Elder Park is a public park in the

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...

area of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland, located a short distance south of the

River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...

, to the east of the Linthouse neighbourhood. It contains , a boating pond, the original Fairfield farmhouse, and Linthouse Mansion portico.

History

The park was given to the people of Govan in 1885 by

Isabella Elder Isabella Ure Elder (15 March 1828 – 18 November 1905) was a Scottish Philanthropy, philanthropist who took a particular interest in education, especially of women, and in the welfare of the people of Govan in Glasgow. In Govan alone, Elder ...

, in memory of her husband, the shipbuilding magnate John Elder. It was created on the site of Fairfield farm, the farmhouse of which still stands. The headquarters of the family's

Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited, was a Scottish shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Na ...

were directly opposite the park to the north on Govan Road – the buildings still exist as the Fairfield Heritage Centre. Elder gifted the park for "healthful recreation by music and amusement". The park's sandstone entrance gates were refurbished during 2021, with a small ceremony taking place at the conclusion of the project in February 2022.Govan K13 memorial safeguarded for future
Glasgow Times, 15 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2022

Buildings

lies at the south-eastern end of the park, on Langlands Road. It was opened in September 1903 by

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...

, gifted to the people of Glasgow by Isabella Elder, and designed by

John James Burnet Sir John James Burnet (31 May 1857 – 2 July 1938) was a Scotland, Scottish Edwardian architecture, Edwardian architect who was noted for a number of prominent buildings in Glasgow and London. He was the son of the architect John Burnet (arch ...

t. It is a Category A

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

. The Linthouse Mansion was built in 1791, however the only remaining part of the house now is the portico.

Statues and memorials

There are two statues within the park, ( Sir J. E. Boehm, 1906, Category A listed), and one to her husband John Elder ( Archibald Shannan, 1888, Category B listed). There are also two memorials, commemorating the SS Daphne disaster in 1883 and the HMS K13 submarine disaster in 1917,Tragic tale behind K13 submarine memorial in Glasgow's Elder Park
Ann Fotheringhay, Glasgow Times, 11 September 2021 both of which involved the death of local shipyard workers (from

Stephens Stephens is a surname. It is a patronymic and is recorded in England from 1086. Notable people with the surname include: *Alexander H. Stephens (1812–1883), Vice President of the Confederate States *Alison Stephens (1970–2010), British mandoli ...

and Fairfields respectively).

References

External links

* {{Parks and gardens in Glasgow Parks and commons in Glasgow Govan 1885 establishments in Scotland Urban public parks in the United Kingdom Parks established in the 1880s

History

Buildings

Statues and memorials

See also

References

External links