Springburn
Encyclopedia
Springburn is an inner city
district in the north of the Scottish
city of Glasgow
, home to various working and middle-class households.
Springburn developed from a small rural hamlet
at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Its industrial expansion began with the establishment of a chemical works by Charles Tennant
on the newly opened Monkland Canal
at nearby St. Rollox in 1799, which later became part of the United Alkali Company
.
Later in the 19th century the construction of railway lines through the area led to the establishment of Railway works and the village became a parish
in its own right. The Glasgow and Garnkirk Railway
first opened in 1831 to supply the St. Rollox Chemical Works and the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway
was opened in 1842. Later, the City Union Line
was extended to Springburn in 1871 and the Hamiltonhill Branch
Line opened in 1894.
Initially located outwith the Glasgow boundary, the area was eventually absorbed by the City of Glasgow Corporation in 1872.
The area's economic development has a strong historical link to heavy industry, particularly railways, with the manufacturing of locomotives. In the past, Springburn's locomotive industry had a 25% global market share.
There were four main railway manufacturing sites that located in Springburn; the North British Railway
's (NBR) Cowlairs Works
in 1841, the Caledonian Railway
's St. Rollox Works
in 1856, Neilson and Company
's Hyde Park Works in 1861 and Sharp Stewart and Company's Atlas Works in 1888. The latter two eventually amalgamated to become part of the North British Locomotive Company
(NBL) in 1903. Also located in Springburn is the Eastfield Running Shed
, originally built by the North British Railway
(NBR) near the Cowlairs Works in 1904.
St. Rollox became the largest works, and is the only one still in operation today, after the collapse of the North British Locomotive Company in 1962 and the closure of Cowlairs in 1968. In 2007 Railcare limited, who also own the Wolverton Railway Works site in Milton Keynes
, took over operations at St. Rollox, from Alstom
, who had originally acquired the works from BREL
in the wake of the railway privatisation. After a significant refurbishment programme, the site currently operates as a Rolling stock
repair and maintenance facility. The former Eastfield Running Sheds are now operated as a maintenance depot by First ScotRail
and part of the former Cowlairs Works site is now operated as a signalling and maintenance depot by Network Rail
.
Another large industrial company operating in Springburn is Promat UK, which manufactures Passive fire protection
materials at the Germiston Works
on Petershill Road.
, to the park in 1893. His son Hugh Reid of Neilson, Reid and Company
's Hyde Park Works also gifted the lands of the adjacent Cockmuir Farm for the park to be extended to the east in 1900. It was at this time that Glasgow Corporation funded the construction of the Park's spectacular Winter Garden
s, in return for a £12,000 gift from Hugh Reid of the Hyde Park Works to build a Public Hall in Springburn, both buildings however are currently derelict. A statue in honour of Sir James Reid was erected in the park by public subscription in 1903.
Stobhill Hospital
was later built adjacent to the park in 1904. Mosesfield House, situated in the park, was also the site where George Johnston
built Britain's first Motor Car in 1895, which eventually grew to become the Arrol-Johnston
company.
, had also opened at Springburn in 1850. Paupers who could not support themselves were sent here by the Parish and were obliged to work at jobs such as bundling firewood, picking oakum (separating tarred rope fibres) and breaking rocks. In 1905 the Glasgow Poorhouse in Townhead
closed and its inmates went to Barnhill, making it the largest poorhouse in Scotland. In 1945 it was renamed Foresthall House and Hospital and was thereafter used as a geriatric hospital and residential home. It was demolished in the late 1980s and a private housing development now stands on the site.
were a founder member of the Scottish Football League
in 1890 but were bankrupt by 1896. Petershill F.C.
was founded in 1897 and continues to play today at New Petershill Park
, a modern stadium with a 2000 capacity, including a 562 all seated stand.
, such as Balornock
and also Post-war
housing schemes such as those in Balgrayhill, Barmulloch
and Sighthill
. Barmulloch also included the High rise development at Red Road
.
