View from the South End of the Old Bridge by William Simpson (1823-1899).
The painting shows the view of Gorbals from the end of Stockwell Bridge. On the right, animals are being led down the "Horse Brae" to water in the Clyde. The wall in the foreground was built to raise the approach to the bridge and a small drying green was laid out there. The old Gorbals Parish Church in the background was demolished in 1975 and the Sheriff Court built on the site.
This watercolour is one of fifty-five painted by Simpson between 1893 and 1898. The series is based on sketches he completed fifty years earlier and which appeared as black and white illustrations in Views and Notices of Glasgow in Former Times, published in 1848 by Allan & Ferguson.
Reference: 892v/ 1989.2.v
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Glasgow Museums
Keywords:
Allan & Ferguson, artists, bridges, Church of Scotland, church steeples, churches, drying greens, fishermen, Gorbals Parish Church, Horse Brae, horses, laundry, Old Bridge, Sheriff Court, spires, Stockwell Bridge, washing