MS. JEAN BRODIE at Newlands?__ by DAVID TEMPLETON

Former Newlands' lad David Templeton sent us a very comprehensive and interesting account of his years at Newlands and Parkhead. It's printed here for the enjoyment and edification of all our Newlands bloggers......

DAVID TEMPLETON wrote ....
............Hello. I stumbled across NEWLANDS BLOG by chance tonight and couldn't believe some of the wonderful stories about my old primary school, as well as great pictures of the Parkhead area where I spent my first 12 years. Thank you so much for capturing the history of the place in which I spent my formative years. I'll let my own two sons have a look at the site (albeit most of the entries seem to be from folk who are a good bit older than me!)

My name is David Templeton and I attended Newlands Primary from around 1969 until 1977, before leaving to complete one year at Riverside Senior Secondary. Our family then moved to East Kilbride and that move effectively brought to a close my association with the east end.

We lived at 1358 DUKE STREET in the last close on the right hand side of Duke Street - right on Parkhead Cross, above the Clydesdale Bank. Although the close entrance for 1358 was at the top of Duke Street, our flat looked into the Gallowgate, down Springfield Road, up Tollcross Road and Westmuir Street and also into Duke Street itself. It was a terrible place to bring up a young family (I had two younger brothers) because we only had a high back court to play in. Both my brothers went to Newlands primary too, although only for a short period of time.

We were regular attenders at Calton Old Parish Church in Helenvale Street. My dad was an Elder and a BB Officer and I attended Sunday school, Shipmates, Junior Section and one year of Company Section in the BB - the famous 67th Company. My old man worked in Begg Cousland, also known as the Springfield Wire Works.

The Newlands' class teacher I remember most was Mrs. Gibson whose first name may have been Eleanor.
Mrs. Gibson was simply superb and prepared her class for the transition from primary to secondary in an exemplary fashion. She also inspired me, and several of my classmates, to "stick in" against all the odds, and ultimately progress to university.
She was Newlands' version of Ms. Jean Brodie !

I will look for any of my old class photos, or those of my younger brothers, which may have survived - and will email them for the blog.
Kindest regards,
David Templeton
___________________

*Ed/Admin note: David, what a great gift you have shared with us about NEWLANDS. It is truly inspiring to find that you gained an appreciation for Learning under the Leadership of a teacher like Mrs. Gibson, who proved to be a good mentor for you. You obviously made the best of her personal dedication to her students. Thank You for this very thoughtful contribution. Please let us have a wee photo of you to show alongside your story. And if we could show your email contact info it would make it easier for someome from your class to get in touch with you after reading your Post.
Many thanks David,
from LIZ~ (aka Scotbandit604@hotmail.com )

Newlands Class of 1967 (Confirmed by Lesley Hunt)

We were recently furnished with this old class photo by email from EDDIE GRUMMETT. Eddie has not yet been able to provide detailed information other than this:
(Eddie writes........Here's an old school photo from a bit later than the others shown on the Newlands Blog. It's Circa 1968 +/- 2 years. I'm not even sure if you have any readers from such "later years" !)
After posting this photo, we were contacted by "Lesley Hunt" who is in the photo (Row B, No 10) and she is confident that the date of the photo is 1967, so we will take her word for it. I have added the table below of some of the names that we have so far. We hope they are correct, if you know any different please let us know.

.............Pupil list for the Newlands 1967 Class.

CLICK ON THE LIST
FOR A LARGER VIEW OF IT.

Then use the BACK button.

If YOU see yourself in the picture, or know anyone else in the picture, please advise us asap so we can add the right names. Eddie forgot to mention to us whether he himself is in this old school photo. If you can shed any light on this nice-looking group of weans from Newlands around the late 1960's, please either email Admin OR add Your own Comment below by Clicking on the word "COMMENTS" shown beneath this Post.

( You can also CLICK ON THE PHOTO for a slightly larger view. Then use the BACK button. )

* Our Thanks to Eddie Grummett for sending this class photo to be added to our growing collection about Newlands Primary School. And YES Eddie, this blog is regularly Discovered and Read by bloggers young and old from everywhere on the Planet (almost), contrary to your suspicions that you are the Youngest blogger on here!

Irene McKechnie (B2) added on 26/07/2010 - Sorry for the delay Rene.