The old urban centre of Springburn was heavily affected by the redevelopment of the area in the 1960s. Selected as one of Glasgow's "Comprehensive Development Areas", Springburn saw the construction of a sequence of housing estates and a major dual carriageway, the A803 road
(originally designed to be the northern link to the aborted Glasgow Inner Ring Road
) which transformed the area completely. The handful of Victorian
villas which remain around Balgrayhill and some sandstone tenements in Keppochill and central Springburn are only a fraction of what formed the dense urban community that had gone before. There are however various suburban middle class areas such as Forest Hall, Fernbank and Colston
, which were largely unaffected by the revelopment.
The regeneration vision remained incomplete, and by the mid-1980s Springburn had become one of Glasgow's most notorious areas, exacerbated by decaying housing and lack of major employers to replace the decline in the railway industry, despite the creation of North Glasgow College
at the former North British Locomotive Company headquarters in 1965. Since then, there has however been further efforts to regenerate the area.
More recently the area of Keppochill Road, which links Springburn with Possilpark
, has been regenerated through the work of the West of Scotland Housing Association Ltd, many of the Victorian sandstone tenement flats in Gourlay Street, Carlisle Street and Keppochill Road have been renovated and work continues to maintain and improve housing in the area.
New build developments in recent years has seen Glasgow Housing Association
high-rise flats demolished or refurbished and new modern low rise houses built in the area. West of Scotland housing Association now has a head office based at 252 Keppochill Road however the interest of the charitable organisation extends into Ayrshire and Lanarkshire. The most notable surviving architectural feature in this area, the former Public Hall, was opened in 1902 and designed by William B. Whitie, who also designed Springburn's public Carnegie library
. Since closing in the mid-1980s, the Springburn Public Halls have however fallen into a state of chronic dereliction.
and Barnhill railway station
, offering regular commuter services on the North Clyde
and Cumbernauld
lines of the Glasgow suburban rail network. The area is also served by numerous bus routes.
, singer Sydney MacEwan
, musician Duncan Campbell
, broadcasters and writers Tom Weir
and his sister Molly
, the railway author John Thomas
, the politicians John McAllion
and Frank McAveety. Springburn's former MP, Michael Martin
, was the Speaker of the House of Commons from 2000 to 2009. Martin Boyd, a local resident, was the last man in the UK hanged for rape.
Inner city
The inner city is the central area of a major city or metropolis. In the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Ireland, the term is often applied to the lower-income residential districts in the city centre and nearby areas...
district in the north of the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
city of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, home to various working and middle-class households.
Springburn developed from a small rural hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Its industrial expansion began with the establishment of a chemical works by Charles Tennant
Charles Tennant
Charles Tennant was a Scottish chemist and industrialist. He discovered bleaching powder and founded an industrial dynasty.- Biography:...
on the newly opened Monkland Canal
Monkland Canal
The Monkland Canal was a 12.25-mile canal which connected the coal mining areas of Monklands to Glasgow in Scotland. It was opened in 1794, and included a steam-powered inclined plane at Blackhill. It was abandoned for navigation in 1942, but its culverted remains still supply water to the Forth...
at nearby St. Rollox in 1799, which later became part of the United Alkali Company
United Alkali Company
United Alkali Company Limited was a British chemical company formed in 1890. Producer of soda ash by the Leblanc process and used in the glass, textile, soap, and paper industries. It became one of the top four British chemical companies merged in 1926 with Brunner Mond, Nobel Explosives and...
.
Later in the 19th century the construction of railway lines through the area led to the establishment of Railway works and the village became a parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
in its own right. The Glasgow and Garnkirk Railway
Glasgow and Garnkirk Railway
The Garnkirk and Glasgow Railway was incorporated on 26 May 1826 and was ceremonially opened on 27 September 1831. It was built to the Scotch gauge of...
first opened in 1831 to supply the St. Rollox Chemical Works and the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway
Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway
The Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway was a railway built to link Glasgow and Edinburgh. The Act of Parliament for building the railway received its Royal Assent in 1838 which was open on 28 July 1863. Services started between Glasgow Queen Street and Haymarket on 21 February 1842. The line was...
was opened in 1842. Later, the City Union Line
City Union Line
The City of Glasgow Union Railway - City Union Line , is a railway line in Glasgow, Scotland. The line is still open, with the section north of Bellgrove still open to passenger trains.-Description of the route:...
was extended to Springburn in 1871 and the Hamiltonhill Branch
Hamiltonhill Branch
The Hamiltonhill Branch was constructed by the Caledonian Railway in 1894 with the intention to provide a large goods yard at Hamiltonhill on the Forth and Clyde Canal...
