42-46 North Frederick Street, Glasgow. G1 2BS. Tel: 0141 559 4331.
The Ark.
The Ark is a contemporary city pub and boasts two floor of entertainment, great food, pool table, large TV and an excellent beer garden.
North Frederick Street, copyright RCAHMS.
If you have any stories or photos of this pub, please get in touch.
END.
27-29 North Frederick Street, Glasgow
Queens Bar 1960s.
There’s been a pub on this site since 1845.
There has been licensed premises here since 1845, Mr James Penden was licensee and stayed in the family until the 1860s.
Wine and Spirit Merchant Alexander Gillon acquired the premises in 1872, business prospered and by the 1880s he was also trading at 130 Woodlands Road (Arlington Bar,) he was living at that time in Cessnock, Govan before moving to better accommodation at The Glen, Uddingston.
Robert Bowes a well-known and respected wine and spirit merchant and a Director of the Scottish wine and spirit merchants Benevolent Institution, took over the pub in 1884. Mr. Bowes also had a licensed grocer’s business at 79 Elderslie Street, 212 Sauchiehall Street, he was living at 140 Mains Street.
In 1899 Robert paid an annual rent of £115,00 for the premises in North Frederick Street, he also had pubs at 614 Rutherglen Road, 160 Caledonia Road, and a grocer’s at 212 Sauchiehall Street, he was then living at 134 Holland Street, off Sauchiehall Street.
Mr. Robert Bowes celebrated his Silver Wedding Anniversary in July 1898. He passed away in January, 1916, leaving an estate valued at £66,122. William George McFadden, acquired the premises in Elderslie Street only a year before his death.
William McFadden continued to run the pub until the 1960s.
Queen’s Bar near the corner of George Square.
In the News 1971…
Pub price veto delays property development.
The development of a site in the centre of Glasgow may be threatened because the Scottish Office are against the price negotiation for part of the property involved, a public house at North Frederick Street.
After discussions going back several years, Glasgow Corporation planning committee, who own the rest of the block covering North Hanover Street, George Street and North Frederick Street, offering £65,000 to Mr A. W. Sinclair for the Queen’s Bar, at 27-29 North Frederick Street, where his wife, Mrs. M. V. Sinclair, is licensee.
“They wanted to buy and asked my price,” Mr Sinclair said at the weekend. “I asked £70,000 but we settled on their offer of £65,000. “On the strength of that I bought other property at South Frederick Street and got a licence for it, conditional on handing over the licence for the Queen’s Bar.”
Deal Off
Mr Sinclair considered that all that was needed was the final sanction of the corporation, which he thought would be a formality. The corporation, however sent him a letter stating that the deal was off as the Scottish Development Department would not allow them to offer £65,000. The Department said the figure of £45,000 put up by the district valuator was sufficient
“We are in a cleft stick,” Mr. Sinclair said, “We can take the £45,000, or sit tight and hope something else turns up. We cannot extend the Queen’s Bar because the corporation keep saying it has a short life.
“If I don’t get into the new premises by March, when the licensing court sit, I may well lose the new licence.
“If I sit here, it is holding up any possible corporation development. I do not want to be the man in the middle but I think I have had a raw deal. “The corporation want to buy. I want to sell. Their own estates department agreed on the figure. Why should the Development Department step in like this?”
Mr Sinclair added: “We could negotiate. I would look at a lower figure, together with compensation for the interest on my over draft for the premises at South Frederick Street.” Councillor Donald McColl, convener of the corporation planning committee, said, “We are in a cleft stick too. This is a problem the new administration inherited after the May elections.
“It is rare for the Development Department to veto a price like this. We are worried about the whole block of property becoming an eyesore.”
Possible projects
The block is beside the North British Hotel and Queen Street railway station, and diagonally opposite the City Chambers in George Square and because of its central position may be developed for a prestige project. A report suggesting possible projects is understood to have been prepared by corporation officials and to be going before the planning committee later this month.
No development would be likely to go ahead if part of the property were still occupied. Councillor McColl said he recognised this danger and was searching for an acceptable way out of the predicament. One possibility being quietly explored behind the scenes is the feasibility of a form of voluntary arbitration, where both sides would put their case and their price to an independent authority of such high repute that the Development Department would be able to accept whichever solution was offered.
Queen’s Bar advert 1974.
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Queens Bar advert 1975.
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In the News 1976…
Queens Bar advert 1976.
Queen’s Bar, 1976 advert a bottle of whisky £3.42.
36 North Frederick Street, Glasgow. G1 2BS.
Now Closed down 2009.
Update… The premises will be refurbished into Student Accommodation.
Thanks to Derek. email… Old Printworks
I remember this pub from college and a few works nights out. It had a kind
of raised walkway/catwalk from the door to the bar at the back. Also had an
upstairs with white brick/tiles.
