Welcome to Visit Cowlairs Places The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Cowlairs
Visit Cowlairs places using Walkfo for free guided tours of the best Cowlairs places to visit. A unique way to experience Cowlairs’s places, Walkfo allows you to explore Cowlairs as you would a museum or art gallery with audio guides.
Visiting Cowlairs Walkfo Preview Cowlairs is part of the wider Springburn district of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde, between central Springburn and Possilpark. Administratively, it is divided by the Glasgow to Edinburgh via Falkirk Line railway tracks. When you visit Cowlairs, Walkfo brings Cowlairs places to life as you travel by foot, bike, bus or car with a mobile phone & headphones.
Cowlairs Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Cowlairs
Visit Cowlairs – Walkfo’s stats for the places to visit
With 346 audio plaques & Cowlairs places for you to explore in the Cowlairs area, Walkfo is the world’s largest heritage & history digital plaque provider. The AI continually learns & refines facts about the best Cowlairs places to visit from travel & tourism authorities (like Wikipedia), converting history into an interactive audio experience.
Cowlairs history
Until the 19th century, the area was a country estate centred around Cowlairs House, situated just west of the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway tracks. The Cowlairs railway works was founded in 1841 by the E&GR on the west side of the railway at Carlisle Street. It was the first works in Britain which built locomotives, carriages and wagons in one factory. In 1866, Cowlairs became the main workshop for the new owners, the North British Railway Company, as Springburn became a global centre of railway-related manufacturing. A residential community developed around the railway works and other local industries, initially off Cowlairs Road from the Cowlairs railway station up to the western side of Springburn Road, then off the northern side of Keppochhill Road (the south side already being occupied by Sighthill Cemetery), spreading west to occupy the site of Cowlairs House which was demolished in the 1910s – it was located at what would become the junction of Endrick Street and Gourlay Street (named after the most prominent family which owned the mansion). To the west of this, an eponymous public park was laid out around a decade later. North of the park, a grid pattern of streets running east from Saracen Street, Possilpark was extended along to the perimeter of Cowlairs Works, lined with grey ‘rehousing’ tenements constructed cheaply to accommodate residents previously living in slum conditions elsewhere in the city. In 1923, Cowlairs Works passed into the ownership of the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER), no more engines were built, and the works reverted to repair and maintenance. After nationalisation in 1948, the works became the property of British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL), who used steam locomotives until 1968. From the 1960s, the area changed greatly the railway station closed in 1964, followed by Cowlairs Works in 1968 (contracts were transferred to St. Rollox railway works, which was renamed as BREL’s Glasgow works). North Glasgow was badly hit by the decline of traditional heavy industry, with the locomotive factories of Springburn joined by the Saracen Foundry at Possilpark in closing its doors. At the same time, the oldest part of the Cowlairs neighbourhood was levelled as part of the ‘Comprehensive Redevelopment’ of Springburn which later included a realigned dual carriageway to replace the old Springburn Road as belated attempts were made to adapt Glasgow to modern times. The economic hardship that followed led to a deterioration in the condition of the housing in the area and an increase in health problems, social issues and crime. By the 1980s, parts of Springburn and particularly Possilpark had a very poor reputation. A housing association was established for the Hawthorn neighbourhood of east Possilpark which led to its refurbishment, but the tenements uphill from Hawthorn closer to Cowlairs were subject to wholesale demolition in the 1990s, without being replaced. The former site of Cowlairs Works was partly occupied by a Scotch Whisky bonded warehouse, while its southern half remained brownfield. The decline in the local population caused Cowlairs Park to be underused, vandalised and left to become increasingly dilapidated and overgrown, adding to the acres of wasteland in that part of Glasgow, less than 2 miles (3.2 km) from the city centre. At the physically isolated Cowlairs House area, some further tenement demolitions were followed by the building of new houses, as well as a small ballgames area for children and a regional headquarters for the Quarriers homeless charity. Nearby to the south, the looming presence of the Sighthill tower blocks diminished as the ten structures were demolished in stages over a decade between 2008 and 2018, at which point a facility for addiction rehabilitation at the southern edge of the park closed, with services relocating to Anniesland. In July 2019, Glasgow City Council announced their intention to build around 800 homes on the vacant land to the west of the old works, including the park, within the next five years under a ‘Cowlairs Masterplan’. The proposal did not include the smaller, but still substantial, works site itself as the council did not own that land; however, ten months later an outline plan was submitted by a private developer to construct 300 additional houses there. There remains an association with railways in the area in the form of a diesel maintenance depot at Eastfield, half a mile to the north of the old works. In October 2013 the signalling centre at Cowlairs, which controls trains from Glasgow Queen Street High Level closed and transferred to Edinburgh Waverley. The West of Scotland Signalling Centre, located close to where Cowlairs station once stood and controlling much of the south of Glasgow, opened at Cowlairs South in December 2008. It controls the area formerly controlled by Glasgow Central Signalling Centre, and is expected eventually to control most of the west of Scotland.