Line opened in 1894.
Initially located outwith the Glasgow boundary, the area was eventually absorbed by the City of Glasgow Corporation in 1872.
Industrial development
There were four main railway manufacturing sites that located in Springburn; the North British Railway
North British Railway
The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923.-History:...
's (NBR) Cowlairs Works
Cowlairs railway works
Cowlairs Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Works , at Cowlairs in Springburn, an area in the north-east of Glasgow, Scotland, was built in 1841 for the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway and was taken over by the North British Railway in 1865. It was named after the nearby mansion of Cowlairs, with both...
in 1841, the Caledonian Railway
Caledonian Railway
The Caledonian Railway was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century and it was absorbed almost a century later into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, in the 1923 railway grouping, by means of the Railways Act 1921...
's St. Rollox Works
St. Rollox railway works
St. Rollox Locomotive Works and St Rollox Carriage and Wagon Works were built in 1856 in Springburn, an area in the north-east of Glasgow, for the Caledonian Railway, moving away from their works at Greenock...
in 1856, Neilson and Company
Neilson and Company
Neilson and Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Glasgow, Scotland.The company was started in 1836 at McAlpine Street by Walter Neilson and James Mitchell to manufacture marine and stationary engines...
's Hyde Park Works in 1861 and Sharp Stewart and Company's Atlas Works in 1888. The latter two eventually amalgamated to become part of the North British Locomotive Company
North British Locomotive Company
The North British Locomotive Company was created in 1903 through the merger of three Glasgow locomotive manufacturing companies; Sharp Stewart and Company , Neilson, Reid and Company and Dübs and Company , creating the largest locomotive manufacturing company in Europe.Its main factories were...
(NBL) in 1903. Also located in Springburn is the Eastfield Running Shed
Motive power depot
Motive power depot, usually abbreviated to MPD, is a name given to places where locomotives are stored when not being used, and also repaired and maintained. They were originally known as "running sheds", "engine sheds", or, for short, just sheds. Facilities are provided for refuelling and...
, originally built by the North British Railway
North British Railway
The North British Railway was a Scottish railway company that was absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at the Grouping in 1923.-History:...
(NBR) near the Cowlairs Works in 1904.
St. Rollox became the largest works, and is the only one still in operation today, after the collapse of the North British Locomotive Company in 1962 and the closure of Cowlairs in 1968. In 2007 Railcare limited, who also own the Wolverton Railway Works site in Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
, took over operations at St. Rollox, from Alstom
Alstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
, who had originally acquired the works from BREL
BREL
British Rail Engineering Limited , was the railway systems engineering division of British Rail, until the design and building of trains in the UK was privatised in 1993. On 31 October 1969, the company was incorporated as British Rail Engineering Limited.-Main products:The vast majority of BREL's...
in the wake of the railway privatisation. After a significant refurbishment programme, the site currently operates as a Rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
repair and maintenance facility. The former Eastfield Running Sheds are now operated as a maintenance depot by First ScotRail
First ScotRail
ScotRail Railways Ltd. is the FirstGroup-owned train operating company running domestic passenger trains within Scotland, northern England and the cross-border Caledonian Sleeper service to London using the brand ScotRail which is the property of the Scottish Government...
and part of the former Cowlairs Works site is now operated as a signalling and maintenance depot by Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
.
Another large industrial company operating in Springburn is Promat UK, which manufactures Passive fire protection
Passive fire protection
Passive fire protection is an integral component of the three components of structural fire protection and fire safety in a building. PFP attempts to contain fires or slow the spread, through use of fire-resistant walls, floors, and doors...
materials at the Germiston Works
Germiston, Glasgow
Germiston is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde.The area forms part of the suburb of Springburn for political purposes, but is more commonly referred to as part of the Royston corridor,its location midway between Blackhill & Garngad earns it a...
on Petershill Road.