William Reid added a comment saying that he was position "A11" this has got me confused as there are only 5 kids in the front row "A" so I assume that he meant "A5" but I will not add his name to the list until he confirms it. I have now added Hugh Reid at A3 is he any relation to William Reid ? Also, Hugh said the teacher was Miss Christie ?
William also feels that the photo was taken in 1965 can anybody confirm this ?

MY DA WAS YOUR COALMAN _______ by IAN HYDE

IAN HYDE recently left a COMMENT under the Post named "Calton Church Parkhead":

Ian writes......
______" Hi - just found your site about NEWLANDS and think it's great!
My name is Ian Hyde and my da was the local coalman in the late 50's,60's and early 70's. -- His name was Charlie Hyde or just "Charlie Mac."

Some of you might remember him delivering your coal in the old days.

We lived at 61 Edmiston Street. Then for a while we moved over to number 4 Palace Street before eventually moving to Tollcross.

I went to Newlands and then Rivvie and I remember well Calton Old Parish Church as I was in the Lifebouys and then in the BB there.

I was Born in 1955, and I now live in England."

by.........IAN HYDE .... now from England.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

*Ed/Admin note: Thanks for giving us this great wee story about your famous dad Ian !
I'll bet he humphed many a heavy bag up two flights of stairs to my mum's coal bunker at number 18 Edmiston Street. Also. if you want enquiries and email from your long lost pals forwarded to you, please send your e-mail address to LIZ (who goes under the handle Scotbandit) and we'll take care of this for you. We'd also be glad to have a photo of you Ian to show beside your Post. (Thanx for the memories.)

Another Happy Customer ( Free Photo's )

252 CRAIGPARK DRIVE DENNISTOUN.

Ramsay Millen (see post 2 below)

contacted me a while ago about maybe taking some photo's of the east end for him.

I did this for him and we entered into a little bit of correspondence. Ramsay and his wife live in Australia and are in their 80s.



Here are some extacts from our e-mails :-

Hello Brian
You mention in your Blog about photographing special places which hold memories, 252 Craigpark Dr Dennistoun and Crail St, Parkhead, Are of special interest to me. The close next to the ladies hat shop. its a long time ago.

Any photo’s would be great. Any reward for your generous help will be granted.

The families were, The Pettigrews, and Toners. they lived in and around these districts. I owe my life to Mrs Pettigrew, she delayed me in returning to my ship thereby I missed being aboard when she sailed, and it was torpedoed.

She shall have gone to her reward, but granchildren maybe around the eastend,.

Excuse my meanderings on days of yore.

[PS – He never explained HOW he was delayed by Mrs Pettigrew !]

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Hello Ramsay & Mhairai,
I will try to get your requested photo's taken as soon as I can. Some people seem to think there is a catch to the offer, there isn't. The only "payment" that I ask for is if you will go back to the web site and post a wee comment about the photo's for others to see. Depending on your comments, I may make a wee feature of the photo's and your comments on the site.

Brian.

ENTRANCE TO CRAIL ST.
( FROM TOLLCROSS. )

Hello Brian
My skill on the p,c.is limited/ so excuse me.

Mhairi and I thank you for the photo's. Memories, memories. if nothing else its all weve got in our twilight years.
Some are bad, most are worth casting the mind back.
Thanks Again, Yours Faithfully Ramsay.

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Hello again Brian
Craigpark Dr, a bit aged looking, but it still retains its romantic ambiance. Youthful view.

The photos have rekindled memories of days of yore, and the folies of youth.

Once more, Faithfully Ramsay.

-----------------------------------------

Hello Brian
We both thank you very much for all the scene;s of childhood,especially, Crail St,. And Dennistoun,
My wife is not blessed with a glasgow childhood, she's from the Outer Hebrides, Gaelic and all.

But she has been around the Eastend, walks in Tollcross Park. The banks of the Monkland Canal, etc,.
My life here has been spent in Prison. In a similar unit they have in Carstairs. I of course was staff. Forensic Trained. Quite interesting. Human beings, give food for thought,

We thank you for thoughtful care in sending us the photos. We have thought about coming hame, ''but'' its the time spent on planes, we came over in 1997. We were over 12 hours waiting in Heathrow for our flight, Today would be impossible. Wer’e both past our use by date.

Thanks again Brian for the photies, At times we had a wee greet,

Thanks Again’ Faithfully, Mhairi-----Ramsay.

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If anybody wants to contact Ramsay, his e-mail is : millen451@ozemail.com.au

.

PS: The offer of FREE photo's still stands. See the post about 20 down from here.

