Barrowfield is a neighbourhood of
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, Scotland, close to
Celtic Park
Celtic Park is the home stadium of Celtic Football Club, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest football stadium in Scotland, and the eighth-largest stadium in the United Kingdom. It is also ...
, home of
Celtic F.C.
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a Scottish professional football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the immigran ...
, which lies immediately to the east. It is bounded by the
A89 road A89 or A-89 may refer to:
* A89 motorway (France)
* A89 road (Scotland)
* Dutch Defence, in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings
* Beauvechain Air Base
Beauvechain Air Base is a Belgian Air Component military airfield in Belgium, located south ...
(Gallowgate) to the north and the
A74 (London Road) to the south.
History
Being an area of working class housing enclosed by main roads and railway lines, Barrowfield consequently developed a distinctive character. The original 1930s council housing scheme flats (built to accommodate those cleared from Glasgow's 19th century slums in nearby areas such as
Camlachie
Camlachie ( gd, Camadh Làthaich) is an area of the city of Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th l ...
) became increasingly hard to let and were demolished in the 2000s to make way for more appealing houses.
A small section of the original tenements remain around the junction of Law Street and Overtown Street, though extensively refurbished.
In the 1950s the area changed from a working-class neighbourhood like most other areas of the city to being a place renowned for its gangs, namely "The Torch" and "The Spur" whose territory was respectively located at the north and south ends of the main thoroughfare;
Each terrorised the other's patch, and the area was so violent that the fighting diminished in the 1980s only because the gang leaders realised that dealing in drugs was more profitable. Unfortunately for the community, this meant the scheme had hundreds of drug abusers from all over Glasgow coming to the area to buy their "gear". Barrowfield therefore has a high mortality rate amongst the youth, largely due to drug abuse and suicide. In the early 21st century the area underwent a massive revamp,
[ but the drug problem persists and crime is still high. In 2009, the data zone covering the neighbourhood was classed as the most deprived in Scotland.][
Footballer ]James McArthur
James McFarlane McArthur (born 7 October 1987) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for club Crystal Palace.
McArthur started his career at Hamilton Academical and was part of the team that won the 2007–08 ...
and actor Paul Brannigan
Paul Brannigan (born 14 September 1986) is a Scottish actor best known for his roles as Gareth O'Connor in Scottish soap opera ''River City'' and as Robbie in the film '' The Angels' Share'' (2012). Brannigan also appeared in the 2013 movie '' ...
grew up in Barrowfield in the 1990s.
Sport
A historic football stadium, Barrowfield Park
Barrowfield Park was a football ground in the Bridgeton / Dalmarnock area of Glasgow, Scotland. It was the home ground of Eastern during the 1870s and Clyde between 1877 and 1898.
History
Clyde moved to Barrowfield Park in 1877, initially gr ...
, was the home ground of Clyde F.C.
Clyde Football Club is a Scottish semi-professional football club who play in Scottish League One. Formed in 1877 at the River Clyde in Glasgow, the club host their home matches at New Douglas Park, having played at Broadwood Stadium from 1994 ...
between 1877 and 1898 prior to their move to Shawfield Stadium
Shawfield Stadium is a closed greyhound racing, football and speedway venue in the Shawfield district of the town of Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, located close to the boundary with Glasgow.
Originally a football ground, Shawfie ...
, and also hosted matches for Eastern F.C.
Eastern Football Club was a 19th-century football club based in Glasgow, Scotland. They were one of the founder members of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) and one of the sixteen teams to participate in the inaugural season of the Scot ...
and Albatross. However the ground was actually in the city's Dalmarnock
Dalmarnock (, gd, Dail Mheàrnaig) is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated east of the city centre, directly north of the River Clyde opposite the town of Rutherglen. It is also bounded by the Glasgow neighbourhoods of Pa ...
neighbourhood, taking its name from the historic Barrowfield rural estate which once occupied much of the surrounding area.
For many years, Celtic F.C.
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a Scottish professional football club based in Glasgow, which plays in the Scottish Premiership. The club was founded in 1887 with the purpose of alleviating poverty in the immigran ...
conducted most of their training routines at a facility to the east of Celtic Park
Celtic Park is the home stadium of Celtic Football Club, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest football stadium in Scotland, and the eighth-largest stadium in the United Kingdom. It is also ...
named Barrowfield, but it is also not within the boundaries of the present-day Barrowfield residential area west of the stadium. The source of this double naming stems from Junior
Junior or Juniors may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959
* ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009
* ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010
* ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019
Films
* ''Junior'' (1994 ...
club Bridgeton Waverley, who played at a ground named 'Barrowfield', also named after the historic estate and located approximately at Mountainblue Street today, until the 1930s when that land was bought over for construction of the new housing scheme (the Nelson Recreation Ground
The Nelson Recreation Ground also known as the Olympic Sports Stadium was a former sports ground and stadium on Janefield Street (formerly Porter Street), in Camlachie, Glasgow, Scotland.
The recreation ground hosted trotting races as early as ...
a few blocks away was also demolished). Waverley moved about east to the other site, part of Westthorn Park, and named their new ground 'New Barrowfield'. Celtic later took control of it as their training ground
A training ground is an area where professional association football teams prepare for matches, with activities primarily concentrating on skills and fitness. They also sometimes form part of a club's youth system, as clubs consider it important t ...
in the early 1960s and the Barrowfield name became familiar to many football fans as a result, however it may be assumed the training ground is the same place as the housing scheme, which is not technically correct. Today there are still football pitches on the land which are owned and used by the club.
After the 2014 Commonwealth Games
The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...
was held in Glasgow, Barrowfield has international-class sporting facilities within walking distance: the Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome
The Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, known for sponsorship reasons as the Emirates Arena, is an indoor arena and velodrome in Dalmarnock, Glasgow, Scotland. Built for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, these venues hosted the badminto ...
are in nearby Dalmarnock
Dalmarnock (, gd, Dail Mheàrnaig) is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated east of the city centre, directly north of the River Clyde opposite the town of Rutherglen. It is also bounded by the Glasgow neighbourhoods of Pa ...
. The ''Crownpoint Sports Complex'', a modern outdoor athletics track, is also nearby adjacent to St Mungo's Academy
St Mungo's Academy is a Roman Catholic, co-educational, comprehensive, secondary school located in Gallowgate, Glasgow. The school was founded in 1858 by the Marist Brothers religious order.
The debate team at St Mungo's were the first Scotti ...
.
References
{{Authority control
Areas of Glasgow
Parkhead
Bridgeton–Calton–Dalmarnock