Springburn Virtual Museum

Springburn in transition

Springburn Road, c 1970

This picture shows Springburn Road, c1970. At this time Springburn Road was still a shopping area whose popularity was reflected by the number and variety of its shops. The shops in the tenement block on the left were occupied exclusively by the Cowlairs Co-operative Society, and those on the right by numerous individual small retailers.

However, between 1971 and 1981 the population of Springburn dropped from 53000 to 35800, and the number of shops from 339 to 93. Traffic congestion in Springburn Road became a more and more serious problem, with the new bypass still in the planning stage. Access for delivery was difficult, the only parking was on the street, and small shops had little storage space.

A new, modern shopping centre was seen as the way forward. This was opened on 30 September 1983 by Lord Provost Michael Kelly. The Cowlairs Co-operative fountain was moved from its old location at Springburn Cross, the old heart of Springburn, to the front of the new centre.

Source: Glasgow City Archives