Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

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Re: Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

Postby Doorstop » Fri Aug 19, 2011 7:01 am

::):
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Re: Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

Postby Anorak » Fri Mar 07, 2014 10:58 am

Some newspaper articles from 1869/ 1870 which suggest that the first Queen Margaret Bridge and the retaining wall where part of a single co-ordinated civil engineering project for Mr John Ewing Walker in preparation for laying out his new suburb North Kelvinside, initially known as “Kelvinside”.
The articles also suggest that the “formidable stone dyke” or “dead wall” was erected as an unnecessary obstruction designed to prevent vehicular access to the bridge from a rival development.

Image

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Further historical references regarding the structures at this location can be found at an updated version of http://www.scotcities.com/westend/north_kelvinside.htm which also features old-and-new photographs of stonework of the retaining wall and the surviving supporting piers of the original bridge, which are all remarkably similar, being part of the same construction project.
The common attribution of Alexander Thomson as being the designer of the retaining wall and associated staircase in 1872, in a separate undertaking from the earlier complex civil engineering works at this location, seems to be at odds with the contemporary published sources.
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Re: Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

Postby Anorak » Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:39 am

Recently updated entry in the Dictionary of Scottish Architects (DSA) for works attributed to Alexander “Greek” Thomson:

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http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/architect_full.php?id=100095
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Re: Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

Postby Lucky Poet » Mon Mar 24, 2014 9:53 pm

Haud on, haud on: you suddenly start saying part way through the linked piece that Roger designed the bridge and the wall + steps. The source only mentions him designing the wall. It's an interesting find, a nice piece of research by yourself, and it possibly explains the reason for the wall's existence, but it doesn't in itself win the argument that was earlier in this thread.

Who is the DSA citing by the way? If it's you then that's cheating :P
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Re: Sixty Steps - another urban myth?

Postby crusty_bint » Mon Dec 08, 2014 1:26 am

Anorak wrote:Some newspaper articles from 1869/ 1870 which suggest that the first Queen Margaret Bridge and the retaining wall where part of a single co-ordinated civil engineering project for Mr John Ewing Walker in preparation for laying out his new suburb North Kelvinside, initially known as “Kelvinside”.
The articles also suggest that the “formidable stone dyke” or “dead wall” was erected as an unnecessary obstruction designed to prevent vehicular access to the bridge from a rival development.

Herald 11.10.1869
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Herald 20.10.1870
Image

Further historical references regarding the structures at this location can be found at an updated version of http://www.scotcities.com/westend/north_kelvinside.htm which also features old-and-new photographs of stonework of the retaining wall and the surviving supporting piers of the original bridge, which are all remarkably similar, being part of the same construction project.
The common attribution of Alexander Thomson as being the designer of the retaining wall and associated staircase in 1872, in a separate undertaking from the earlier complex civil engineering works at this location, seems to be at odds with the contemporary published sources.


sorry to do this, but the bridge described in the 1869 article is the belmont bridge, the article also clearly states the ‘formidable dyke’ separating the lands of walker and the city of Glasgow bank is the rebuilding (by the bank - not walker) of an existing march wall that runs north-south to the west of belmont bridge

‘its western boundary is described by an old march wall running from north to south at a point around 100 yards west of the new bridge’
1857, march wall in red, bridge and streets in blue, sixty steps in green
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NLS maps

‘the old march wall is being superseded by a much more formidable dyke’
detail
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NLS maps

you can still see the remnants of that boundary, and the unfortunate dispute referred to in both articles, today
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