Social development
Springburn Park
The highest point in Springburn and of the City of Glasgow is its famous park on Balgrayhill, 364 feet above sea level. Springburn Park was opened by Glasgow Corporation in 1892 and laid out to a design by the City Engineer, Alexander B. McDonald. James Reid, a business colleague of locomotive manufacturer Walter Neilson, gifted a bandstand, built by the Saracen FoundrySaracen Foundry
The Saracen Foundry was the better known name for the Possilpark, Glasgow based foundry company W MacFarlane & Co. Ltd, founded and owned by Walter MacFarlane. Macfarlane's was the most important manufacturer of ornamental ironwork in Scotland....
, to the park in 1893. His son Hugh Reid of Neilson, Reid and Company
Neilson and Company
Neilson and Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Glasgow, Scotland.The company was started in 1836 at McAlpine Street by Walter Neilson and James Mitchell to manufacture marine and stationary engines...
's Hyde Park Works also gifted the lands of the adjacent Cockmuir Farm for the park to be extended to the east in 1900. It was at this time that Glasgow Corporation funded the construction of the Park's spectacular Winter Garden
Winter Garden
Winter Garden may refer to:* A winter garden, winter-hardy plants grown for winter interest and decoration, or to be harvested for food between winter and early spring.-Places:* Winter Garden, California, former community in Kern County...
s, in return for a £12,000 gift from Hugh Reid of the Hyde Park Works to build a Public Hall in Springburn, both buildings however are currently derelict. A statue in honour of Sir James Reid was erected in the park by public subscription in 1903.
Stobhill Hospital
Stobhill Hospital
Stobhill Hospital is an Ambulatory Care and Diagnostic Hospital, located in the district of Springburn in the north of Glasgow, Scotland. It serves the population of North Glasgow and part of East Dunbartonshire.-History:...
was later built adjacent to the park in 1904. Mosesfield House, situated in the park, was also the site where George Johnston
George Johnston (Engineer)
George Johnston was a Scottish engineer, who spent the early part of his career in locomotive engineering before designing and constructing Scotland's first automobile, the Mo-Car, which led to the formation of the Arrol-Johnston Car Company Ltd....
built Britain's first Motor Car in 1895, which eventually grew to become the Arrol-Johnston
Arrol-Johnston
Arrol-Johnston was an early Scottish manufacturer of automobiles, which operated from 1896 to 1931 and produced the first automobile manufactured in Britain...
company.
Barnhill Poorhouse
The Barnhill PoorhousePoorhouse
A poorhouse or workhouse was a government-run facility in the past for the support and housing of dependent or needy persons, typically run by a local government entity such as a county or municipality....
, had also opened at Springburn in 1850. Paupers who could not support themselves were sent here by the Parish and were obliged to work at jobs such as bundling firewood, picking oakum (separating tarred rope fibres) and breaking rocks. In 1905 the Glasgow Poorhouse in Townhead
Townhead
-Location:Townhead has no fixed boundaries. In ancient times it was the undeveloped area north of the cathedral and town. If we use this description then it is bordered to the west by the area of Cowcaddens, to the north by Sighthill and the east by Royston and south by Merchant City...
closed and its inmates went to Barnhill, making it the largest poorhouse in Scotland. In 1945 it was renamed Foresthall House and Hospital and was thereafter used as a geriatric hospital and residential home. It was demolished in the late 1980s and a private housing development now stands on the site.
Sport
Local football team Cowlairs F.C.Cowlairs F.C.
Cowlairs Football Club was a 19th century football club from Glasgow, Scotland. One of the founder members of the Scottish Football League in 1890, the club was based in Cowlairs, in the Springburn area of the city.-History:...
were a founder member of the Scottish Football League
Scottish Football League
The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...
in 1890 but were bankrupt by 1896. Petershill F.C.
Petershill F.C.
Petershill Football Club are a Scottish football club from Springburn in the north of Glasgow. Nicknamed the Peasy, they were formed in 1897 and are traditionally one of the stronger clubs at their level, although they have not been as successful in recent years as they have historically.The play...
was founded in 1897 and continues to play today at New Petershill Park
Petershill Park
Petershill Park is a leisure centre located in the Springburn suburb of Glasgow, the largest city in Scotland. It has its own stadium, a third generation full-size outdoor football pitch, and has floodlights. It is host to one mens football team, Petershill, and two ladies teams, Glasgow City...