Why visit Cowlairs with Walkfo Travel Guide App?
You can visit Cowlairs places with Walkfo Cowlairs to hear history at Cowlairs’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Cowlairs has 346 places to visit in our interactive Cowlairs map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Cowlairs, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Cowlairs places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Cowlairs & the surrounding areas.
Walkfo Cowlairs tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Cowlairs
Best Cowlairs places to visit
Cowlairs has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Cowlairs’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Cowlairs’s information audio spots:
Tradeston Tradeston (Scots: Tredstoun) is a small district in the Scottish city of Glasgow adjacent to the city centre on the south bank of the River Clyde.
Sandyford, Glasgow Sandyford is north of the River Clyde and forms part of the western periphery of Glasgow. Formerly the name of a ward under Glasgow Town Council in the early 20th century. It is within a continuous area of dense urban development bordering several other neighbourhoods.
Milton, Glasgow Milton is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow, situated north of the River Clyde. The housing scheme is about 2+1/2 miles (4 kilometres) north of Glasgow City Centre.
Carntyne Carntyne (Scottish Gaelic: Càrn an Teine) is a suburban district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde, and in the east end of the city. It has formed the core of the East Centre ward under Glasgow City Council since 2007.
1990 Auckland Jewish daycare stabbing A mentally ill woman attacked the playground of the Jewish Kadimah School’s daycare in Central Auckland, stabbing four children with a knife. The attack continued as other young students looked on “in horror”, while members of staff ran to help the children. The woman, 52-year-old Pauline Janet Williamson, was eventually disarmed by a male teacher. The children, aged 6 to 8, were hospitalised immediately afterwards.
Tradeston Flour Mills explosion The Tradeston Flour Mills exploded on 9 July 1872. Eighteen people died and at least 16 were injured. The mill was owned by Matthew Muir & Sons and had been in operation for 30 years.
Equestrian statue of William III, Glasgow The equestrian statue of William III in Cathedral Square, Glasgow, is a 1735 work by an unknown sculptor. It is the work of a sculptor unknown.
Chinatown, Glasgow Chinatown in Glasgow is a Chinese shopping complex that opened in 1992 in Cowcaddens. Chinatown is a shopping complex in the Scottish city. It is located in the centre of the city’s Chinatown.
Clydeside distillery Clydeside distillery is the first active distillery in Glasgow for over 100 years. When production began in 2017 it was the first to produce Scotch whisky in Glasgow.
Visit Cowlairs plaques
61 plaques hereCowlairs has 61 physical plaques in tourist plaque schemes for you to explore via Walkfo Cowlairs plaques audio map when visiting. Plaques like National Heritage’s “Blue Plaques” provide visual geo-markers to highlight points-of-interest at the places where they happened – and Walkfo’s AI has researched additional, deeper content when you visit Cowlairs using the app. Experience the history of a location when Walkfo local tourist guide app triggers audio close to each Cowlairs plaque. Explore Plaques & History has a complete list of Hartlepool’s plaques & Hartlepool history plaque map.
Experience Cowlairs audio walks & tours
Walkfo guides for things to do / places to visit in Cowlairs allows exploration as you would do an art gallery or museum. Walk close to one of Cowlairs’s 346 historic places & our digital tour guide will create an audio story for that spot. With headphone connected, you can explore Cowlairs freely by foot, bike or bus – with your own personal tour guide in your pocket.
Explore Cowlairs Map App
Our visit Cowlairs map shows you things-to-do & places you can visit in Cowlairs & surrounding areas using the Walkfo digital audio tour guide app. Each spot has plaque, building, street or area information on history, culture or tourism.
You can set your Walkfo’s Cowlairs tourist map to find historic & tourism spots within 1km, 3km & 5km of the Cowlairs centre, depending on how far you plan to explore whilst you visit Cowlairs area at LONG:-4.241, LAT:55.879.
Walkfo App
Walkfo
Walkfo is free to download & use (for a limited time period), so if you are looking to explore Cowlairs, go to your App Store to search for “Walkfo” or follow a links below and install on your mobile phone. Walkfo is designed for use with headphones or AirPods, so you can walk & explore whilst learning about the things around you without digital distraction.
