Sir William Bilsland LLD (17 March 1847 – 27 August 1921) was a Scottish baker who owned one of Scotland's largest bakeries, and was Lord Provost 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 ...

. He was an elder of the

United Free Church of Scotland The United Free Church of Scotland (UF Church; gd, An Eaglais Shaor Aonaichte, sco, The Unitit Free Kirk o Scotland) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (or UP) and ...

and a supporter of the

temperance movement The temperance movement is a social movement promoting temperance or complete abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and its leaders emph ...

Life

He was born on 17 March 1847 at Ballat near

Balfron Balfron ( gd, Both Fron) is a village in the Stirling council area of Scotland. It is situated near Endrick Water on the A875 road, 18 miles (29 km) west of Stirling and 16 miles (26 km) north of Glasgow. Although a rural settlement, it ...

, the son of Ann Blair and James Bilsland, a farmer. He was educated at Dalmanoch school in

Bonhill Bonhill ( sco, B'nill; gd, Both an Uillt) is a town in the Vale of Leven area of West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It is sited on the Eastern bank of the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven, on the opposite bank from the larger town of Alexa ...

living there with his uncle, Dr Alexander Leckie. From 1860 to 1869 he worked as a grocer's assistant in

. In 1869 he opened a shop at 223 Garscube Road. In 1872 he opened a bakery in Greenhill Street and also acquired an existing bakery in Elderslie Street.

Bilsland Brothers

In 1877, with his brothers, he bought a large piece of ground on Hydepark Street and on which they built the large Hydepark Bakery, adopting the company name of Bilsland Brothers. By 1900 they employed 200 people and made 230,000 loaves of bread a week, over 10 million loaves per year. They supplied 1600 retailers. Workers were well-paid, worked a 40-hour maximum week, unusual for the time, and all received free bread. In 1912 they acquired the rival company of Gray and Dunn (but retained their name as Gray Dunn & Co). The main company was rebranded as Glasgow Bakeries. The company traded until 1985. The bakery was demolished in 2015.

Politics

In 1886 he became a town councillor representing the 13th ward (Anderston) in

. In 1905 he was elected Lord Provost, succeeding

John Ure Primrose Sir John Ure Primrose DL LLD (1847–1924) was a Scottish merchant who served as Lord Provost of Glasgow from 1902 to 1905 and as Chairman of Rangers Football Club from 1912 to 1923. He was also Chairman of the Clyde United Navigation Trust ...

. As Lord Provost, he was the Lord Lieutenant for the City of Glasgow. He served until 1908 during which time he saw many artistic projects, in particular the

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

. During this period he lived at 28 Park Circus a beautiful, three-storey Georgian circus form, just east of

Kelvingrove Park Kelvingrove Park is a public park located on the River Kelvin in the West End of the city of Glasgow, Scotland, containing the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. History Kelvingrove Park was originally created as the West End Park in 1852, and ...

. In 1907 King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

created him a baronet, as Sir William Bilsland, Baronet of Park Circus, for his services to Glasgow. He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Lanarkshire in 1907. He was a trustee of the

National Galleries of Scotland National Galleries of Scotland ( gd, Gailearaidhean Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is the executive non-departmental public body that controls the three national galleries of Scotland and two partner galleries, forming one of the National Collections o ...

for three 5-year terms from 1907. He died on 27 August 1921.

Family

In 1885 he married Agnes Anne Steven (d.1935). Together they had two children, Agnes Anne (1896-1970) and Steven Bilsland, who inherited the business on his death.

Arms

References

External links

* 1965 documentary
Bilsland Bread
', National Library of Scotland
Derelict bakery building prior to demolition
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilsland, William 1847 births 1921 deaths Lord Provosts of Glasgow British businesspeople Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom