Glasgwegian Tenements, Glaswegian Streetscapes

              Red Sandstone                                                    From Our Bay Window                                                   Cream Sandstone                          

Glasgow is a compact and dense city—it has twice as many people per square mile as Portland. Outside the central core, a carpet of four-story stone buildings rolls over the hilly topography, sometimes punctuated with church steeples. Called tenements, these structures were the most popular form of housing in 19th and 20th century Glasgow and remain the most common, and desirable, form of dwelling today (single-family homes are extremely rare). Block-long structures contain a series of flats, two or more per floor separated by a common stairway (no elevators). Some blocks feature alleyways, but most have some shared yard space. While tenements are desirable housing now, they were the slums of the early 20th century when workers flocked to work in Glasgow’s factories. Families of four, six, or eight were crowded into a single room with 30 people sharing a lavatory and 40 to a water tap. A hundred years ago, Glasgow’s population was twice what it is now: what a difference a century makes.

            Rear Elevation                                        Fronting Onto a Private Park                                 Two-Story Townhouses