Old Glasgow Pubs

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Blythswood Bar.

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97 Hope Street, Glasgow. G2 6LL. Tel: 0141 221 4159.

Blythswood Bar. 1991.

Blythswood Bar has been here since 1883. Now called the Toby Jug.

The Wright family owned this pub for over 60 years, the old bar and dinning rooms are now long gone along with the old collection of curios and an ornate snuff mull which was supposed to be of the hoof of Tam o’ Shanter’s grey mare Meg.

You could walk through the Blythswood Bar in Hope Street and come out of the Toby Jug in Waterloo Street. It was all part of the same bar. The Toby Jug was once the lounge and had its own entrance in Waterloo Street.

To Read more on the history of the Blythswood Bar click here.

The Blythswood Bar. 1933.

Interior view of the Blythswood Bar. 1980s.

Update… The bar has changed its name to the Toby Jug. Photo taken 2008.

Facts…
Licence Holders.
1991 Andrew McFadyen for R W Cairns Ltd.
1978 M Milne Ltd.
1973-1965 Edna May Eadie Milne Simpson.
1950 M Milne.
1940 William Wright & Co. Ltd.

Do you know anything about this pub? If so please leave a comment.

END.

Blythswood Cottage.

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144 Park Road, Glasgow. G4 9HB. Tel: 0141 339 9124.

Blythswood Bar. 1991.

Blythswood Cottage has been sitting on Park Road since 1862, landlady Miss McGibbon occupied the premises until 1890. In 1891 John MacLachlan took over the business paying an annul rent of £80 he also ran a pub in Garscube Road. Mr MacLachlan employed a manager Roderick Gillies to run the Blythswood Cottage, he went on to run the Imperial Hotel in Oban and the Royal Hotel, Keith.

The MacLachlan family continued to run the family business until the 1960s.

In 2008 a new name was above the door, “Bar Bola.”

Bar Bola. 2008.

Bar Bola attracts students, it has an interesting menu from Thai food to Mexican and Mediterranean dishes.

In 2014 yet another name change, “Richmond’s Bar & Kitchen.

Richmond’s. 2014.

Richmond’s interior view. 2008.

Update 2016…

After passing Park Road I noticed that the name above the door is now TriBeCa.

TriBeCa. 2016.

Interior views of TriBeCa.

also known as Roosevelts Bar & Kitchen, 2018.

TriBeCa/Smoak Menu.

Facts…

Other Licence Holders.

1991 Robert Young.

1973 George MacKay.

Do you remember this old pub? If so please leave a comment.

END.

The Blythswood.

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5 Blythswood Street, Glasgow. Demolished.

The Blythswood Bar was facing the old toilets in Blythswood Street just off Argyle Street.

Blythswood Street was formerly called Mains Street and the pub here was called the Black Bull.

This was a very old establishment dating as far back as at least the 1870s. The landlord then was a Peter McGregor. In 1895 James Nicol acquired the premises.

James McNicol was born in Saline, near Dunfermline, he finished his education at Dollar Academy. He served his apprenticeship to the time honoured profession of a druggist. He came to Glasgow around 1880 and was employed by Thomas Bennet, Crosshill, a well known and respected wine & spirit merchant. Young James started out as a salesman then to manager, he only left his employment to start on his own at the old Black Bull, Mains Street. As a result of his hard work in Crosshill, he was presented at his new establishment with a gold albert and appendages which was inscribed “Presented to Mr James Nicol as a mark of esteem on his leaving Crosshill to commence business on his own behalf, May, 1895.,”

The old pub was called the Blythswood Bar in the 1960s and was demolished around 1963 shortly after this photograph was taken.

Facts…
Licence Holders.
1960 Andrew McGowan.
1937 William Cran Forbes.
1936 Martha Young Reynolds McLennan.
1910 Robert C B Reynolds.
1902-1895 James Nicol.
1875 Peter McGregor.
Mr James Nicol 1895.

Do you remember this old pub? If so please leave a Comment.

END.

The Blochairn Tavern.

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Blochairn Road, Glasgow. G21 2DU. Tel: 0141 552 1417.

Blochairn Tavern. 1991.

This is an old pub dating back to 1880, landlord John Ruddock occupied these premises for over thirty years, when he died his wife took over the running of the pub. This pub has always been known as the Blochairn Tavern, however a newer name has been fluttering over this old pub for some time now the “Budgie.”

When Mr Ruddock took over the Blochairn Tavern he was trading as a Grocer & Wine & Spirit Merchant, also having premises in Newton, trading as a grocer & provision merchant and ran the local Post Office from the premises. John went on to own a pub on Paisley Road the “Burn Tavern.”

Blochairn Tavern. 2005.

