Glasgow's terrible fire history documented in new book

Now, a new book tells the stories of hundreds of blazes from through the centuries – and pays tribute to the resilience of Glaswegians.

Glasgow’s Burning, by Vince McGlennan, is a comprehensive, eye-opening account of some of the famous fires still talked about today, as well as many lesser-known tragedies.

Cheapside Street, 1960 (Image: Newsquest)

For example, the Cheapside Street fire of 1960, when 19 firemen and salvage crew lost their lives, is well-documented.

But the same warehouses and surrounding streets actually had a narrow escape 63 years earlier.

Distressed onlookers at the Cheapside Street fire in 1960 (Image: NEWSQUEST)

On January 16, 1897, streams of burning oil destroyed riverside buildings when a fire broke out in the warehouse of Anderston and Kingston Storage Company.

Vince’s book reveals that the bonded warehouse of RR Grant, where huge quantities of spirits were stored, avoided the fire, narrowly averting catastrophe.

In March 1960 – just days before the Cheapside Street disaster - a mile away on Pointhouse Road in Yorkhill, huge quantities of whisky did go up in smoke when fire destroyed a storage shed.

Around 125,000 gallons, which was on its way to the US, burned so brightly the glare from the fire could be seen from many miles away.

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Vince reveals in the book: “So fierce was the blaze that a fire engine was stationed across the river on the Southside as a precaution against buildings there being caught up in the conflagration.

“Forty fire appliances and 100 firemen fought the Sunday night fire until it was eventually tamed. Bad as the incident was, it could have been worse were it not for a strong, fireproof door which separated the doomed shed from another containing other goods for export – tractors, cars, electrical equipment, and even more whisky.”

The book contains hard-to-find details and shows how Glasgow's people rose to the challenge and inspired new firefighting equipment and techniques. It also tells tales of incredible heroism by fire crews and ordinary Glaswegians.

In 1976, on Royston Road, the smell of smoke woke Mrs Sylvia McIntyre who immediately roused her sleeping children and passed them out of the window into the arms of neighbours. She was then overcome by fumes and fell back into the children’s bedroom.

Stephen Kennan, a 15-year-old pupil from St Roch’s Secondary, managed to pull Mrs McIntyre out of the burning house where neighbours helped to take her to safety. The flat was totally destroyed.

In April, 1957, on Acrehill Street in Blackhill, George Curdie, 15, climbed 30ft up a pipe into a flat to rescue Elizabeth Corkin, 60, who was recovering from illness, and trapped by a fire.

He was unable to remove her from danger, but stayed in the flat, reassuring her until the firemen ran a ladder up and brought her down. George received the Macdonald Award for Bravery the following month.

Vince and Jim with Dr Irene O'Brien of Glasgow City Archives (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

At a special launch event in the Mitchell Library, author Vince was joined by former firefighter Jim Smith, who served in the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service for 31 years, and Glasgow City Archives director Dr Irene O’Brien.

Vince did much of his research at the Mitchell, where the City Archives and its Special Collections are based.

Jim co-wrote Tinderbox Heroes, a book about the Cheapside fire and the extreme challenges faced by Glasgow’s postwar fire service.

Jim Smith (Image: Colin Mearns/Newsquest)

Vince McGlennan was born and bred in the East End. He went to school and university in Glasgow, attending Strathclyde University as a mature student.

There he became student president - then, and still, the oldest to have that honour.

He has lived in various parts of the city over the years and describes himself as a “Glasgowphile.”

“I love Glasgow with a passion – its places, its politics, its style, its history, its architecture, its people,” he says. “Especially its people.”

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The book is full of tragedy, but it is also full of hope, explains Vince.

“Glaswegians are uniquely gifted in their ability to endure fortune’s vicissitudes and come up smiling,” he says.

“Time and again the kind hearts of Glaswegians shine as neighbours give help, comfort and accommodation in the aftermath of fires big and small.

“The spectrum of human behaviour can be found among the matter-of-fact accounts of fires and similarly distressful events recorded here.”

Glasgow's Burning, published by Ringwood, is out now.