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Sunday, 1st August 2010

 
Gartcosh


The village of Gartcosh owes its existence to the steelworks that for so long dominated the local landscape. The works was established in 1865 on the north side of the Garnkirk 8G Glasgow Railway, by the firm of William Gray 8a Co. It was known at first as Woodneuk Iron Works, and indeed was then concerned with the production of malleable iron.

Two rows of houses were constructed immediately adjacent to the works, for the accommodation of the ironworkers. To a large extent they were occupied by migrants from the Midlands of England, with a few from South Wales. Gartcosh was for many years notable for the number of English surnames in evidence.

In 1872 the works was taken over by the firm of Smith 8G McLean, under whose ownership it developed into an important steelworks. During the late 1890s and early 1900s Smith 8s McLean provided new brick-built houses for their workers in Lochend Road and plots immediately adjacent. Two of the terraces were named McLean Place and Smith Terrace, after the firm. Gartcosh Steelworks eventually passed into the ownership of Colvilles Ltd, who opened a cold reduction steel strip mill at Gartcosh in 1963, in conjunction with their larger operation at Ravenscraig, near Motherwell. Despite a high-profile campaign to save it, Gartcosh Strip Mill was eventually closed by the British Steel Corporation in 1986. By that date the former Smith 8s McLean houses in Lochend Road had already gone, replaced by a new housing development in the Mowbray Avenue/Eastgate vicinity.

Another important industry at Gartcosh was the fireclay works, established by James Binnie in 1863. Although mostly concerned with firebrick manufacture, during the early years its output was much more varied, extending to garden vases and pedestals, garden edges, fountains, chimney cans, roof tiles, cattle troughs, sewage pipes and other products. It was one of a group of such businesses in the area, with others at Cardowan, Garnkirk, Heathfield and Glenboig. Gartcosh Eireclay Works eventually closed down in the 1950s, when local supplies of fireclay were exhausted.
 
 

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