Neighbourhoods
Parkhall
By Bill Simpson
The earliest historical mention of the area indicated that "in the Kilbowie lands there are places known as the Muir Park and butts, on which it is supposed that, in the times of James IV and V, the people were wont to shoot with bows and arrows".
Early History
In general, this area was part of lands linked to Paisley Abbey, sold through various titled landowners until much of it was acquired by the great mill owner, William Dunn of Duntocher (1770-1849). The land then passed through Dunn's brother to his family until, after extended legal action, the "lands lying west of Kilbowie Road and to the south of Duntocher Burn" were inherited by a grand-nephew, John McIndoe.
William Dunn farmed 1,200 acres of his own land and employed over 250 workers in addition to the weavers and spinners in his mills - "masons, wrights, coal and lime workers, quarriers, brick makers, farm servants and labourers". By the time of his death, he had acquired 2,000 acres of land, nearly all arable, including land at "Duntocher, Milton, Kilbowies, Balquhanran (sic), Dalmuir, Dunteglennan, Auchentoshan and Loch Humphrey".
There were three large farms in the area - Milton Mains and North West and North East Boquhanran - which ultimately supplied much of the land that became the substantial housing schemes of Parkhall, Kilbowie and Boquhanran.
Housing Policy
Unlike other areas of Scotland where slum housing was a considerable problem, Clydebank's housing difficulties lay in shortage of housing and severe overcrowding in the available housing. From the early days of the Burgh, the lack of housing for workers at the Clydebank Shipyard and Singer's sewing machine factory meant that many had to travel each day from Glasgow and neighbouring towns. Any public housing that became available was quickly snapped up and the Burgh found that it could not satisfy the demand.
After the First World War, under the Addison Act of 1919 and subsequent housing Acts, subsidies were made available to relieve overcrowding. Clydebank Town Council took this opportunity to expand into new areas with a different strategy. Tenement building was discontinued in favour of low-density development with wide streets and large gardens laid out in accordance with the Garden City concept.
Parkhall Housing Development
A proposal to purchase 25 acres "east of Parkhall on Milton Mains Farm" had been put to the Town Council's Streets and Building Committee at their meeting on 5 February 1919. This marked the beginning of a long process to build a housing estate in Parkhall. The minutes of the Council meetings over a period of ten years indicate the range of difficulties encountered. Apart from disputes over what price per acre should be paid - ranging from £110 to £200 per acre - there were problems relating to compulsory purchase, compensation claims, fees claimed by the architect who drew up the plans for the site, rights of way, fencing, purchase of trees and other matters.
On 13 November 1925 the Housing Committee resolved to set aside parts of the area to be acquired for "owner-occupier" houses. W L McIndoe gave a gift of open spaces in the area to the town on 3 February 1927. Final instructions to acquire 33 acres in Parkhall site were agreed at the Housing Committee meeting on 6 December 1927.
There were two phases in the building of the Parkhall housing development. Phase 1 lasted from 1929 to 1931 and involved the building of 346 houses and Phase 2, from 1931 to 1933, resulted in the construction of another 320, resulting in a total of 666 houses "of brick and roughcast and of two, three and four apartments". The new estate was also one of the first in Scotland to be all-electric. Its streets were named for trees and strenuous efforts were made to plant the appropriate trees in roads such as Oak, Alder and Ash - a daunting task for the Parks Department!
The Clydebank Blitz
A number of houses were completely destroyed during the German air raids of 13-14 March 1941, including four of the largest houses in the area - Parkhall House, Braemar House, Dunclutha House and Duntocher West Manse. Parkhall House had been the home of a prominent citizen of the town, John Paterson (1866-1933), Braemar House the home of William H Martin and Dunclutha House the home of Daniel Shields (1851-1925). The grounds of the latter two houses contained monkey-puzzle trees, one of which still stands in 2004 on the vacant site of Dunclutha. Duntocher West United Free Church Manse had been built in the 1870s for the local minister, Reverend John Stark (c 1827-1889). It was designed by his friend, the prominent architect Alexander "Greek" Thomson, and was a grand example his work.
Damages were sustained by 114 other houses in Parkhall and gap sites remained for many years while restoration and repair took place. Because of shortage of both materials and labour in the immediate post-war years, the remedial work was not finally completed until 1949. That year, following compulsory purchase orders in respect of land at Parkhall House and Braemar House, plans were announced for the development of forty-six three-apartment houses at the former site and between sixteen and twenty-four houses at the latter. Amended plans for a total of fifty-four houses at the combined sites were later approved.
The shortage of accommodation, materials and skilled labour and the length of time in building all led the Council to approve temporary housing. Prefabricated houses (prefabs) were sited on Glenhead Road overlooking the A82 until the mid-1960s.
Tenant representation always featured large in the area and has been well served over the years by the Parkhall Tenants Association. From humble beginnings in the 1950s in little more than a shed, a hall was built at the foot of Parkhall Road mainly thanks to the efforts of local residents and is still in regular use today.
Kilbowie
In 1931, a "general needs" estate of over 470 houses was planned for the area of Kilbowie. Slow progress was made with all the usual delays. Indeed, the plans almost came to nothing but were revived in 1935 when proposals were approved for 458 houses of three, four and five apartments. Difficulties in supply of materials and the availability of skilled workers had the usual delaying effects and the scheme was not completed until 1943.
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