Paisley Old & New Page 2

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Paisley Old & New Photographs by past president G. Grant Page 2 of 6

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Shortly after this view was taken the building at this corner was demolished. A new building including shop and office facilities was erected on this site at the junction of High Street and Orr Square in 1934. To the rear can be seen the tower of the Orr Square Church. This was built in 1844, the year after the Great Disruption, by those members of the High Street Church congregation who split away. The new Free High Church, decided the minister, should overtop its rival. He secured a site and his ambition was to build the loftiest steeple in Paisley. Only lack of funds prevented his ambition being brought to life. Because of the regroupings after the Disruption, the Orr Square congregation are now once more a part of the Established Church of Scotland,

Broomlands is here seen from its junction with King Street and Queen Street. Broomlands Street was an integral part of the West End shopping centre. The church at the extreme left of the picture was erected in 1847. It was another of the churches erected by the new Free congregations after the Great Disruption. Martyrs’ Parish itself had only been established in 1835 and it was so called because the church had been built at Woodside, close to the monument raised to James Algie and John Park who had been executed in 1685 for their religious beliefs. In 1843, like every other Paisley parish, Martyrs’ had its quota of worshippers who wished to follow the new Free Church. They split away and built this new church at the corner of King Street.

County Square has always been the main Paisley taxi rank. Here we see the hansom cabs waiting to transport any passengers alighting at Gilmour Street Station. The shed-like building at the centre of the square is the ‘Cabbies Shelter’. Many of the townsfolk were concerned about the number of cabbies going into the public houses for a quick drink between customers. To counteract this, Mrs James Arther, the lady of Barshaw house, had this structure erected. It provided non-alcoholic refreshments such as tea, at a spot where the cabbies could keep an eye on potential customers, and so proved quite popular amongst the drivers.

The congregation of this church was originally composed of ‘English Independents' who may possibly have been a praying society of immigrant English weavers. In 1830’s they affiliated to the United Presbyterian Church and built themselves a church in St. James Street. That building was superseded by the Underwood Road Church, which was designed by Hippolyte Blanc. Besides laying the foundation stone in 1880, Sir Peter Coats indicated that he wished to donate a peal of bells, so a spire had to be incorporated into the design. Unfortunately when built, the spire tilted from the perpendicular and had to be taken down again. The generosity of Sir Peter’s sons Archibald and Peter allowed it to be re-erected and the new church was opened in March 1884.

Well Street is one of Paisley’s oldest thoroughfares. Leading towards the common land to the north of the town, and towards the good faming land at Blackstone, the street was originally called Lonewells. Like the street to which it leads (Wellmeadow) Well Street was probably an area of water supply for the West End of the town. From the 1820’s onwards, Well Street held another important feature for Paisley. The town’s first gas works was established at the foot of the street in 1823. The gasholders have remained a prominent feature of this end of town ever since.

McDonald’s ‘Bonnie Wee Well’ has always attracted large numbers of visitors, young and old alike enjoying the fine views and the fresh air to be had at the top of the Braes. Hugh MacDonald as well as being a local poet, had written the book ‘Rambles Around Glasgow’. The original memorial to him was therefore set on the Braes by the Glasgow Ramblers Club, but due to several instances of vandalism they removed it to a new site on Glasgow Green. MacDonald’s Paisley admirers, headed by the ‘Old Weavers Society’, thereupon got together to pay for a new memorial. It was unveiled by Robert Cochran, Treasurer of the Council, in 1883.

Methodism had early taken a strong hold in Paisley, contrary to the situation in many other Scottish towns. They had come to the town in the late eighteenth century but first had no fixed meeting place. However in 1810 they built a chapel at the junction of George Street and Wardrop Street which they occupied until 1854. after selling that building they seem to have had various meeting places, for example, at the end of the nineteenth century they were using the Good Templar Halls. In 1908 however they opened this building, the Central Methodist Hall, which they have used ever since.

This view of the junction of Gauze Street and Lawn Street must have been taken shortly before the final clearances of the buildings which obscured the Abbey vista. On the left can be seen Fraser and Love, one of Paisley’s fine department stores. Gauze Street shows an example of the transition from the horse to mechanised transport. Both a bus and a car can be seen in the distance. But in the foreground can be seen a delivery van still being pulled by the faithful horse.

The Royal Alexandra infirmary, named after Edward VII’s Queen, was built in Paisley as the result of Money raised by public subscription. Money also came from the holding of various fund-raising events. The foundation stone was laid by Mrs Stewart Clark, wife of a former Paisley MP, in 1897. The patients were transferred into the new building in May 1900. Many famous Paisley names were associated with various benefactions to the infirmary, but the extent of the generosity of the members of the two thread families can be measured by the fact that the eastern building was named the ‘Clark Pavillion’ and the corresponding western one the ‘Coats Pavillion’.