Street scenes and familiar buildings in Glasgow as they were in the 1800s

By Paul Trainer

Editor

Published 15th May 2024, 12:01 GMT

Updated 19th Dec 2024, 15:53 GMT

A look back at an era that defined much of the modern look of Glasgow through photographs and etchings from the time.

Glasgow in the 1800s saw a period of exceptional urban growth for the city. Building of infrastructure, warehouses, grand civic buildings and the expanding thoroughfares set out the template for modern Glasgow. Many of the streets have changed utterly since then, some retain their character from the 19th Century. These photographs and images of street scenes capture a time of change for the city.

Circa 1895: Passers-by and horse-drawn traffic in Jamaica Street.

1. Jamaica Street

Circa 1895: Passers-by and horse-drawn traffic in Jamaica Street. | Getty Images

Circa 1860: Women drying their linen near a fairground beside the Hutcheson Bridge over the River Clyde, a masonry arch bridge, designed by Robert Stevenson, grandfather to the author Robert Louis Stevenson. It was demolished in 1868 and replaced by the Albert Bridge, that still stands today.

An engraving by T A Prior after a sketch by T H Haine from a painting by W Hervey.

2. Hutcheson Bridge

Circa 1860: Women drying their linen near a fairground beside the Hutcheson Bridge over the River Clyde, a masonry arch bridge, designed by Robert Stevenson, grandfather to the author Robert Louis Stevenson. It was demolished in 1868 and replaced by the Albert Bridge, that still stands today. An engraving by T A Prior after a sketch by T H Haine from a painting by W Hervey. | Getty Images

The new General Post Office buildings in Glasgow city centre, circa 1880, with an Italianate facade by Robert Matheson. The foundation stone was laid in 1876 by the Prince of Wales at the time, who later became Edward VII.

3. GPO Building

The new General Post Office buildings in Glasgow city centre, circa 1880, with an Italianate facade by Robert Matheson. The foundation stone was laid in 1876 by the Prince of Wales at the time, who later became Edward VII. | Getty Images

Gardner's Warehouse on Jamaica Street from March 1856. It is the oldest completely cast iron fronted commercial building surviving in the UK, better known as the Crystal Palace bar.

4. 15th March 1856: An iron and glass warehouse

Gardner's Warehouse on Jamaica Street from March 1856. It is the oldest completely cast iron fronted commercial building surviving in the UK, better known as the Crystal Palace bar. | Getty Images

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