Also check out the video at the bottom of the page
The Scotch Buildings
Circa 1900
written by Wendy Kolbe
The Scotch buildings were three Glasgow style tenement building blocks arranged in a triangle with a central courtyard and located off Duke Street. Commissioned by the Barrow Hematite Steel Company and constructed hastily by Smith and Caird between 1871 and 1872 to address the chronic housing shortage in the rapidly expanding town.
Additional Information
Interview with Robert Coupland who lived in the Scotch Buildings as a child. Original interview transcript read by Brian Thompson. The original interview was created with Wendy Kolbe on 22nd July 2020.
The Scotch buildings were followed a year later by the building of further tenements on Barrow Island for the workforce and their families. At this time there were 14 blast furnaces in Barrow and a massive influx of workers from all over the country.
Images:
Aerial night shot of Steelworks and Scotch Buildings.
Map showing Scotch Building Triangle
The Huts Old Barrow Map
The Works 1871
Typical Interior with range
View from the South
Demolition