In the NEWS 1978…

Dawn Pub Runs Into Row…

The first-ever Scots pub to cater for dawn patrol drinkers, the Blochairn Bar in Glasgow’s fruit and fish market, has been given the thumbs down by some market foremen.

The Blochairn Tavern known to the workers at the market as the “Budgie,” was granted a drinks licence from 8 a.m. till 11 p.m. at Glasgow Licensing Court yesterday.

But today fruit market foreman porter Sam Gardner said he did not agree with breakfast drinking.

Sam (56), of 44 Morano Street, Maryhill, said, “It will mean drinking will start earlier. “Men will go to the pub and not come back to work. It is hard enough to get them to work at the moment. Licensing hours are long enough.”

Robert Connor (38), a forklift driver, said, “I am all for it. If you want a drink just now early on you can go to the cash and carry. “Having a pint in the pub will be much more civilised. “I say good luck to publican Willie Smith.”

Flower salesman George Ford said the licensing extension would bring the Glasgow market into line with its English counterparts. “Other than that it won’t affect this market very much, people are too set in their ways. I don’t think the bosses will be too pleased though.”

A total of seven all-day licenses were granted by Glasgow Licensing Court at Govan Town Hall today. There were 14 applications in front of the board, who were sitting for the second successive day.

1978…

Glasgow publican Willie Smith (second right) has achieved a notable double. The first was the opening of his new bar in Blochairn Road, next to the city’s fish and fruit market.

With him at the opening ceremony are Bill Devlin, Ind Coope’s free trade director, who made the official opening, and Ind Coope’s area sales manager Alec Jackson.

Second part of Willie’s double was the presentation of him of a life membership of the Scottish Junior Football Association to mark his more than 20 years work to the game. He is president of St. Roch’s F.C.

Facts…
Licence Holders.
William Smith.
1973-1951 Effie Davis.
1950-1926 Thomas Fraser.
1920 Mrs J S Ruddock.

Do you know anything about the Blochairn Tavern? If so please leave a comment.

ENS.

The Blarney Stone.

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30 Caledonia Road, Gorbals, Glasgow. Demolished.

Blarney Stone. 1991.

It was sad to see this old favourite Gorbals haunt demolished. A new housing development now occupies the site. The Blarney Stone sat at the corner of Caledonia Road and Thistle Street.

This old pub dated back to 1863 when William Ross occupied the premises until the beginning of the 1870s, William also had a pub in John Street. Mrs Paul took over the licence for a few years before William Thomson took over.

Mr Thomson also ran pubs in Thistle Street, Crown Street, London Road, Crownpoint Road. William resided at Hutcheson Square before moving to Langside.

Sam Service took over the business in 1903 until 1930s, Frederick Seils then took over the pub, he had other establishments in Stockwell Street. The Seil’s had the Blarney Stone for over forty years.

The Blarney Stone with flats above date unknown.

The Blarney Stone had a name change when  Augustine (Gus) Seils owned the pub, it changed to “The Gweedore Arms” and was changed back to the Blarney Stone as the locals still called the it Seils and the Blarney Stone. This happened to many pubs in Glasgow, when someone comes up with an idea to change the name of a pub and the locals will still call it by the old name. So all you publican’s out there think very hard before you change the name of your pub.

Thanks to Norrie Mcnamee for this old photograph of the Blarney Stone.

Blarney Stone. 1980s.

Thanks to Willy Devlin for the following email…

I remember the Blarney Stone as the pub my dad always went to every
night. Willie Devlin was his name and he was part of the pub and its
folklore! He helped repair or upgrade parts of the interior along the
way as he was a joiner to trade. We went there as a family 7 brothers an
sisters on occasion and there was always a face you knew and spoke too
and had a laugh! Famous for its pictures of Paul McStay and the Pope
behind the bar it was obvious where its leanings were but I never saw
any trouble in all the years I went. I used to pass it when I was a
young boy and remember there used to be a guy selling papers just around
from it…a guy with a limp!….I remember the day they decided to lay a
new carpet!.OMG it was purples and oranges and I’m sure there were many a
sore heads blamed on the vibrant colours! I was there on the last day
when it closed with my mum, dad, brothers and Wife and it was a sad  but
enjoyable evening. we ended the night by going into the chippy next door
for chips and fritters!.an the short walk home to Oregon Place where my
mum an dad still live….. Its a bar that is forever missed but will be
remembered as it was part of my life and part of my family.

Hope this is ok and you can drop it into your site…well don’t by the
way…the whole place brings back memories of Glasgow!

In the NEWS 1977…

The Blarney Stone has been in the same family for 45 years. 1977. To read more on this article from 1977 click here.

Do you remember this old Pub? If so please leave a comment.

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