Before Earlspark Avenue there was nothing but arable land. It lay at the bottom of the Parish Road from Millbrae to Langside Village, on the south side of the River Cart. The Parish Road is now Millbrae Hill and of course, there is no longer a Langside Village. That is a completely redeveloped (twice) Battlefield Hill and Monument. The value of land is what you can use it for or build upon it and the Earlspark Avenue and surrounding areas have been developed into housing from bare land that was sold off by, among other landowners, Sir John Maxwell Stirling.
A recent research trip to Glasgow City Archives led me to a hand drawn map of what was known as the Langside Estate. It was published in 1845 and shows the land as it was then known and who owned it.
At the top of the hill that the Parish Road led up to was the estate that surrounded the old Langside House. A mansion house reputedly designed by Robert Adam. This house and the estate has long been associated with names of roads and properties around this hill Mansion House Road is still a popular road with interesting housing. Above it is a new development of housing.
Langside House (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections,Dougal Collection. From theglasgowstory.com )
On the 1845 map the site of the mansion and its surrounding gardens are clearly drawn.
But my interest is at the bottom of the hill along the River Cart. Here, on the north side of the bridge that crosses the Cart, known today as the Langside Avenue Bridge but properly known as the Millbrae Bridge, is the site of the old Mill. This was an oat meal mill which had a sluice running off from the Cart. I am presuming that it was there to mill the oats coming from arable land that surrounded the western side of the hill that can be seen around the bend of the river. There is a public footpath that leads from the mill right through this land and leading to what is now known as Battlefield. It follows the course of the mill race that has its entrance up river. There is no sign of this mill race today and it must have been filled in during the massive building programme to create housing in the Battlefield and Cathcart area.
The course of what would become Earlspark Avenue follows the line of the River Cart and above Paper Mill Farm. My attention is drawn to the line across the land at the river bend. It is described as the property of Sir John Maxwell and has the words ‘March Stone’ at the ends of the line.
Further research on March Stones tells me that this is a Scottish term relating to the boundary of authority by whoever owns it. The most famous trail of March Stones is in Aberdeen and it is a trail that can be followed. I have looked carefully at the map and the location of the line ends but I suspect that the actual March Stones that were possible marked with Sir John Maxwell Stirling’s initials, can no longer be found. This is because the north side of the river all around the bend from Millbrae has been heavily reinforced during the early 1980’s to assist with flood prevention. The River Cart at this section was ‘canalised’, deepened and fortified, with gabions filled with stone. What is known as the ‘Walkway’ around the river is the new course of the Public Footpath seen in the section of the map above.
Why Sir John should own this bend in the river is not at all clear but it was possibly vacant land not being used for letting to an arable farmer and its ownership had to be clearly labelled on the map.
Now look at how this land was completely redeveloped by 1916.
The location of Earlspark Avenue now that it has been created and developed with modern red sandstone villas. (OS map 1916 reproduced with permission from National Library of Scotland).
The River White Cart meanders across the middle of the map. The mill no longer exists, nor the mill race which had been infilled and built over. I have marked the location of my house with a red dot. Langside House is still there with its gardens but the land adjacent has been developed with housing. The Parish Road is now called Millbrae Road. Papermill Farm is shown in its entirety. It would be a further 50 years before it was demolished and new brick housing built over the old farm house. The farm Acres were shortly to be bought by the local Weirs factory to develop as a Recreation Park for its employees. That was in 1917. In 2020 Weirs transferred ownership of the land to Langside Sports Club, a Charitable Sports Trust.
From 1845 to 2023. 178 years from arable farmland to a well established suburban housing area of Glasgow.