Albany Place Townhouses
On the north side of Sauchiehall St between Scott st and Charing Cross once stood the graceful terrace of Albany Place. Comprised of 6 houses set back from the road with ample gardens, three of them once housed the [img]Royal%20School%20of%20Shorthand[/img], the
Standing Conference for Women and the
Margaret Hopkins School of Dancing.
So wot happened to them i hear you ask (
)... well...
They're still there! Hidden away behind a series of buildings that were constructed in the gardens of the houses. It's difficult to see them, theres hardly a trace visible from either Sauchiehall or Renfrew St. The only way in to the first three is through Albany chambers at 534 Sauchiehall St... something I've yet to try out!
Another has been incorporated into the Royal Highland Fusiliers Regimental Headquarters and Museum. The next has been incorporated into that den of iniquity, The Garage. The once detached villa forms the G2 club at the rear, the bar being the original drawing room. The clubs small carpark was once the yard of John Gray & Co, monumental sculptors yard, the company that repaired the Stone of Destiny after its removal from Westminster Abbey in 1950.
The last of the villas can be glimpsed only through a narrow opening in Scott St, behind thompsons Grecian Buildings. The CCA who now reside here is still indergoing it's £10.5million refit which will see the villa incorporated into the centre, set in a courtyard with a glass roof...
Get this...
"As once people could walk through the garden surrounding the villa, they will be able to walk around the cultural garden surrounding the newly created villa"