Step Back in Time at the Tenement House in Glasgow, Scotland
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This week, we step into a time capsule and visit a fascinating property under the care of the National Trust for Scotland. So, join us as we ‘explore and discover’ what life was like in Glasgow in the first half of the 20th century!
Situated in a quiet area on Buccleuch Street is a rather unassuming red sandstone tenement building. The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) makes the important distinction that the word ‘tenement’ does not have negative connotations to it like it does in North America, where the word is often synonymous with ‘slum’ (although there were definitely tenements that were slums in Scotland). Most Glaswegians lived in flats (apartments) called ‘tenement houses’ in the 19th and early 20th centuries. There were working-class tenements (often with just two rooms) and middle-class tenements. The Tenement House is an example of a typical middle-class Glasgow home with four rooms- bedroom, parlour, kitchen, and bathroom.
Let’s make our way inside, where we start our tour in the common entry way. In Glasgow, this area of a tenement building is called a ‘close’ (interestingly, a ‘close’ in Edinburgh has a different meaning as they are narrow alleyways). According to the NTS, “the condition and cleanliness of the tenement close was seen to reflect the respectability of its residents”. Therefore, there was a strict schedule for cleaning the close and stairs.
On the first floor, is the Tenement House, where Miss Agnes Toward lived for over 50 years. She first moved into 145 Buccleuch Street with her mother in 1911. Agnes’ father died when she was three, so Agnes’ mother made a living as a dressmaker as well as taking in lodgers.
Having never married, Agnes continued to live alone in the house after her mother’s death in 1939.
After Agnes died in 1975, her landlord wanted to clean out the flat so that they could modernise and sell it. Fortunately, Agnes bequeathed a set of chairs to one of her church elders, and when he visited the house to pick them up, he brought along his niece, Anna, with him. The NTS points out that she was horrified to hear that Agnes’ house and everything inside it was going to be sold. So, she convinced the owner to sell it and its contents to her, where she lived for the next seven years.
Anna then sold the house to the NTS in 1982 when she moved from Glasgow. She wanted to ensure that such an important part of history could be “preserved as part of the national heritage”. Since then, the NTS also bought the two ground floor flats that now serve as a reception for visitors and an exhibition area.
What’s amazing about the house is that it is virtually unchanged since the Toward family lived there- it is as if you are stepping back in time to a bygone era. As mentioned above, there are four rooms in the Tenement House. Let’s explore the bedroom first.
Such a bathroom would have been a luxury at the beginning of the 1900s.
The National Trust for Scotland says that the kitchen is typical for a Glasgow tenement house. This was an important room as it was where the cooking, baking, washing, and ironing was done. As with the rest of the house, much of what is in the kitchen belonged to Agnes. Amazingly, the NTS found an uneaten plum jar Agnes had made dated 1929!
The parlour must have been quite cosy. Typically, though, it would only have been used for special occasions. Many of the items in this room were either purchased by Agnes or were inherited from the Toward family.
If you are in Glasgow, we highly recommend that you go to the Tenement House as it is a fascinating glimpse into the social and cultural history of 20th century Glasgow. Visit their NTS website for more information on how to plan your visit.
Until next time- Explore & Discover!
