Pollok Country Park

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Pollok Country Park
Wfm pollok country park.jpg
Pollok Country Park
TypeCountry park
Location Glasgow, Scotland
OS grid NS5545262170
Coordinates 55°49′40″N4°18′45″W / 55.82778°N 4.31250°W / 55.82778; -4.31250 Coordinates: 55°49′40″N4°18′45″W / 55.82778°N 4.31250°W / 55.82778; -4.31250
Area146 hectares (361 acres)
Operated by Glasgow City Council
OpenOpen all year
Awards
  • Britain's Best Park (2007)
  • Best Park in Europe (2008)
Public transit access Pollokshaws West railway station

Pollok Country Park is a 146-hectare (361-acre) country park located between Shawlands, Crossmyloof, and Pollok in Glasgow, Scotland. [1] In 2007, Pollok Country Park was named Britain's Best Park, [2] and in 2008 it was named the Best Park in Europe, beating competition from parks in Italy, France, Germany, Poland and Sweden. [3] Despite this, by 2019 it was considered that the park was 'underused' with plans drawn up to encourage more visitors. [4]

Contents

A flower boat in the walled garden PollokFlowerBoat.jpg
A flower boat in the walled garden

History and features

The park, through which the White Cart Water flows towards Paisley, is the largest within the city of Glasgow. It was originally part of the Old Pollok Estate, which was home to the Maxwell family for over 700 years. [5] In 1966 Mrs Anne Maxwell Macdonald gifted the estate, including Pollok House, to Glasgow Corporation with the condition that it remained a public park. [6] [7]

In 1878 the Poloc Cricket Club was established. [8] Their Shawholm ground is one of several sporting facilities which ring the core of the park, including public playing fields at Nether Pollok near Shawlands [9] (once containing the home ground of Pollok F.C. until 1926) [10] and Norwood near Pollokshields, [11] the private fields of Police Scotland [12] and Hutchesons' Grammar School, (previously, Craigholme School), [13] the rugby ground of Cartha Queens Park RFC, Dumbreck Riding School [14] and two golf clubs: Haggs Castle (founded 1910) located next to the M77 motorway [15] and Pollok (1892) [16] to the north of Barrhead Road, a dual carriageway which is the only direct route between the east and west sides of the park approximately 1.4 miles (2.3 km) in length. On the other side of the road is a further golf club, Cowglen (1906). [17]

In 1954 the park also became home to Pollokshaws Bowling Club, the land donated by Sir John Maxwell Stirling-Maxwell of Pollok House; the club moved across Pollokshaws Road to celebrate its centenary. It is located near to Pollokshaws West railway station on the Glasgow South Western Line which is the nearest to the centre of the park and one of its entrances; [18] Shawlands on a different route (Cathcart Circle Lines) is also fairly close to one of the main entrances.

The park also contains the Burrell Collection, a purpose-built building designed to hold the large, eclectic antique and art collection of shipping magnate William Burrell, who donated the collection to the City of Glasgow on his death. Another feature of interest is the award-winning fold of Highland cattle, which is the most accessible of this species for the majority of Scots. In 2004, three mountain biking routes were opened by Olympic cyclist Chris Hoy. Strathclyde Police's mounted and dog-handling divisions are based in the park. There are two allotment gardens, one near Haggs Castle Golf Club and one at Pollokshaws.

Protests

In the early 1990s the park was the site of a road protest camp, the "Pollok Free State", which attempted to prevent the M77 motorway from cutting through the south-west side of the park and separating it from the nearby housing schemes. The road cost £53 million and destroyed 5,000 trees in a 7-mile (11 km) stretch of the park. Protesters, including local schoolchildren, attempted to prevent this using tactics such as building and occupying treehouses and tunnels. There was also a "Carhenge" of burnt-out and half-buried cars, from as far afield as Brighton, placed in the path of the road. Eviction of the camp by Wimpey bailiffs and police began on 23 March 1995, arresting 15 and injuring one. Though the camp failed to prevent the road being built, it was a formative experience for many Glasgow activists who had no previous experience of direct action. It also led to the resignation of M.P. Allan Stewart. [19] As campaigners feared, the motorway has disconnected the park from communities to its north and west (Pollok, Corkerhill and Mosspark) with almost no direct access - there is one walkway on the north bank of the White Cart from near Corkerhill); by contrast, the eastern side of the park has three vehicular routes and two more access points for pedestrians and cyclists.

In early 2008 a campaign to "Save Pollok Park" was formed, protesting against outdoor adventure company Go Ape; the company was invited by Glasgow City Council to enhance outdoor recreational activities within the park. Over five thousand residents objected to the proposals to site a high wire forest adventure in the ancient North Wood. [20] [4]

