Springburn Virtual Museum

Community life

Springburn Parish Church, with tenement clearance in foreground, 1979

Springburn Parish Church was built in 1841 for the estimated 6000 people then living in the villages of Springburn, Springvale and Provan, to the north of Glasgow. It was the last of 20 churches built at this time by the Glasgow Church-Building Society.

During the following decades, Springburn's population increased dramatically with the influx of railway workers and their families, and the membership of the church also grew rapidly. By 1900 there was a Sunday School membership of 600. However, membership fell throughout the twentieth century, and the old church was closed and then demolished in May 1982.

This picture shows the demolition of Blenheim Street and Queenshill Street as part of the general redevelopment of central Springburn, including the new access road, health centre and shopping centre. The new Springburn Parish Church, opened in May 1981, was built on a spot at the far left of this picture, incorporating fixtures and fittings from most of its constituent churches.

Source: Glasgow City Archives