, a modern stadium with a 2000 capacity, including a 562 all seated stand.
Regeneration
Springburn continued to see expansion, with the area incorporating housing schemes that were developed in the Interwar periodInterwar period
Interwar period can refer to any period between two wars. The Interbellum is understood to be the period between the end of the Great War or First World War and the beginning of the Second World War in Europe....
, such as Balornock
Balornock
Balornock is a district in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. Situated outside the city centre, north of the River Clyde, it forms part of the larger area of Springburn....
and also Post-war
Post-war
A post-war period or postwar period is the interval immediately following the ending of a war and enduring as long as war does not resume. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum when a war between the same parties resumes at a later date...
housing schemes such as those in Balgrayhill, Barmulloch
Barmulloch
Barmulloch is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde. Formerly rural, it was developed as a post war overspill housing area, largely featuring Prefabricated housing. Barmulloch shares the Red Road complex of multi-storey flats with the neighbouring...
and Sighthill
Sighthill, Glasgow
Sighthill is a Housing estate in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde.Sighthill is part of the wider Springburn district in the North of the city...
. Barmulloch also included the High rise development at Red Road
Red Road (flats)
The Red Road Flats are a high-rise housing complex which lies between the districts of Balornock and Barmulloch in the north east of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It consists of eight multi-storey blocks. Two are "slabs", much wider in cross-section than they are deep. Six are "points" — more of a...
.
The old urban centre of Springburn was heavily affected by the redevelopment of the area in the 1960s. Selected as one of Glasgow's "Comprehensive Development Areas", Springburn saw the construction of a sequence of housing estates and a major dual carriageway, the A803 road
A803 road
The A803 is a road in central Scotland. It runs from Glasgow to Champany Corner .-Route:Beginning at Springburn in Glasgow, the A803 passes through the towns of Bishopbriggs, Kirkintilloch, Kilsyth, Banknock, Haggs, Bonnybridge, Falkirk, Laurieston, ending east of Linlithgow.It connects to the...
(originally designed to be the northern link to the aborted Glasgow Inner Ring Road
Glasgow Inner Ring Road
The Glasgow Inner Ring Road was a proposed ring road encircling the city centre of Glasgow, Scotland. Construction of the roads began in 1965, and half of its circumference was completed by 1972, but no subsequent construction was made and the remaining plans were formally abandoned in 1980...
) which transformed the area completely. The handful of Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
villas which remain around Balgrayhill and some sandstone tenements in Keppochill and central Springburn are only a fraction of what formed the dense urban community that had gone before. There are however various suburban middle class areas such as Forest Hall, Fernbank and Colston
Colston
Colston is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde. Colston is on the northern edge of Glasgow, surrounded by the areas of Springburn and Milton and the town of Bishopbriggs to the north...
, which were largely unaffected by the revelopment.
The regeneration vision remained incomplete, and by the mid-1980s Springburn had become one of Glasgow's most notorious areas, exacerbated by decaying housing and lack of major employers to replace the decline in the railway industry, despite the creation of North Glasgow College
North Glasgow College
North Glasgow College is a college located at Springburn in Glasgow and one of the main providers of further education in the city. After the liquidation of the North British Locomotive Company in 1961, the main administration building of the company was bought by Glasgow Corporation and used as an...
at the former North British Locomotive Company headquarters in 1965. Since then, there has however been further efforts to regenerate the area.
More recently the area of Keppochill Road, which links Springburn with Possilpark
Possilpark
Possilpark is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow, situated north of the River Clyde. Following the closure of the Saracen Foundry in 1967, this section of Glasgow has become one of the poorest in the United Kingdom, with an above average crime rate....
, has been regenerated through the work of the West of Scotland Housing Association Ltd, many of the Victorian sandstone tenement flats in Gourlay Street, Carlisle Street and Keppochill Road have been renovated and work continues to maintain and improve housing in the area.