Things to do & visit in Cowlairs / surrounding areas
● Kinning Park ● Plantation, Glasgow ● Kingston, Glasgow ● BBC Radio Scotland ● BBC Pacific Quay ● Media Village Scotland ● Bell’s Bridge ● Glasgow Harbour Tunnel Rotundas ● Kingston Bridge, Glasgow ● Millennium Bridge, Glasgow ● SEC Armadillo ● Crowne Plaza Glasgow ● Tradeston ● Laurieston, Glasgow ● New Bedford Cinema ● SSE Hydro ● NHS Louisa Jordan Hospital ● SEC Centre ● Tradeston Bridge ● Finnieston ● Finnieston distillery ● Broomielaw ● Glasgow, Paisley and Johnstone Canal ● Gorbals ● George V Bridge, Glasgow ● The Pyramid at Anderston ● Argyle Building, Glasgow ● TAG Theatre Company ● Caledonian Railway Bridge ● Citizens Theatre
● Glasgow Bridge, Glasgow ● Anderston Centre ● Kelvinhaugh, Glasgow ● Glasgow Sheriff Court ● Southern Necropolis ● Sandyford Henderson Memorial Church ● Adelphi Whisky ● Yorkhill Parade drill hall ● Optimo ● Glasgow Central Mosque ● Sandyford, Glasgow ● The Tron Church at Kelvingrove ● Classic Grand ● Elphinstone Place ● Victoria Bridge, Glasgow ● The Glasgow Gaiety Theatre ● St Andrew’s Cathedral, Glasgow ● Glasgow (district) ● The Metropole Theatre ● 2013 Glasgow helicopter crash ● The Briggait ● Glasgow Women’s Library ● Glasgow St Enoch rail accident ● St. Enoch Centre ● The 13th Note Café ● City Union Bridge ● Glasgow Print Studio ● Merchant City ● Sharmanka Kinetic Gallery ● Saltmarket ● Collegiate Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Anne, Glasgow ● Tron Theatre ● Trongate ● Tobacco Merchant’s House ● Albert Bridge, Glasgow ● Candleriggs ● St Enoch Square ● St Andrew’s-by-the-Green ● Merchant City Festival ● Clyde Model Dockyard ● St Andrew’s Square, Glasgow ● St Andrew’s in the Square ● Princes Square ● Glasgay! Festival ● Glasgow LGBT Centre ● Glasgow City Halls ● 2014 Glasgow bin lorry crash ● Equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington, Glasgow ● Hutchesons’ Hall ● Queens Theatre, Glasgow ● Gallery of Modern Art, Glasgow ● Royal Exchange Square ● The Ramshorn ● Clyde Amateur Rowing Club ● Clydesdale Amateur Rowing Club ● The Lighthouse, Glasgow ● Glasgow International Comedy Festival ● World Pipe Band Championships ● Glasgow ● Ramshorn Cemetery ● Glasgow City Chambers ● George Square ● The Egyptian Halls ● The Arches (Glasgow) ● Ca d’Oro Building ● Turing Institute ● University of Strathclyde Technology and Innovation Centre ● The Horse Shoe Bar ● Nelson Monument, Glasgow ● Glasgow Stock Exchange ● St George’s Tron Church ● University of Strathclyde Students’ Association ● Livingstone Tower ● Greater Glasgow ● James Weir Building ● Royal Faculty of Procurators in Glasgow ● Alhambra Theatre Glasgow ● TRNSMT ● Glasgow International Jazz Festival ● Barrowland Ballroom ● Rottenrow ● Glasgow city centre ● St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art ● Glasgow hotel stabbings ● Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ● Green’s Playhouse ● Strathclyde Grain distillery ● People’s Palace, Glasgow ● Kinclaith ● Gallowgate Barracks ● Lion Chambers ● Glasgow Lock Hospital ● Hutchesontown ● Glasgow Royal Concert Hall ● Glasgow Empire Theatre ● St Andrew House, Glasgow ● Townhead ● Andersonian Library ● Barony Hall ● Cineworld Glasgow ● Royalty Theatre, Glasgow ● The Apollo (Glasgow) ● Pavilion Theatre (Glasgow) ● Provand’s Lordship ● Templeton On The Green ● Burns Howff ● James White (1812–1884) ● Bishop’s Castle, Glasgow ● Glasgow Green ● Cathedral Square, Glasgow ● Glasgow University Boat Club ● The National (Scotland) ● Blythswood Square ● Archdiocese of Glasgow ● King’s Bridge, Glasgow ● Theatre Royal, Glasgow ● King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut ● Edinburgh Folk Club ● Lady Well ● Blythswood Hill ● Willow Tearooms ● Glasgow Art Club ● Glasgow Cathedral ● Battle of Glasgow (1544) ● Battle of Glasgow (1560) ● Alexandra Music Hall ● Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts ● Glasgow Caledonian University ● National Piping Centre ● Wellpark Brewery ● St Columba Church of Scotland, Glasgow ● Glasgow Film Theatre ● St Mungo’s Church, Glasgow ● Adelaide Place Baptist Church ● Glasgow Royal Infirmary ● McLellan Galleries ● Partick Cross ● Yorkhill ● Cottiers, Glasgow ● Partick Trinity Church ● Archives of the University of Glasgow ● Western Infirmary ● Glasgow Museum of Transport ● West End Festival ● West Glasgow Ambulatory Care Hospital ● Kelvin Hall International Sports Arena ● Kelvin Hall ● Cameronians War Memorial ● 1 Prince’s Terrace ● Dowanhill ● Ashton Lane ● Curlers Rest ● Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum ● Lion and Unicorn Staircase ● Queen Margaret Union ● University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel ● Subcity Radio ● Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery ● Glasgow University Library ● Geological Society of Glasgow ● University of Glasgow Memorial Gates ● Greek Orthodox Cathedral of St. Luke, Glasgow ● Kelvinside Hillhead Parish Church, Glasgow ● University of Glasgow ● Western Baths ● Wellington Church ● Amaryllis (restaurant) ● Kelvingrove Park ● International Exhibition of Science, Art and Industry ● Botanic Gardens Garage ● Hillhead ● Òran Mór ● Glasgow University Union ● Glasgow Botanic Gardens ● CaVa Studios ● Kelvingrove, Glasgow ● One Devonshire Gardens ● Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Glasgow ● Tchai-Ovna ● Park District, Glasgow ● 22 Park Circus, Glasgow ● Kelvinbridge ● Websters Theatre, Glasgow ● Woodlands, Glasgow ● Kelvin Stevenson Memorial Church ● Burnbank Park ● St. Jude’s Church, Glasgow ● Curtain Theatre (Glasgow) ● St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow ● Walcheren Barracks ● North Kelvinside ● Woodside, Glasgow ● Arlington Baths Club ● St George’s Cross, Glasgow ● Wyndford ● Mitchell Library ● Charing Cross, Glasgow ● Ruchill Church Hall ● Ruchill Parish Church ● Glasgow Soldiers’ Home ● Elmbank Gardens ● Anderston ● Tenement House (Glasgow) ● The Garage, Glasgow ● Stockline Plastics factory explosion ● Maryhill Barracks ● Glasgow Rowing Club ● Glasgow National Hockey Centre ● Sacred Heart Church, Glasgow ● Bridgeton, Glasgow ● Saint Mary’s, Calton ● Bellgrove Hotel ● Gallowgate, Glasgow ● Barrowfield ● Glasgow Necropolis ● Glasgow Bellgrove rail accident ● St. Anne’s Church, Glasgow ● Princess Royal Maternity Hospital ● Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Glasgow ● Bluevale and Whitevale Towers ● Gilshochill ● Stockingfield Junction ● Cadder, Glasgow ● Lochburn Park ● Lambhill ● Ruchill ● Ruchill Park ● Possil Marsh ● Ruchill Hospital ● Queen’s Cross Church, Glasgow ● Parkhouse, Glasgow G22 ● Possilpark ● Hamiltonhill ● Milton, Glasgow ● St Columba’s Catholic Church, Glasgow ● Oakbank Hospital ● Saracen Park ● Ashfield F.C. ● Eastfield TMD ● Colston, Glasgow ● King’s Theatre, Glasgow ● Beresford Hotel ● St Andrew’s West, Glasgow ● Garnethill Synagogue ● Garnethill ● Cowlairs railway works ● Springvale Park ● Cowlairs ● Hyde Park, Glasgow ● Port Dundas ● Springburn Museum ● Springburn ● Petershill Park ● Clyde Locomotive Company ● Stobhill ● Sighthill, Glasgow ● Stobhill Hospital ● Huntershill Village ● Glasgow Works ● Cowcaddens ● Huntershill House ● MC Metals ● Royston, Glasgow ● Haldane Building ● St Aloysius Church, Glasgow ● O2 ABC Glasgow ● Centre for Contemporary Arts ● Bishopbriggs ● Old Balornock ● Auchinairn ● Balornock ● HM Prison Low Moss ● Barmulloch ● Germiston, Glasgow ● Provan Gas Works ● Dennistoun ● Nelson Recreation Ground ● Camlachie ● Vinegarhill ● Provanmill ● Riddrie ● Alexandra Park, Glasgow ● Carntyne Stadium ● The Forge Shopping Centre ● Glasgow East End Regeneration Route ● Carntyne ● Greencity Wholefoods ● Haghill ● HM Prison Barlinnie ● Finnieston Crane ● Sub Club ● Hielanman’s Umbrella ● Hutchesontown C ● Grand Central Hotel (Glasgow) ● University of Strathclyde ● Celtic Connections ● Calton, Glasgow ● Hillhead Baptist Church ● The Suffragette Oak ● Maryhill ● Firhill Stadium ● Glasgow Perthshire F.C. ● Blochairn ● St Roch’s F.C. ● Celtic Park ● Blackhill, Glasgow ● 1990 Auckland Jewish daycare stabbing ● Tradeston Flour Mills explosion ● Equestrian statue of William III, Glasgow ● Chinatown, Glasgow ● Clydeside distillery ● Britannia Music Hall ● 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference ● Strathclyde University Boat Club
