Carlton Place "Zoo"

Moderators: John, Sharon, Fossil, Lucky Poet, crusty_bint, Jazza, dazza

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby RDR » Mon Apr 25, 2011 6:55 pm

Thanks Mori. Shows it was more a pet shop than a 'zoo'.
Might be my memory is playing tricks on me but I'm sure it was eventually shut down by the corpy, possible to do with the redevelopment of Carlton Place.
He advocated for the weak against the strong, the poor against the rich and labour against capital.
User avatar
RDR
Third Stripe
Third Stripe
 
Posts: 1648
Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 9:58 pm
Location: West Coast

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby BillM » Mon Jan 16, 2012 8:50 pm

I was taken to Wilson's Zoo by an uncle some time in the 50s. But I was very young then and cannot remember much about it, just that it seemed a bit funny to have a zoo indoors.
BillM
Second Stripe
Second Stripe
 
Posts: 95
Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2010 11:07 am

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby moonbeam » Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:37 pm

I recall medical and bioligy students buying dead rats for disection from Wilsons zoo!.
moonbeam
Third Stripe
Third Stripe
 
Posts: 449
Joined: Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:32 am

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby Twizzle » Sat Mar 09, 2013 3:57 am

I don’t remember when Wilson’s Zoo was on the corner of Oswald Street and Argyle Street. I was never in it, but I understand it was also famous for having had a smell all of its own.

I believe they moved to Calton Place sometime in the early 1960s. It was a very grand building just across the suspension bridge on the Clyde front. The shop was entered by a narrow corridor, which continued to their zoo up some stairs, although a ticket costing a shilling had to be purchased at the shop counter. On the right, the actual shop opened into a large, well-lit space, filled with aquariums, cages and bookshelves. They had a Leadbeater cockatoo, which was an extremely rare beast in the 1960s. It was like Alladin’s Cave (to me anyway).

Mr Wilson, the owner, rarely seemed to be in attendance, but a slightly built lady, with white hair and a bun, called Mimi, attended the counter. Another gent called Mr Robertson ran the show. As stated in other posts, one of their attractions was a one-eyed, rather moth-eaten lion, which had survived the move across the water, and which sat panting for most of the day in a rather small cage. Apparently Mr Wilson had a brother Bert, who also owned a small pet shop in the Saltmarket.

Mr Wilson of the Zoo had a bit of a reputation in the pet trade – on one occasion he sold a venomous snake to another pet shop owner, after showing how he could handle it confidently. When the other guy got his expensive purchase back to his own shop, he noticed that the snake’s lips had been stitched together! That’s why it didn’t bite.

I did meet Mr Wilson once when I was still in primary school – they had a cage of doves and I pointed out that one of them had laid an egg. He offered it to me for 1/6d (7.5 pence). He was a real salesman - on another visit, I was handed an A4 sheet of paper looking very official, with a Wilson’s Zoo letterhead. It extolled the virtues of “Oriental Singing Crickets”, specially imported by Wilson’s, describing that they were a popular pet in the Far East because of their delicate tinkling voices, and describing how to care for them. I bought two at 3/6d each, (35 pence) completely taken in by the propaganda.

Some years later, while in secondary school, I got a summer job in Wilson's during the holidays. It was good experience feeding the animals and seeing behind the scenes. They had a lot of space that that public never saw. In the 1970s they downsized and moved to the corner of Hope Street and Argyle Street to a very small shop, ironically just across the road from where their original zoo had been. After a few years, they moved once again to “halfway down Robertson Street” (to quote an advert for a paint store of the time) where the rates were cheaper. They were always well-respected, especially amongst tropical fish keepers. I don’t know when they eventually closed. Interesting that Mr Robertson’s son is prolific in the Glasgow Police – he also used to help out during the summer months in his dad’s shop.
Twizzle
Busy bunny
Busy bunny
 
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Oct 21, 2010 12:30 am

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby RDR » Thu Mar 14, 2013 10:14 am

Twizzle wrote:Interesting that Mr Robertson’s son is prolific in the Glasgow Police – he also used to help out during the summer months in his dad’s shop.


I went to school with Mr Robertson's son, Derek or as he was known at school, Jammie (for obvious reasons). Now that he is a Chief Super in re polis, I wonder if he gets called that anymore :)
He advocated for the weak against the strong, the poor against the rich and labour against capital.
User avatar
RDR
Third Stripe
Third Stripe
 
Posts: 1648
Joined: Fri Apr 02, 2010 9:58 pm
Location: West Coast

Re: Carlton Place "Zoo"

Postby PeterR » Thu Jul 18, 2013 12:37 pm

Evidently for perhaps 3 decades in the early 20th century the building had housed a Christian mission to Highlanders.

"... the Highland Mission was finally settled in Oswald Street in what was originally St Peter's Parish Church. This fine old church was the scene of the labours of Rev. William Arnot at the time of the Disruption.

The happy settlement of the Highland Mission in these most suitable premises took place in November 1904. Here there was ample room for expansion. The church was capable of seating 1200 people, and in the times of revival blessing which followed, it was often times crowded to its utmost capacity."


From page 45 of
Stirling, H Austin: Duncan MacColl: An Apostle to Highlanders: Memoirs of the Founder of the Highland Mission, Glasgow. (published 1932)
On pages 45 and 46 it is noted that a spiritual awakening occured in the same year as the Welsh Revival in 1905, and "probably the work of the Mission reached high-water mark in the years 1906 and 1907. These years were characterised by gracious God-sent revival".

From page 150/151 it appears MacColl died in 1929, and at the time of publication (1932) the work was still ongoing but on a much smaller scale, led by Captain Alexander Henderson and with most services in Gaelic.
PeterR
Just settling in
Just settling in
 
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Jul 09, 2013 9:47 am

Previous

Return to Hidden Glasgow Projects

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 49 guests