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Glasgow City Council is the local government authority for the City of Glasgow, Scotland. It was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, largely with the boundaries of the post-1975 City of Glasgow district of the Strathclyde region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pollok</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Pollok is a large housing estate on the south-western side of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The estate was built either side of World War II to house families from the overcrowded inner city. Housing 30,000 at its peak, its population has since declined due to the replacement of substandard housing with lower-density accommodation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pollokshaws</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Pollokshaws is an area on the South side of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is bordered by the residential neighbourhoods of Auldhouse to the east, Eastwood and Hillpark to the south and Shawlands to the north, with the Glasgow South Western Line railway and the open lands of Pollok Country Park to the west. The White Cart Water flows through the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pollokshields</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Pollokshields is an area in the Southside of Glasgow, Scotland. Its modern boundaries are largely man-made, being formed by the M77 motorway to the west and northwest with the open land of Pollok Country Park and the Dumbreck neighbourhood beyond, by the Inverclyde Line railway and other branches which separate its territory from the largely industrial areas of Kinning Park, Kingston and Port Eglinton, and by the Glasgow South Western Line running from the east to south, bordering Govanhill, Strathbungo, Crossmyloof and Shawlands residential areas. There is also a suburban railway running through the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shawlands</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Shawlands is an area of Glasgow, Scotland, located around 2 miles south of the River Clyde. The area, considered the "Heart of the Southside", is known for its independent restaurants and cafés, art scene, public parks, period terraces, and red and blond sandstone tenements. Shawlands was named one of the best places to live in Scotland in 2022 by The Sunday Times, and one of the world's coolest neighbourhoods by Time Out Magazine with judges describing it as "the city's best area to live and socialise”. It is located between Pollok Country Park, the home of the Burrell Collection and Pollok House, and the acclaimed Victorian park Queen's Park.

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Crookston is a residential suburb on the southwestern edge of the city of Glasgow, Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pollok House</span>

Pollok House, formerly the family seat of the Stirling-Maxwell family, is located at Pollok Country Park in Glasgow, Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crossmyloof</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Crossmyloof is an area on the south side of Glasgow situated between the districts of Pollokshields, Strathbungo and Shawlands in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corkerhill</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Corkerhill is a neighbourhood of Glasgow, Scotland, southwest of the city centre. The area was originally a farm and a few houses built for workers of the Glasgow and South Western Railway at the Corkerhill Depot. The engine sheds and sidings are still present, although Corkerhill signal box to the rear of the houses now facing Mosspark shops was demolished in the late 1970s.

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Bellahouston Park is a public park in the Bellahouston district on the South Side of Glasgow, Scotland, between the areas of Craigton, Dumbreck, Ibrox and Mosspark covering an area of 71 hectares. The main part of Bellahouston Park was acquired by Glasgow Corporation in 1895 for the sum of £50,000, and opened to the public in 1896. Three years later, the city's second municipal golf course was established at Bellahouston, following the success of the course at Alexandra Park. The park was extended in 1901 by the addition of a part of Dumbreck Lands purchased for £2,824 from Sir John Stirling-Maxwell. A further addition was made in 1903, at a cost of £40,222, by including the lands of Ibroxhill, from which commanding views of the city are available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir John Stirling-Maxwell, 10th Baronet</span> British politician

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deaconsbank</span> Neighbourhood of Glasgow

Deaconsbank is a neighbourhood in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated south of the River Clyde. The main feature of the area, which falls into the Greater Pollok ward of Glasgow City Council and directly borders the East Renfrewshire council region, is an estate of around 639 private houses built in the late 1970s by Barratt Developments, prior to which the area was open farmland. Deaconsbank is bordered by the M77 motorway to the west and by Rouken Glen Park and golf course to the east. The northern parts of the suburban town of Newton Mearns are a short distance to the south, as is Patterton railway station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Auldhouse, Glasgow</span> Human settlement in Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poloc Cricket Club</span>

Poloc Cricket Club is a cricket club based at Pollok Country Park in south Glasgow, Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linn Park, Glasgow</span> 200 acre park in Glasgow, Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newlands/Auldburn (ward)</span> Human settlement in Scotland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastwood, Glasgow</span> Human settlement in Scotland

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References

  1. "Living in Glasgow Pollok County Park". web page. Glasgow City Council. 31 July 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
  2. "Glasgow boasts top Park in Britain". The List. 24 October 2007. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
  3. "Pollok Country Park - Best in Britain and Europe". Archived from the original on 15 June 2008. Retrieved 20 June 2008.
  4. 1 2 Major transformation project for Pollok Country Park, Glasgow Live, 11 February 2019
  5. Pollok House, Old Country Houses of the Old Glasgow Gentry (1878)
  6. Pollok House (Mitchell Library, Glasgow Collection, Prints Collection), The Glasgow Story
  7. Pollok House (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, Dougan Collection, 1870), The Glasgow Story
  8. Our ground, Poloc Cricket club
  9. Netherpollok Football Pavillion, The List
  10. The History of Pollok Football Club (1908-1977), Pollok FC
  11. Location, Giffnock Soccer Centre
  12. Lochinch History, Scottish Police recreation Association
  13. Craigholme School: Glasgow girls' school to close over dwindling pupil numbers, Evening Times, 28 February 2018
  14. Family forced to close city riding school after 50 years, Evening Times, 26 August 2013
  15. Club History, Haggs Castle Golf Club
  16. The Club, Pollok Golf Club
  17. The Cowglen Golf Club, Cowglen Golf Club
  18. Pollokshaws Bridges (Glasgow City Archives, Department of Architectural and Civic Design), The Glasgow Story
  19. "Pollok Free State Lives On!". Do or Die No.5. 1995. Retrieved 4 September 2008.
  20. Go Ape drops treetop park plans, BBC News, 13 June 2009