Blythswood House was a 100-room neoclassical mansion at Renfrew, Scotland, built for the Douglas-Campbell family from the considerable incomes arising from their ownership of the Lands of Blythswood in Glasgow, including

Blythswood Hill Blythswood Hill, crowned by the elegance of Blythswood Square, is the wealthiest part of central Glasgow, Scotland. It extends from the west edge of Buchanan Street to Gordon Street and Bothwell Street, Charing Cross, Sauchiehall Street ...

, developed initially by

William Harley William Harley (1767–1829) was a Scottish textile manufacturer and entrepreneur who is known for his early contributions to the city of Glasgow, including the development of the New Town of Blythswood, covering Blythswood Hill, and pioneering ...

of Blythswood Square, and earlier lands surrounding Renfrew and

Inchinnan Inchinnan (Scottish Gaelic: ''Innis Fhionghain'') is a small village in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The village is located on the main A8 road between Renfrew and Greenock, just south east of the town of Erskine. History The name of Inchinnan vil ...

. It was designed in 1821, by the architect

James Gillespie Graham James Gillespie Graham (11 June 1776 – 11 March 1855) was a Scottish architect, prominent in the early 19th century. Life Graham was born in Dunblane on 11 June 1776. He was the son of Malcolm Gillespie, a solicitor. He was christened as J ...

for

Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to: Peerage * Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer * Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland * Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...

, the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for the Glasgow District of Burghs. On his death in 1838 it passed to his second cousin Archibald Douglas Campbell (died 1868) of the lineage of

Douglas of Mains The Douglases of Mains are a branch of the Clan Douglas, related to the Lords of Douglas through Archibald I, Lord of Douglas. The first Laird obtained land through marriage into the Galbraith family, which had been granted land in New Kilpatr ...

, who adopted the name of Campbell, a pre-requisite of Blythswood ownerships. The house also contained a well-known laboratory that was used by Archibald Campbell, 1st

Baron Blythswood Baron Blythswood, of Blythswood in the County of Renfrew, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 24 August 1892 for Sir Archibald Campbell, 1st Baronet, the former Member of Parliament for Renfrew, with remainder f ...

from 1892 to 1905 to experiment into many areas at the borders of physics, including the use of cathode rays, X-rays, spectroscopy and radioactivity. The house remained the seat of the Lords Blythswood until its demolition in 1935. Five years later the family title became extinct. The house was demolished in 1935.''Glasgow's Blythswood'' by Graeme Smith, published in 2021 www.blythswoodsmith.co.uk

References

Houses in Renfrewshire Buildings and structures demolished in 1935 Demolished buildings and structures in Scotland James Gillespie Graham buildings Scottish country houses destroyed in the 20th century Neoclassical architecture in Scotland Renfrew {{Scotland-struct-stub