Rubber Glove Restaurant ...... by Anne Nish

To celebrate my father's retirement, we planned a special evening for him at the Crowwood Golf Club, where he happened to be Captain. It was a beautiful warm summer evening and the guests had enjoyed a wonderful evening's entertainment and fine dining. The photo below shows me with my dad, the Late Craig Davidson, taken that evening. (Dux Medallist in 1947 at Newlands Primary.)

As we prepared to leave for home, my father suddenly noticed that his gold ring, a precious family heirloom passed down to him from his own father, was missing from his finger. He was so distressed that we all pitched in to look for the ring. Dad thought it had most likely slipped off his finger during dinner, perhaps into a napkin or even into leftover food on his plate. What an uproar followed!

We searched the remains still on the table. We got down on our knees and searched UNDER the table. The waiters joined in the search for this family heirloom as they could see how upset my father was about losing it. We lifted dishes, looked under tablecloths, even checked in the restaurant's kitchens and still the ring could not be found. As a last resort, my husband and I had to borrow RUBBER GLOVES so we could rake through the rubbish bins outside....our hands felt through chicken carcasses and all the other food debris from the evening's diners. UGH. It was disgusting......

We just couldn't find it, and feeling a bit sad, we drove my parents home. No sooner was my father home than - hey presto - the precious ring was found in his golf bag - the NUMPTY !!

He had a good sense of humour though. Dad could appear to be quiet at times, but he enjoyed reading all kinds of books and he studied many Open University courses. (He did work for a while in Yarrows Shipyard before joining Springburn College.) He seems to have been a scholar. I know he worked hard to get where he was and I will always admire and love him for it. He was a good father and I wish I knew more about his younger life, at Newlands etc.
Best wishes to all. Thanks, Anne Nish.

by......ANNE (nee Davidson) NISH..of Cumbernauld, Glasgow.

OLD TIMES AROUND CRAIL STREET.......by RAMSAY MILLEN

Ramsay Millen, a former Newlands Primary scholar who has been living in Australia for more than 60 years sent email with some of his thoughts of the old familiar places........

......Ramsay writes: ......" Casting my mind back to school days at Newlands Primary, and then Eastbank Academy, I realize it's been sixty-odd years since I left the district around the Parkhead area and I would presume its beyond my recognition now. Ah, but in my mind it retains its magnetic hold on me!

Many of my friends from pre-war times (WW2) have most likely gone tae their just rewards now as my wife and I are well up in our Eighties ourselves, but I do sometimes wonder who is still around.

It makes me appreciate what a marvellous invention the Personal Computer is. I wish it had been around just after the War. Tracing long lost pals and even auld flames would have been quite simple then. Still, there is just a possibility that there could be an old school pal from the early years, still living around Parkhead or from around Crail Street who might be online and get in touch with me via this Newlands Blog.

I had best desist from days of yore, they jist make yi greet. Yours Faithfully.

by........RAMSAY MILLEN, living in AUSTRALIA.

MY DAD WAS A DUX .......by Anne Nish

I was looking through the Newlands Blog and discovered that my dad, the late CRAIG DAVIDSON, was listed on the Newlands Dux Medal Board. What a strange feeling it brought to me. My father had recently passed away and I was missing him - and wondering why on earth I had never really asked him about his own childhood and earlier life. I'm sure many people can relate to the feeling I had. My dad had passed on, and only then did I discover that he had been a clever scholar at Newlands School.

In 1947, he is shown to have won the DUX MEDAL jointly with AUDREY FLEMING.

My dad's sister, JEAN DAVIDSON, who also went to Newlands told me that she had been good friends with ROSE REYNOLDS, another medallist shown on the Dux Board.

Like many of the Dux winners, my dad was sent on to Allen Glens School for Boys and did well there. After he finished his two years' National Service in Malaya, he became a Lecturer in Springburn College. He eventually was named Department Head at Springburn College and continued his career there until his retirement.

He and my mother lived happily in Stepps for over forty years until dad passed away at the age of 68 and my mum still lives there. Mum was brought up in Shettleston and decided to go to a Dance at a hall in Parkhead one night. And having gone to Parkhead, fate stepped in and introduced her to her future husband and my future father.

Their firstborn was my older brother (also named Craig Davidson), and I made my entrance into the family in 1957. Obviously my dad was an early starter......in fact my mother very charmingly jokes that my birth was the end result of a 48-Hour Pass that my dad had obtained so he could attend the funeral of my grandfather! My mother had me blushing bright red when she shared this little gem of knowledge with me. (It was too much information!!) lol....