New build developments in recent years has seen Glasgow Housing Association
Glasgow Housing Association
Glasgow Housing Association is one of the largest social landlords in the UK, with more than 50,000 tenants and 26,500 factored homeowners across Glasgow....
high-rise flats demolished or refurbished and new modern low rise houses built in the area. West of Scotland housing Association now has a head office based at 252 Keppochill Road however the interest of the charitable organisation extends into Ayrshire and Lanarkshire. The most notable surviving architectural feature in this area, the former Public Hall, was opened in 1902 and designed by William B. Whitie, who also designed Springburn's public Carnegie library
Carnegie library
A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. 2,509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929, including some belonging to public and university library systems...
. Since closing in the mid-1980s, the Springburn Public Halls have however fallen into a state of chronic dereliction.
Transport
The Springburn area is served by Springburn railway stationSpringburn railway station
Springburn Railway Station serves the Springburn district of Glasgow, Scotland. The station is 2 km north of Glasgow Queen Street station on the Cumbernauld Line and is a terminus of the Springburn branch, a spur from Bellgrove Station, on the North Clyde Line.Cumbernauld Line trains, running...
and Barnhill railway station
Barnhill railway station
Barnhill Railway Station is in Glasgow, Scotland north of Glasgow Queen Street railway station on the Springburn branch of the North Clyde Line...
, offering regular commuter services on the North Clyde
North Clyde Line
The North Clyde Line is a suburban railway in West Central Scotland. The route is operated by First ScotRail, on behalf of Transport Scotland...
and Cumbernauld
Cumbernauld Line
The Cumbernauld Line is a suburban railway line linking Glasgow and Cumbernauld in Scotland. It is part of the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport network.On weekdays and Saturdays, alternate trains continue towards Falkirk Grahamston....
lines of the Glasgow suburban rail network. The area is also served by numerous bus routes.
Noted residents
Many people from Springburn have left their mark on the world, some of more the famous being Scottish International footballer James McFaddenJames McFadden
James McFadden is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Everton.McFadden started his career with Scottish Premier League club Motherwell. He came to prominence in the 2002–03 season by scoring 19 goals and winning the Scottish PFA Young Player of the Year award....
, singer Sydney MacEwan
Sydney MacEwan
Canon Sydney Alfred MacEwan was a Scottish tenor and singer of traditional Scottish and Irish songs.He was born and brought up in the Springburn area of Glasgow by his mother alone after his father left the family. Sydney was the younger of two brothers. His mother was Irish, from near Portadown,...
, musician Duncan Campbell
Duncan Campbell (musician)
Duncan Campbell is a world renowned trumpet player, famously playing with Ted Heath and his Orchestra, Ronnie Scott, Syd Lawrence and the BBC Big Band. He is married to June Pressley, Elvis Presley's cousin and regular of the Ivy Benson Band.- Early life :Duncan Campbell was born May 1926 in...
, broadcasters and writers Tom Weir
Tom Weir
Thomas Weir MBE, better known as Tom was a Scottish climber, author and broadcaster. He was best known for his long-running television series Weir's Way and his trademark woolly bunnet.-Early life and career:...
and his sister Molly
Molly Weir
Mary Weir, better known as Molly Weir, was a Scottish stage actress, most notable for her role as the long-running character Hazel the McWitch in the BBC TV series Rentaghost. She was the sister of naturalist and broadcaster Tom Weir.Born in Glasgow and brought up in the Springburn area of the...
, the railway author John Thomas
John Thomas (author)
John Thomas was a Scottish railway author based in Springburn, Glasgow.Most of his books were published by the Newton Abbot based publisher David & Charles.-Books:* The Springburn Story: The History of the Scottish Railway Metropolis. ....
, the politicians John McAllion
John McAllion
John McAllion is a former Labour Party convener of Tayside Regional Council, Member of Parliament and Member of the Scottish Parliament , and a campaigner for Oxfam in Scotland...
and Frank McAveety. Springburn's former MP, Michael Martin
Michael Martin (politician)
Michael John Martin, Baron Martin of Springburn, PC is a British politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Glasgow Springburn from 1979 to 2005, and then for Glasgow North East until 2009...
, was the Speaker of the House of Commons from 2000 to 2009. Martin Boyd, a local resident, was the last man in the UK hanged for rape.