Lennox Castle

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Remains of Lennox Castle as it appeared in 2012 Lennox Castle from the west (geograph 2830671).jpg
Remains of Lennox Castle as it appeared in 2012

Lennox Castle is an abandoned castle in Lennoxtown, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, approximately 12 miles (19 kilometres) north of Glasgow. [1] It is infamous for previously hosting Lennox Castle Hospital, Scotland's "largest institution for people with learning disabilities". [2]

Contents

The castle was built between 1837 and 1841 by David Hamilton for John Lennox Kincaid, on the Lennox of Woodhead Estate, replacing Kincaid House. [3] In 1927, the castle and its land was purchased by the Glasgow Corporation, and converted into a hospital for people with learning disabilities; the hospital opened in 1936. [3] [2] The castle itself was the nurses' home, whilst its grounds provided accommodation for about 1,200 patients. [2] The Scotsman reports that soon afterwards, the facilities were "vastly overcrowded, understaffed and underfunded". [1]

By 1982, 1360 patients between the ages of 10 and 80 years old were looked after by around 500 staff- with fewer than half of these being trained nurses. The Scottish Hospitals Advisory Service had visited the year before and recommended a further 100 staff. [4] The care provided by the hospital was reported to be poor, with patients being malnourished. [2]

There was also a separate maternity unit in operation between the 1940s and 1960s; [3] [5] singer Lulu and footballer John Brown were among the babies born there. [6] [7]

This hospital was closed in 2002, [8] as a reflection in changes to how society treated patients with learning disabilities with a view to keeping them in the community. [2] [9] Further it was noted that patients were treated poorly by staff. [1]

The castle itself (Category A listed since the 1970s) [10] is in ruins following a fire in 2008. Part of the grounds of the castle were converted into Celtic F.C.'s Lennoxtown Training Centre (opened in 2007), [1] [6] while other parts towards Lennoxtown village have become a long-term residential development to be completed in several phases, known as Campsie Village. [11] [12]

In 2024, the castle was used as the setting of an indie short film, "Diokophobia", produced by YouTube film company 'Operating System Films'.

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The sad secrets of Glasgow's abandoned mental hospital". www.scotsman.com. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 McEwan, Michael (7 January 2022). "The shameful legacy of the Lennox Castle hospital". BBC News. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 "Lennox Castle". Gazetteer for Scotland . Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "Hospital that plucks at the conscience". The Glasgow Herald . 11 February 1982. p. 7. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  5. ↑ Lennox Castle, Harriet Richardson, Historic Hospitals, 1 May 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2022
  6. 1 2 Abandoned psychiatric hospital at Celtic's Lennoxtown training ground has a dark history, Sean Murphy, Daily Record, 17 July 2020. Retrieved 23 January 2022
  7. ↑ "Interview: John Brown admits he cringes about his Ibrox rant". The Scotsman . 5 March 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  8. ↑ Locking away an unhappy history Lennox Castle hospital is about to close its doors for the last time on its controversial past, The Herald, 2 April 2002. Retrieved 23 January 2022 (subscription required)
  9. ↑ ‘Remembering Lennox Castle’ to launch on 24 February, Heritage Lottery Fund, 26 January 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2022
  10. ↑ Lennox Castle, British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 23 January 2022
  11. ↑ New Campsie Village home proves just the job for Connie, Daily Record, 18 September 2014
  12. ↑ Phase 2, Campsie Village, Jones Lang Lasalle Property, 2015



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