46 North Frederick Street, Glasgow.
The Inverness Vaults was a very old pub, dating back to the early part of the 18th century. An old man who had emigrated fifty years ago to Montreal, in Canada returned to the city in 1893. He pointed out to the proprietor Mr J Graham, the room in which he had been born, away back in 1820. The exterior of the building remains what it was originally, but the interior has undergone great alterations; yet traces of all old character of the tavern remain. This old Glasgow howff was popular for many old Glasgow cronies.
The liquor was good quality and Mr Graham who acquired the business in 1871, knows how to cater to his numerous patrons. His predecessor was Mr Charles Stewart, who had been licensee for many years. The Inverness Vaults not only from the historical interest that surrounds it, but also for the excellent blends of “Mountain Dew,” “Long John,” and “Dew of Ben Nevis.” The old tavern was very busy as it was in the neighbourhood of George Square.
This old tavern was a famous landmark of North Frederick Street, from the 1830s to 1864 the old tavern was run between James and Colin McDonald. In 1865 the first of the Graham family Charles acquired the business, generations of the same family ran this landmark until it came to a devastating end. When Charles Graham passed away in 1871 his wife took control of the business for a year, she in turn gave Jason Graham the heavy load of running a successful family business. Jason continued as licensee until 1885 when another member of the family took over James Graham, he paid the North British Railway Company, that owned the property £70 rent per year.
In 1895 James was now licensee of the Inverness Vaults and a pub at 112 Houston Street at the corner of 18 Cathcart Street, and was living with his family at 84 North Frederick Street, a short walk to the Inverness Vaults. When the First World War broke-out James’s wife Agnes Houston Graham took over the licence, this may have been due to, all the men in the family were away fighting for their country. Agnes continued to run both the Inverness Vaults and a pub at 21 Vermont Street at the corner of Marlow Street, Kinning Park, until the end of the war, when James Graham stepped back into the business. Things may have been devastating to the families of the Graham’s, some of them possibly died in their fight to save their country, as there licensed trade connections soon ended, after nearly one hundred years as successful wine and spirit merchants, this was a great loss to the Scottish Licensed Trade.
During the 1930s Alexander McCondach was now the proprietor of the Inverness Vaults, he was a successful wine and spirit merchant, having premises at 207 Thistle Street at the corner of Cumberland Intersects, which he took over in 1926. The spirits of the Graham family were to haunt the Inverness Vaults for years, strange events were happening on the premises over the next few years until yet another war broke-out, the strangest thing happened that night on September 1940, when the Inverness Vaults was destroyed by a bomb during an air-raid by enemy Germany. This was devastating news to Mr McCondach, however he was soon reunited with another pubs at 159 Bridgegate, the famous Victoria Bar or “Vicky’s,” on the Briggait.
In 1965 Alexander McCondach took over the Maderia Bar, Torrisdale Street.
North Frederick Street had two other pubs, the George Bar , 41 North Frederick Street, and the Queen’s Bar, 27-29 North Frederick Street.
41 North Frederick Street, Glasgow.
The George. 1960s.
There has been licensed premises on this site since 1863. William McLaws a wholesale and retail wine and spirit merchant traded from here, he also had licensed premises at 5 Cobden Street, 147 Garngad Road, 138 Garngad Road and 194 Cowcaddens. William lived with his family at Clover Bank House, Garngadhill, McLaws traded here until 1869.
The pub was then taken over by John Slater, a New Monkland’s man who was born in 1826, he lost his wife at an early age, but left him with a son called George, the pub was named after him. George took over the pub in the late 1880s. The pub stayed in the family until after the First World War.
John Kennedy then took over the pub, he ran it successfully until the end of WW2.
Robert Brown Chassels acquired the licence in 1946, he came from the well known family of Spirit Merchants and renowned members of the Scottish Licensed Trade and Hotelier’s.
Robert B Chassels was elected President of the Glasgow and District Licensed Trade Defence Association in 1966.
The pub was finally demolished in the 1970s.
Members of the Camphill Ward. 1968. Left to right Mrs J Flynn, Mr J Flynn, Mrs Lockhart., middle row George Ramster, Miss McDowall and Mr Lockhart., top Mrs Chassels, R B Chassels, Mrs Ramster and W J McDowall.
Robert B Chassels, former treasurer and junior vice-president of the SLTA was honoured by the office bearers at a lunch in Edinburgh to mark his services. Mr Chassels who had to demit office when he sold his business, was presented with a digital clock radio by the president, Arthur Squire, on behalf of the office-bearers. Other in the picture left to right William Meikle, treasurer, Morris Barr, past president, Mrs Helen Preston, junior vice-president, J C Ross, senior vice-president and Eric Ridehalgh, secretary. 1974.
Flying Officer Robert Brown Chassels, grandson of Mirrlees Chassels, J.P, and proprietor of the Clyde Hotel, Bothwell. Mr Chassels married Miss Frances Simpson in 1944 at Sandyhills Church, Mount Vernon.
Mr Robert B Chassels. 1966.
