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Glesga
Pal stories from our past
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. I extracted these stories from
e-mails and entries from my messageboard...hope you enjoy them
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Band of Hope
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Band of Hope, Feb.2003
Peter Scott, Canada
Every Monday evening an orderly queue of boys and girls would form outside
the Gladstone Memorial Hall adjacent to Dalmarnock Congregational
Church in Fairbairn Street.
It was "Bandyhope" night, and, when the doors were open, there
would be a frantic rush to get the best seats - boys to the left aisle -
girls to the centre. But first an introduction:
The Band of Hope, to give it its proper name, was a body of volunteers
dedicated to instilling in the minds of its young members a set of high
moral values to take with them through life, based, as a first principle, on
a total abstinence from strong drink.
The meeting began by the boys and girls reciting the Pledge in unison, led
by Mr. Whiteside.
I
promise here by Grace divine
to drink no spirits, ale, or wine
nor will I buy or sell or give
strong drink to others while I live
for my own good this Pledge I take
but also for my neighbours' sake
and this my strong resolve shall be
No drink, no drink, no drink for me
There followed an evening of entertainment provided by singers and dancers
from various local church groups. Our Band of Hope had its own harmonica
band led by Mr.Hastie. It was really very good, and gave concerts at many
social functions in the East End.
The meeting closed with the Benediction and the members joining to sing
songs extolling the virtues of temperance. One that I recall went something
like this:
You'll never find me there, in a public house
in a public house, in a public house.
You'll never find me there, in a public house.
Oh, no! No! No!
(Hardly Rogers & Hammerstein - but what d'ye expect for a penny - the
Orpheus Choir?)
On alternate Mondays, the lights were dimmed for a Lantern Lecture. The
story was more or less the same for every show. For the sake of brevity the
following is a synopsis:
Working man on way home from work with his wages is persuaded, reluctantly,
by his mates to join them for a drink in a public house. In time the poor
soul becomes a complete slave to the demon drink, in the process depriving
his wife and family of the bare necessities of life. In one slide he is seen
stealing pennies from the wee bairn's piggy bank. All ends happily however,
when he is met outside the pub one night by an officer of the Salvation Army
who leads him back to the path of righteousness and restores him, sober and
re-invigorated, to the bosom of his family.
----- THE END -----
The story was told in a series of slides flashed on the screen with a
running commentary by a gentleman on stage, while the lantern was operated
by his assistant at the rear.
The commentator, in telling the story, used a "clicker" to signal
to his assistant when to change slides. Invariably, some "wise
guy" in the audience would have a "clicker" of his own, which
he would click at random, seeking thereby to confound the whole operation
and hoping, no doubt, to throw the audience into fits of laughter. It never
worked. Both operators had been telling the same story at Band of Hope
meetings for years, and were not fooled by the ruse. A warning by Mr.
Whiteside to the miscreant to cease and desist was generally sufficient.
I don't think the Band of Hope survived the war, but after almost 70 years,
I still remember the Pledge. Remembering the words is one thing, but
fulfilling its premise - Well that, as they say, is another story.
I attended Dalmarnock Primary
School,
Bridgeton in the 1930's----
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Feb 2003, Jimmy
Reid, Canada.
Band of Hope/Gospel Hall Singers'
no matter what you call them, they were a great bunch of folk. I never
seen my Ma' or Da' get up aff the chair on a cauld night tae pit oan a wee
singsong furr the wains. A cup of tea and a Paris bun were 'Magic' to us
in those days.
My wee pal 'C' in England sent me a wee note about the Gospel Halls and
how she couldnae go 'cause she wis a cafflick' (Jist like 'anne') well!
I'll tell you this! I wis a proddy and ah' wis in the Chapel mair times
than my pal's Mums and Dads. Ah' mean, wit were ye gonnae dae while yer
China wis in at confession??? Learn the code an' go in an' tell the priest
wit a good bhoyo? I wis, LoL. I used tae get my auld Granny McNally new
rosary beads
fur her birthday every year an' oor gang hut wis well lit wi' they lovely
big candles, bit, ah' nivir took ony money.
I always thought it wis awright tae take stuff ye needed, but, tae take
money??? that made ye' a thief!!!
(Must jist be proddy thinking???) It wis the same at The Orange Walk!! me
an' ma' pals used tae swagger and dance aw' ower the road tae the music
an' hud a rerr time. Ah' wunner if we "played wi' thae Cafflicks"
or dated somebody from the other religion, BECAUSE! oor parents told us
not too??? Ah' wunder if we've learnt from oor pasts tae be a wee bit mair tolerant of ither sorts??? Well!! ah'
merritt two Catholics and two Proddy's an' drink wis the problem! no religion! God Bless ye' an'
yurr wee site!!!
