like four-legged boulevardiers”.
“Theoretically, they got our leftovers but there were no leftovers. Scavenging was out. That was the province of the midden-rakers who lived on the proceeds. How they survived, I’ll never know. Maybe they didn’t. We were so poor that nothing of any value was thrown in the midden.
“Not even rags, for the rag and bone man came round with horse and cart and if you brought him rags he rewarded you with a wee toy or a cup and saucer. I can’t ever recall anyone bringing him bones. The only ones we had were for walking about on.”
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1. The rag and bone man
A rag and bone man heading along the street back in the day. | Supplied
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2. The rag and bone man
A rag and bone man with a cart passing a derelict tenement on Kirkland Street in Maryhill back in 1975. | Glasgow City Archives
3. The rag and bone man
The rag and bone man pictured for an STV feature back in 1972. | STV
4. The rag and bone man
Children gathered around a rag and bone mans cart in Partick back in 1950. | Glasgow City Archives