Bellahouston Park hosted the Empire Exhibition of 1938. The venue for Glasgow's three previous major exhibitions, Kelvingrove Park, was considered too small for this, the largest exhibition ever mounted in Scotland, on the fiftieth anniversary of the International Exhibition of 1888.
This plan indicates some of the advantages of Bellahouston Park. The exhibition site, some 187 acres, was mainly flat but with a hill in the centre to provide a focus. Two major roads, Paisley Road West and Mosspark Boulevard, run alongside the site and brought crowds by bus and tram. There are two railway stations shown, Ibrox Station being specially built for the Exhibition. The provision of a car park with a capacity of 10,000 was a sign of the times.
In 1938 Glasgow was emerging from an economic depression which had hit the city's traditional industries hard. It was hoped the Empire Exhibition would encourage optimism for the future.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 606.4 (1938)
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
Bellahouston Park, Empire Exhibition, exhibitions, Ibrox Station, Kelvingrove Park, plans, railway stations
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