My husband and I live in Cumbernauld and we have one son, Graeme. I really miss my dad and I would just love to hear from anyone who remembers him, or his sister Jean Davidson, also from Newlands. Thank you and best wishes.

by ANNE (nee DAVIDSON) NISH.

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( Photo of board by kind permission of Charlie McDonald at the "Glesca Keelies" Website.)

MY FAVOURITE UNCLE gets us intae IBROX.....by Bobby Irvine

"Boabby" Irvine noticed the post about Tiny Wharton and left these interesting comments:-

........Just a wee side bar to the Tiny Wharton post.

We all remember the terrible Ibrox disaster: Well I was actually at that game with my Uncle Bobby Stewart from Canada. My uncle decided that he wanted to see a game before he went back to Toronto.

We couldn't get tickets anywhere, but Uncle Bobby was reading the Daily Record when he noticed the Ref's name. He said, "Hold on a minute" and left my Granny’s house which was on London Road across from Belvedere Hospital. (My Granny lived there since they were built and she also worked at the hospital until retirement.)

About an hour and a half later my Uncle Bobby came back with a big smile. I asked him where he had gone and he said something about phone calls. The night before the game he told me to get down to Granny's early. Imagine the surprise when he told me we were going to the game! After the usual banter of “aye right” and so on, we left the house and made our way to Ibrox. We proceeded to the front of the stadium where we were met by none other than Tiny Wharton himself. I was absolutely “gob-smacked.” After the very friendly greetings we were taken to the stands and shown to two of the good seats. Once we were seated in style, I could hardly wait to quiz my Uncle Bobby on the obvious....how, why, where, when?

It turns out that Tiny Wharton and my Uncle Bobby were old school pals who had kept in touch over the years. (Friendships can be a beautiful thing, eh?) Strangely enough, we didn't even know anything about the tragedy at Gate 11 until we had walked around the stadium to meet my brother-in-law who was at the game with some friends. Needless to say, this is a day that will always stick in my memory.

My uncle Bobby Stewart, like his famous pal Tiny Wharton, has since passed away. But I believe my uncle kept in touch with Tiny Wharton until he died - which was twenty years ago now. Thanks to Brian Charlton for reviving the memory of that time.

by......... BOABBY IRVINE, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada

("Boabby" is the nickname of our famous adventurer Bobby Irvine.)

........Thank YOU Boabby for providing us with this great wee story.

p.s.

did your uncle Bobby Stewart go to Newlands School too? (See Comments just below for the Reply.)

Another wee gem from Richard Evans.

I noticed a photo of Silverdale St on your site and I was wondering if you knew that this is the street where world famous football referee Tom (Tiny ) Wharton grew up. He attended Riverside and was a member of Calton Parish Church on Helenvale St. as well as the bowling club facing where he lived. He started refereeing schools and Juvenile football before moving on to Juniors. It was only when he hit the big time with the seniors that he became 'Tiny Wharton' Tom passed away not too long ago and the last time I saw him was when he was part of the F.I.F.A. organisation suprvising the final of the under 16 World Cup held in Toronto.

From Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia:

Tom "Tiny" Wharton OBE (born 3 November 1927, in Glasgow; died 9 May 2005, in Newton Mearns) was a Scottish football referee in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Universally and ironically known as Tiny, due to his colossal 6'4" frame, he was one of the most iconic and respected officials of his generation.
An engineer by profession, Wharton took up refereeing at the age of 21 and had reached Class I status within 3 years.[1] He refereed a number of important and high profile games during his career, including the Scottish Cup finals of 1961-62, 1962-63, 1965-66 and 1970-71, and the League Cup finals of 1960-61, 1962-63, 1966-67 and 1970-71.
Wharton's prowess was recognised outside Scotland as well and he officiated 16 international matches, from Belfast to Brazil. He also oversaw 24 international club fixtures, including the 1962 Cup Winners Cup Final between Atlético Madrid and Fiorentina at Hampden Park.
In later years, Wharton was chairman of the Scottish Football Association's Referee Supervisors Committee between 1976 and 1990 and served as part of FIFA's Referees Committee between 1981 and 2000. He was awarded the OBE in 1990 for his services to Scottish football and FIFA's Order of Merit in Gold in 1992. He was described by FIFA president Sepp Blatter as "one of the world's most distinguished refereeing officials".