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February 2003 Ian Robertson, Canada
Thanks for the memories, Peter. If you’ll excuse someone intruding who is not
a proud “Bridgetonian” but remembers well the old Band of
Hope. My memories of both Bridgeton and the Band of Hope remain. My
first experience in or near Bridgeton was as a lad travelling east on the London
Road and past Bridgeton Cross by tramcar to visit my Aunt Cathy in Auchenshuggle
during the War. She lived in a new prefab near the cemetery and she and my uncle
Jimmy got their cozy we house after they were bombed out of their tenement flat
on North Frederick Street, just up the hill from George Square. The street no
longer exists.
Later as a teenager I recall taking the tram on those “dead” Sundays in
Cathcart on Glasgow’s South Side, and riding into Central Glasgow, then
changing trams at Argyle Street and continuing along London Road. Finally
getting off at a wee hole in the wall record shop that specialized in great jazz
records. It was for me sheer paradise to be able to listen to those 78-RPM vinyl
records (one tune on each side – remember?). The storeowner would play a few
before I would finally choose which one to buy. Then I’d pay out my hard
earned cash - six and sixpence - and return home along London Road to enjoy
those 78’s endlessly at home on our old wind-up gramophone with the latest
needle pickup amplified through my Dad’s new hi-fi speakers. Stan Kenton, and
other great American bands I remember, and it was Bridgeton that offered an
escape with its wee record store. Thanks Bridgeton.
Later in my early twenties and fresh out the army after my national service I
often travelled to Barrowland to enjoy the dancing and the great bands that
played there. The jitter bugging girls and guys could have danced the socks of
Fred Astaire. It was always a mystery how those guys could dance with those
drainpipe pants and thick crepe soled shoes. I never did ask for a lumber at
Barrowland because you never knew if the girl was some local gang member’s
girlfriend. One night while walking along the London Road after hearing the
great Johnny Dankworth band, a fellow came running past me with a gang in hot
pursuit. I saw the terror on his face and chains in their hands as they flew by
me. Fortunately, he just managed to jump onto the platform of a passing tramcar
heading for Tollcross and escaped. That was the other side of Bridgeton.
So what does all this have to do with the Band of Hope? Well, you see Bridgeton
was not the only place where Band of Hope nights were held. In the Church of
Scotland hall in Cathcart we boys used to attend weekly meetings. There we got
arts and crafts and games followed by the lantern show. I can remember the heat
and smell of the lantern, which often projected pictures of darkest Africa and
the works of missionaries there. I don’t so much remember that much talk about
demon alcohol as Peter Scott recalls in Bridgeton. But maybe that’s because
Cathcart boasted of being a “Dry” district. Not a pub to wet the whistle for
miles, until you reached Queen’s Park.
After being discharged from the regular army I reported back to 3O Armored
Workshop in Bridgeton at Greendyke Street and the REME territorial regiment
located there. I don’t know if the armory still stands there today. And what
about the Bridgeton and Band of Hope connection? Well, there was also another
Band of Hope at the old Tent Hall in Bridgeton and someone wondered if it had
survived after WW II. Well, yes it did, because my wife and I attended Bible
classes there in 1955 just after the All Scotland Billy Graham Crusade and just
months before our immigration to Canada.
My tale is a poor substitute for the marvelous stories of those who lived and
grew up in Bridgeton. The hardships and the heartfelt stories that can make us
laugh and make us cry. But it speaks of an era that I believe shaped a whole
generation and made us the better for it. I would hope that some folks reading
the great stories and pictures that come out of Bridgeton might also know how
and where a similar web site of Cathcart pictures and stories might be found.
Please let us know. Meantime I love every new story, picture and memory that
comes out of Bridgeton and Glesca Pals. Thanks for sharing it. It’s a
people’s history that should not be forgotten. Keep it up.
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February 2003( a few days later ) Ian Robertson,
Canada
I'm
glad you enjoyed my rambling memories. However, my true brig'ton
authenticity has been questioned by a genuine member of that renowned group
of "Bridgetonians" here in Vancouver and besides, my toffee-nosed
Cathcart accent gives the whole show away.
Anyway, the gig is up. Joe has said that I don't even know where Bridgeton
begins and ends. He's got that right. My description of the armories on
Greendyke Street and the Band of Hope being located in the Tent Hall, round
the corner, was a dead give-away. Joe says, that these premises were
actually in Calton and not Bridgeton. Now I've probably got those Calton
people mad also for omitting that critical information. I knew Auchenshuggle
was outside the Bridgeton boundry so I got that right, I think. Afterall, I
was just a lad then and have some excuse if my geography is a bit skewed.
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Hope you all enjoyed
these stories and a big thanks to the gentlemen for sending them to me
.....Its one of the many pleasures of my website work being able to
provide this medium to print these memories for posterity..... webmaster.
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WEBMASTER
:- note contributors who have sent donations towards the upkeep of
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have their e-mails shown......thank you.
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Last update 10 November, 2007
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