Neighbourhoods
Drumry and Linnvale
By Sheila Livingstone
The chapel-lands of Drumry are mentioned in the Exchequer rolls of Scotland as far back as 1328, as being part of the Parish of Old Kilpatrick. The lands of Drumry were divided in 1937 when Clydebank Town Council acquired the triangular area bounded by Kilbowie Road to the west, the old Glasgow, Dumbarton & Helensburgh Railway line to the south and the Great Western Boulevard to the north-east. Glasgow Corporation annexed the ground north of the Boulevard in 1938.
Drumry
The Peel of Drumry was a medieval tower that lay just beyond modern Clydebank's boundary. It was probably constructed in the 15th century and rebuilt in 1535 under an Act of Parliament which required landowners to provide a defensive tower and a courtyard for their tenants. It had a chequered history, having been neglected and restored on several occasions. In 1890 its upper floor housed farm labourers while the lower floor provided stables for North Drumry Farm. The Peel and the ancient St Mary's Chapel nearby were plundered for stones to build a blacksmith's smiddy. The tower was demolished in 1958 and in 2004 the foundations lie beneath the playground of Drumry Primary School.
Before the First World War, sandstone houses were built by developers for rent in the Melfort Avenue area. In 1917 the Ministry of Supply provided funds for the Town Council to build Munitions Houses in the area, and these were offered to Singer, who let them to their workers at a rent of 12 shillings (60p) per week. The houses were transferred to the Town Council in 1959. Many more houses were needed in the aftermath of the war and bungalows were built along Drumry Road in the 1930s.
The street names in North Drumry had connections with Robert Burns, such as Jean Armour Drive, Ellisland Avenue and Mossgiel Drive, and those in South Drumry were named after ships which had been built in Clydebank, such as Queen Mary Avenue, Vanguard Street and Hood Street. In 1958 cottages and flats for the elderly were built at Melfort Avenue and Drumry Road.
Multi-storey blocks of flats were built in Drumry in 1964, facing the Boulevard. The last block is named Peel View. These "skyscrapers" required red obstruction lights as they were on the flight path of Renfrew Airport, which served as the main airport for the West of Scotland before the opening of Glasgow Airport. Most of Drumry's housing stock was renovated in the 1980s.
Drumry Schools
Braidfield High School was built in South Drumry in the 1950s and named after the oldest surviving farm in the area. Since 2000 it has been a community school with support staff covering health and social problems as well as education. St Columba's High is in Gilmour Street in North Drumry, St Eunan's Primary School is in Melfort Avenue. Clydebank College was built on the site of the old Radnor Park School, destroyed in the Blitz, and opened in 1965 as a technical college primarily for apprentices serving in local industries. It has changed over the years and in 2004 offers diverse courses such as animal care, beauty therapy, languages and engineering.
Drumry Leisure Facilities
The Drumry area was included in the East End Initiative in the 1980s. A team of support workers was created to help the community to set up groups and clubs and the Drop-In Café was so successful that it struggled to cope with the numbers wishing to attend. A Day Care Centre for the elderly was opened in the old Co-op shop in Queen Mary Avenue and a community mini-bus was made available to rent. Greenspace, a West Dunbartonshire environmental initiative, built an all-inclusive play area, the first in Scotland, on a gap site at Breval Crescent and there is a BMX track at Onslow Road.
Linnvale
During the Clydebank Blitz in 1941, the area that lies between Argyll Road, the Forth and Clyde Canal, the old Glasgow, Dumbarton & Helensburgh Railway line and the Boulevard was devastated by German bombs. It was rebuilt during the 1950s, when it became known as Linnvale.
In 1924, during the Clydebank Rent Strike, the Town Council had housed families who were evicted from their homes in old railway carriages in disused sidings. These sidings, old tenements and factory sites were cleared away in the 1950s and low-rise, semi-detached, four-in-a-block and terraced houses were built in their place. The new streets were named after members of the post-war Labour Government, and included Atlee Street, Shinwell Avenue and Morrison Quadrant. Linnvale's population declined from 8,290 in 1961 to 6,445 in 1971.
Linnvale's Schools and Churches
Linnvale Primary School provides education for the children of the area. The Forth and Clyde Canal runs just behind the school and held a fascination for pupils. Its renovation has provided a new bridge, footbridge over lock 36 at Duntreath Avenue which was opened in May 2001.
Linnvale Parish Church of Scotland was opened under the Church of Scotland's church extension scheme of the 1950s, designed to provide churches in new housing estates.
Industry and Leisure
In 1934 Brockhouse, manufacturers of vehicle bodies, mobile laboratories and dental units and in 1935 Clyde Blowers manufacturers of soot blowers for engines set up business. They were suppliers to the Government and the Admiralty. J & T Lawrie manufactured pipes for industry and Hills (West Bromwich) manufactured steel and concrete components for school buildings.
During the 1980s, Linnvale was one of the areas included in the East End Initiative and a support team helped to set up groups and clubs and to enable them to become self-sufficient. One of the success stories was the Double L Club for local youngsters.
Linnvale Clydebank football team is a member of the Scottish Supporters Amateur Football League and in 2004 plays in Division 1.
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