Susannes Folksong-Notizen
[1983:] Robert Neil, who wrote Airn John in 1858, did not know
that he, in company with other broadside writers, was
contributing to the social history of the age. He had a more
immediate purpose: to voice the indignation of East-Enders at the
proposal to sell mining rights in the Glasgow Green to private
coalmasters in order to pay for the new West End Park. The
proposal was put forward by Baillie John McDowall, a city
ironmaster, hence Airn John. For those who see little
significance in this old song, an updated version is provided
[by] We Will Not Have A Motorway [see below]. (Notes Adam
McNaughtan, 'WordsWordsWords')
[1988:] The most sustained and serious threat to the Green in
the 19th century was the proposal, resurrected every now and
then, to mine coal there. Cleland [the City Superintendent of
Works] had had extensive borings done in 1821-1822 and he [...]
estimated that there were one million, five hundred thousand tons
of coal under Glasgow Green [...]. Glasgow Town Council, ever
cautious, did not take up Cleland's suggestions regarding the
coal. Why he should have pursued the matter so vigorously after
having had the responsibility of upgrading the Green, is a
mystery. Nevertheless, the need to realise the revenue came in
1858 when the town council found itself having to finance the
purchase of the land for the West End and South Side Parks and
the McLellan Gallery property. It was believed that the debt
incurred could be wiped out by leasing the Green for mining. The
plan was presented by John McDowall, who owned the Milton Iron
Works in North Woodside Road, and approved by a majority of the
Council. While it was recognised that mining would result in
subsidence - the ground would drop one foot for every two feet
mined - "in a city such as Glasgow deposits to fill it up
would be very readily obtained". In other words, Glasgow
Green was to be turned into a public rubbish tip for a generation
in order to pay for parks in the richer parts of the city. The
citizens of the east end were outraged by this rank injustice.
Opposition to the plans was led by an east-end councillor, Bailie
James Moir. His family had a history of radicalism [...]. By the
1850s Moir was a prosperous tea merchant (known as "the
Gallowgate Slasher" because of his low prices) with a seat
on the Town Council [...]
To drive the message home, Poet's Box printed another sheet
[...]: "Glasgow Green, with her beautiful walks, her
refreshing springs, her traditional sights, her splendid views,
her grandeur and majestic worth, is she to be broken up,
annihilated and swept from the face of the earth forever? No! It
cannot be. Surely they will not deprive the Citizens of Glasgow
of the Green, which, for centuries, has proved so much benefit to
them as a place of resort for pleasure; where youth can freely
gambol, sport and play: where age can slowly bend their peaceful
steps and breathe the fresh air of heaven. When our humble
artisan, after a day's incarceration in the foul and poisonous
air of the city, finishes his daily toil and bethinks himself for
a stroll, where can he go but to the Green? If it were but for
this alone the Green should stand unmolested, for were it not for
the working man, there would be no West End Park. ... Taking all
the benefits of this noble place into consideration, we think it
highly improbable that the authorities of Glasgow will touch it,
save for its improvement and cultivation."
The matter of mining coal was dropped, but raised again in 1869
and 1888. (King, The People's Palace 29ff)
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