Getting to / around Cowlairs – transport link, station & street map
Getting around in Cowlairs using public transportation may include road, street, train, underground, bus or tram transport options. Walkfo has identified the following Cowlairs places with historic / cultural / factual content when you visit:
Local Cowlairs Public Transport Stations
Cowlairs Notable Streets & Road Destinations
Shields Road subway station
West Street subway station
Eglinton Street railway station
Southside railway station
Cumberland Street railway station
Bridge Street subway station
Bridge Street railway station
Main Street railway station (Glasgow)
Gorbals railway station
Anderston railway station
Finnieston railway station
Glasgow Central station
St Enoch subway station
Argyle Street railway station
St Enoch railway station
Gallowgate railway station
Glasgow Queen Street railway station
High Street (Glasgow) railway station
Buchanan Street subway station
Buchanan bus station
Glasgow Green railway station
Gallowgate Central railway station
Buchanan Street railway station
Kelvinhall subway station
Partick Central railway station
Hillhead subway station
Botanic Gardens railway station
Kirklee railway station
Kelvinbridge railway station
Kelvinbridge subway station
St George’s Cross subway station
Maryhill Central railway station
Charing Cross (Glasgow) railway station
Bridgeton railway station
Bridgeton Central railway station
Glasgow Cross railway station
Bellgrove railway station
Dawsholm railway station
Summerston railway station
Possil railway station
Possilpark & Parkhouse railway station
Ashfield railway station (Scotland)
Cowlairs railway station
Springburn railway station
Barnhill railway station
Cowcaddens subway station
Bishopbriggs railway station
Garngad railway station
Alexandra Parade railway station
Parkhead North railway station
Duke Street railway station
Lochburn railway station
Exhibition Centre railway station
Gilshochill railway station
Kilbirnie Street fire
Cheapside Street whisky bond fire
James Watt Street fire
South Portland Street Suspension Bridge
Yorkhill Street drill hall
Argyle Street, Glasgow
Dunlop Street
Glassford Street
Wilson Street
Queen Street, Glasgow
Cochrane Street, Glasgow
Buchanan Street
High Street, Glasgow
Parliamentary Road
St Vincent Street Church, Glasgow
Byres Road
West Princes Street drill hall
Duke Street Hospital
Duke Street Prison
A82 road
Sauchiehall Street
Red Road Flats
Glasgow Inner Ring Road
Ingram Street
[transportsummary]
Local Cowlairs historians & Cowlairs tour guides
Trying to encourage visitors to Cowlairs? Walkfo has millions audio places already available but Walkfo Creator gives Cowlairs’s places, attractions & landmarks ability to create their own unique outdoor audio museums & using our simple & easy to use Walkfo Creator. – Creating a new audio experience for your Cowlairs place is free* and quick (15+ minutes if you prepare text content) to use, with Walkfo Creator doing the hard work of generating AI audio files for geo-spots from the text you provide with a simply click on a map. – The 100 Amazing Cowlairs Places is just one example of an outdoor museum created using Walkfo Creator (pictured to the left) for people to safely explore during Covid-19 times whilst visiting a city. Our tool is open to tourism organisations, travel destinations & National Trust locations to create their own audio walks to offer free when people visit Cowlairs destinations. – Walkfo itself is looking to partner with websites offering things-to-do / what’s on events listings to enhance the content of our ‘visit-Cowlairs’ web pages (for example: www.visitCowlairs.com). If you are interested in partnering, please contact us to discuss options.
* Walkfo Creator is free to use for a limited number of audio spots within a map with a license fee applicable when more than 20 audio spots within location walk are created. v1.1336