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Bombs over Glasgow in WW2

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 9:54 pm
by Socceroo
From time to time having read various books on Glasgow i come across accounts of Bombs that fell on Glasgow during WW2.

I know there is a a fairly comprehensive account of the Clydebank Blitz by I McPhail giving detail of the raids over the burgh in March 1941. Is there any such books detailing events over Glasgow?

From various sources i am aware of bombs in Kelvinside, Hyndland, Kelvinway on the bridge, Govan Docks, Plantation, Govan Road near Southern General, St Anthonys FC near Ibrox, Queens Park Church and Barrowland.

Does anyone have any further Glasgow sites to add to the list or any links. I have had a good look through HG forums but it is that big now it is difficult to see if this topic has been fully covered.

Re: BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 10:05 pm
by AlanM
SOCCEROO wrote:From various sources i am aware of bombs in Kelvinside, Hyndland, Kelvinway on the bridge, Govan Docks, Plantation, Govan Road near Southern General, St Anthonys FC near Ibrox, Queens Park Church and Barrowland.

Does anyone have any further Glasgow sites to add to the list or any links. I have had a good look through HG forums but it is that big now it is difficult to see if this topic has been fully covered.


I believe that Peel St. in Partick (opposite WOSCC) took some hits, The land lay empty until about 15 years ago or so when Partick Housing Association built shared ownership flats on it.

Some other parts of Partick suffered some minor damage. There are some hefty cracks in the cellar of the tenement my parents live in, which have been attributed to bomb damage during the war

HTH
Alan

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 10:23 pm
by Schiehallion
I recall reading about 3 city centre buildings which took hits and were later pulled down.

The first one was the Victorian building at the north-east corner of George Square (next to the Copthorne). Here it is to the left of North Frederick St at the laying of the City Chambers foundation stone.
Image

The other two are across the road from each other at the junction of Ingram St and Queen St. This one took a hit and has been replaced with the Bank of Scotland.
Image

I've never found a picture of the other one where the Art Store now is but here's its replacement being built.
Image

BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 10:56 pm
by Socceroo
Thanks for that. Spot on - brilliant photographs. I think i have some pretty rare photographs of bomb damage in Barrowland that i will post.

I recall as a child being told first hand, by older friends of my parents about German Parachute mines falling on the Plantation area behind Paisley Road Toll.

I remember the beautiful, athough dilapidated terraces in this area which were punctuated by the odd gap bomb site right up until the mid - late 1970's.

I also recall being told by my late grandfather about the heavy loss of life when stray bombs flattened a tenement block on Govan Road opposite where the Pilkington (Barr & Stroud) factory now sits. The gap site is occupied by a Petrol station.

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 11:27 pm
by germistonguy
Not bombs as such, but this might trigger someone elses thoughts. I have vague memories of my granny telling me how she watched a German aircraft, which had been shot at, going down. She was watching from Germiston and looking over towards Petershill road/Springburn area. Can't remember for sure if she said exactly where the aircraft came down - could have been Springburn/Bishopbriggs - like I said vague memories. I would be curious to know if anyone can put anything concrete behind this.

PostPosted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 11:37 pm
by The_Clincher
I've heard accounts of Kilmun St in Maryhill being decimated during WW2 with the sky being "black" with Luftwaffe planes.

Maybe some on here will be able to give you more info....i will gather anecdotal evidence in due course and post my findings on here. :)

BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 12:03 am
by Socceroo
I wonder if there was ever such a thing as map produced of all the bomb sites in Glasgow during or after WW2 or would this have been sensitive information?

Maybe it would be possible to produce such a map now?

Apparently the park / areas around the slope of Yorkhill Hospital was bombed / targeted during the war as there was significant Ack Ack gun installations and military establishments in this area.

Bombed

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 12:33 am
by Dexter St. Clair
Bankhead school in Knightswood was bombed.

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 8:13 am
by Seamey
See if you have a look at the north side of Queen Margaret Bridge, you can see some damage caused by shrapnel from a bomb. The site at the bottom corner of Fergus Drive and Wilton Street was bombed

Re: BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 8:32 am
by AlanM
SOCCEROO wrote:I wonder if there was ever such a thing as map produced of all the bomb sites in Glasgow during or after WW2 or would this have been sensitive information?

Maybe it would be possible to produce such a map now?

Apparently the park / areas around the slope of Yorkhill Hospital was bombed / targeted during the war as there was significant Ack Ack gun installations and military establishments in this area.


I suppose the starting point for researching this would be to look at newspapers of the time, Mitchell Library here we come

Alan

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 9:28 am
by escotregen
SOCCEROO another site of actual bomb damage is the 4 in a block of flats at the corner of Stonelaw Road and Dryborough Avenue in Rutherglen. This block sustained a direct hit and was badly damaged. Across Stonelaw Road where the Takare sheltered housing complex now is there used to be playing fields. I believe that the playing fields were constructed over some bomb craters from the same bombing run. It was believed at the time that the Luftwaffe were trying night time bombing of the nearby steel and other plant at Cambuslang, and maybe Ravescraig.
The nearby tenement block I lived in for a while in Stonelaw Road had some old well-settled internal structural cracks still evident - my old neighbour maintained that this was shock-wave damage from the bombing raid.

A while back Fossil posted the picture of a tramcar running by the very spot on Stonelaw Road - fasciniting wee item was that you could see the 'Black-out' white rings painted around the tree trunks.

I also started a thread a few months back you may be interested in. That was on WW2 brick built shelters (not the Anderson shelters) of which there are some remaining examples in Kings Park/Croftfoot.

Re: BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 10:09 am
by azimuth1
SOCCEROO wrote:From time to time having read various books on Glasgow i come across accounts of Bombs that fell on Glasgow during WW2.

I know there is a a fairly comprehensive account of the Clydebank Blitz by I McPhail giving detail of the raids over the burgh in March 1941. Is there any such books detailing events over Glasgow?

From various sources i am aware of bombs in Kelvinside, Hyndland, Kelvinway on the bridge, Govan Docks, Plantation, Govan Road near Southern General, St Anthonys FC near Ibrox, Queens Park Church and Barrowland.

Does anyone have any further Glasgow sites to add to the list or any links. I have had a good look through HG forums but it is that big now it is difficult to see if this topic has been fully covered.


Worth a look.Scroll down to Peace

http://www.glasgowsculpture.com/pg_imag ... nwaybridge

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 10:26 am
by crusty_bint
There was supposed to have been a Nazi fighter crash landed in Tolcross park too, adjacent to St Marks primary school on Muiryfauld Dr.

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 11:41 am
by The_Clincher

BOMBS OVER GLASGOW

PostPosted: Wed Sep 21, 2005 1:18 pm
by Socceroo
I read the Glasgow Story link article posted by The Clincher. Pretty horific stuff with 110 people wiped out in Nelson Street and 83 deaths in Kilmun Street.

I know the Clydebank Blitz was concentrated and a well documented event, but i was intrigued to find out that over a longer period of time during the war more people were killed in Glasgow than during the two nights in Clydebank.

Time to document it as fully as possible i think, that is if it has not already been done.