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CALMAN CANCER SUPPORT

The architect who designed this building, JJ Burnet, created a welcoming feeling by designing paired seating on either side of the main entrance porch. They offer a welcome, a place to rest, to think, and in the pairing, invite a companionable chat.
Moving away from the porch, you will see set into the ground a carving of the Cancer Support Scotland Celtic knot. The four points of the knot symbolise four treatment options, and the four needs of patients too: physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual. The O in the centre represents Oncology, but the O is a circle too, which links the needs and the treatments.

RELUCEAT STONE CARVING

WEST HOUSE MAIN

Reluceat was the motto of the hospital, the Latin translates as Let There Be Light Again, and embodies the firm belief that illness could be overcome with gentle and effective treatment. The ambition in 1810 was to restore the use of reason, to alleviate suffering, and lessen peril where reason cannot be restored.
By 1842 the foundation stone for these buildings abbreviated the aims to cure and care although the inscription did record the ambition that the new structures be divested of all gloom and appearance of confinement. Many dignitaries were among a huge walking procession from the City Chambers the three miles to Gartnavel Royal, to commemorate laying the foundation stone.

The building facing you was the original Gartnavel Royal Hospital designed by Charles Wilson. The Tudor Gothic revival style very successfully gives the impression of a country mansion. Attention is drawn to the lavish main entrance with high ornamental chimneys.
The two faces on either side of the entrance are actually portraits: of the young Queen Victoria and her handsome young husband Prince Albert, whom she married in 1840, the year before the foundation ceremony took place, but the year construction actually began.

ROYAL WEDDING CARVING

WEST HOUSE FACADE

The carved stone commemorates the year in which the Gartnavel Chapel building conversion works commenced, converting a redundant building which had been a place of worship providing spiritual comfort, intoa new centre for care and support. 2011 was also the year that Prince William married Catherine Middleton, and the carved stone continues the Gartnavel Royal tradition of commemorating happy royal weddings.
Standing on the stone, between new buildings and leafy trees, it is possible to glimpse distant hills. This elevated setting was specifically chosen for the positive effects that such vistas could promote. On a clear day, and from the upper floors still, it is possible to see to Arran down the Clyde, and to the Campsie Hills.

As you walk along the front of the West House, notice the projecting stone mouldings around the ground floor windows, the arrangement of single, double and triple windows, and the crenellations mock battlements- that mask the roof. These all suggest luxury and a comfortable environment.
Patients in the West House had rooms, or even suites, complete with leather chairs, paintings and potted ferns!

ORIGINAL CHAPEL

THE EAST HOUSE

Charles Wilson planned a chapel to link his West and East Houses, but there wasnt enough money to build one to his plans, so the gap represents a cost saving! The space has gradually been filled in by other small structures.
The grounds in front of the two houses were planted with deciduous trees, gravel paths and benches, to allow for patients enjoyment and repose. Trees of many species were planted, including it is believed, Rauwolfia, from the bark of which an early anti-psychotic drug can be produced.

The East House was originally built to accommodate pauper patients, while the West House was for Ladies and Gentlemen.
Rather than suites, the East House had more basic accommodation, and many of the female patients were occupied in various domestic roles.

MAGGIES CENTRE

SPORTS FINIALS

The Gartnavel Royal tradition of planting trees, and belief in the soothing and restorative effects of plants has been continued in the 2011 development of the Gartnavel Maggies Centre.
Over 70 birch, and almost 200 trees in total with other species and shrubs have been planted in a harmonious arrangement that creates privacy, a welcome and delight.

Gartnavel Royal moved from the crowded city centre, for the charms of the elevated site and the peaceful countryside, in the 1840s. Always self-sufficient and forward looking, it generated its own electricity as early as 1891. New buildings to the right and parking to the left, now stand where in the grounds, recreations were provided for patients.
There was a bowling green, a golf course and cricket pitches. The balls are a reminder of the many friendly sports matches played here.

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BINGHAMS POND

Gartnavel also had a farm, with 40 acres under the plough in 1857. One of the farms great successes was its piggery! In 1858 there were 172 pigs, and when half were sold, a handsome profit was made on the original outlay. The animal husbandry provided a satisfying occupation for some of the patients, and in 1900 a new even bigger piggery was built.
In 1915, patients helped the war effort, and knitted over 800 pairs of socks for troops overseas. Building on this belief in the restorative effects of varied, congenial occupations, the first ever Occupational Therapist to be appointed in Scotland began work at Gartnavel Royal in 1922.

This shallow pond was created artificially: now a wildlife haven, at one time it was famous for boating in the summer, and skating in the winter. Smaller curling ponds are also shown on 19th Century maps. The private Glasgow Skating Club moved to the Ponds in the 1880s, publishing notices in the local press when the ice was bearing.
Mr Bingham, the autocrat of the ponds, made the momentous decisions about the ice quality, and chastised the foolhardy, should they ignore warnings and stray near the weaker parts. Mrs Bingham, always severely clad with an ample apron of an immaculate whiteness, sold buns and chocolate to the weary skaters from refreshment rooms where the hotel and garage now stand.
The plants, birds and water reflect changing skies and seasons, and the circular route around the edge reminds us of the cycles and circles of life.

The route back along the road allows a good view of JJ Burnets courteous and welcoming chapel building: low sweeping roofs reflect the sloping site, and promise solace within as true in the 21st century, as when it was built in 1904.