Hutcheson's Hospital in Trongate.
The lawyers George and Thomas Hutcheson bequeathed land and funds for the construction and endowment of a hospital for old Glasgow merchants and a free school for underprivileged boys. The hospital was built between 1641 and 1660 but only two of the four sides of the compound were completed. The main hall originally accommodated twelve men and the school a dozen boys.
The front of the building on Trongate was adorned with a 100 feet high steeple complete with a clock and bell. To the north of the main complex was an extensive garden open to the public as well as to the inmates. Statues of the Hutcheson brothers were placed on either side of the entrance at the foot of the steeple.
The hospital was maintained by revenue from the rentals of lands in the Gorbals, Ramshorn and Meadowflat, but funds became scarce soon after the building was completed. Parts of the hospital were acquired by businessmen and shopkeepers and the close was used for bull-baiting. In 1795 the site was sold to make way for the creation of Hutcheson Street, and the Patrons invested the money raised from the sale in the erection of a new Hospital in Ingram Street - now known as Hutcheson's Hall.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 941.435 GOR
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
bells, bull-baiting, clocks, gardens, grammar schools, hospitals, Hutcheson Grammar School, lawyers, printers, schools, sculpture, shops, statues, steeples, towers
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