Queen’s Park refers to the eponymous park as well as the surrounding area in the south side of Glasgow. (For more information about this park and the surrounding area, see ‘Queen’s Park‘ on The Glasgow Story website, and ‘Queen’s Park: A short history‘, on the Friends of Queen’s Park website). Queen’s Park Free Church (now Queen’s Park Church of Scotland) was located on the corner of Queen’s Drive and Albert Avenue. (For more information about this church, see Gerald Blaikie’s article, ‘Queen’s Park Churches, Illustrated Guide‘, on the ScotCities website.)

There is little currently known about this society. The only evidence we have to date comes from the syllabi of another literary group, the Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Institute, which list the dates in various years on which the Queen’s Park Free Church Literary Society was scheduled to participate in a joint meetings with them (see below).

Date of Existence

1889?-?

Source of Information

1. (Listed as having a joint debate with the Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Institute on 26 October 1889: ‘Syllabus’, 1889-1890, Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Literary Institute (Glasgow City Archives, Mitchell Library, Glasgow, Queen’s Park, St. George’s UP, UF Church, Literary Institute syllabus, 1875-1912);

2. (Listed as having a joint meeting with the Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Institute, the Pollokshields Free Church Literary Institute, and Camphill United Presbyterian Church Literary Institute on 26 January 1891: ‘Syllabus’, 1890-1891, Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Literary Institute (Glasgow City Archives, Mitchell Library, Glasgow, Queen’s Park, St. George’s UP, UF Church, Literary Institute syllabus, 1875-1912)

[Note: this is not an exhaustive list; there are other later debates that were scheduled between this society and the Queen’s Park U. P. Church Young Men’s Institute; see Literary Institute syllabus, 1875-1912)

Repository

Glasgow City Archives

Reference Number

This group of young women met at 4.30pm on the first and third Thursdays of the month at Queen Margaret College. (For more information on this college, see’ Queen Margaret College‘ on The University of Glasgow Story website, and ‘North Park House‘ on The Glasgow Story website.)  It is currently unknown if this group had any connections with the later Queen Margaret College Reading Union.

Members met to listen to talks given by invited lecturers, and to original essays, poems and sketches composed by society members. In addition, the group also held debates within the society as well as with other women’s groups, for example, the Edinburgh University Debating Society. One of its most famous members was Marion Gilchrist (1864-1952), the first woman to graduate from the University of Glasgow. (For more information on Gilchrist, see ‘Marion Gilchrist‘ on The University of Glasgow Story website).

Date of Existence

1898?-1905?

Source of Information

1. Meeting minutes with printed syllabus (January 1899-May 1905);

2. Draft report (M.B.J.) (c.1898-1899)

Repository

University of Glasgow Archives Services

Reference Number

GB 0248 DC 233/2/16/4/1;

GB 0248 DC 233/2/16/4/2

Additional Notes

See Queen Margaret College Reading Union.

This group of young women were — or were previously– students of Queen Margaret College, membership being open to current and former students. (For more information on this college, see’ Queen Margaret College‘ on The University of Glasgow Story website, and ‘North Park House‘ on The Glasgow Story website.) It is currently unknown if this group had any connections with the earlier Queen Margaret College Literary and Debating Society.

The object of the society was to promote and encourage the study of literature. The union met to listen to lectures by invited speakers, and to form reading circles. In 1908, it was reported that there were also study circles specifically for Gaelic and Irish literature, as well as Icelandic (see ‘Additional Notes’ below).

The Union held an annual business meeting at which they elected officers and determined the subject of study for the coming year. In the annual statement supplied to its members, in addition to a few original contributions by union members, a guided reading list was included. The annual fee was half-a-crown (or 2s 6d, which was the average for other literary societies at this time). In its first year, the union was happy to report a membership of 134 members.

Date of Existence

1907?-1912?

Source of Information

1. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, 1908-1909 [annual report of the Queen Margaret College Reading Union, and print magazine, printed by Bone & Hulley, Glasgow] [1908], (MLSC) Mitchell (GC) 828 169800)*;

2. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, 1908-09 (MLSC, Mitchell (GC) 828 431393);

3. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, [Year Book], 1908-09 (UGAS, GB 248 DC/233/2/16/7/1/5);

4. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, Year Book, 1909-10 (UGAS, GB 248 DC/233/2/16/7/1/1);

5. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, Year Book, 1910 (UGAS, GB 248 DC/233/2/16/7/1/2);

6. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, Year Book, 1911 (UGAS, GB 248 DC/233/2/16/7/1/3);

7. Queen Margaret College Reading Union, Year Book, 1912 (UGAS, GB 248 DC/233/2/16/7/1/4)

Repository

Mitchell Library Special Collections (MLSC)

University of Glasgow Archives Services (UGAS)

Reference Number

(See Source of Information)

Additional Notes

See also Queen Margaret College Literary and Debating Society.

The print magazine for Queen Margaret College Reading Union’s 1908-1909 session includes a list of Office-Bearers, list of members, Constitution of the Union, Report for the 1907-08 session, Report of the Irish Reading Circles (Miss Hutton), and contributions from two members (MLSC, Mitchell (GC) 828 169800).

See also entry for Queen Margaret College Reading Union Year Book on our sister website, Literary Bonds.

Queen’s Park is located in the south side of Glasgow. (For more information about this park and the surrounding area, see ‘Queen’s Park‘ on The Glasgow Story website, and ‘Queen’s Park: A short history‘, on the Friends of Queen’s Park website). Members of this literary institute were most likely part of the congregation of Queen’s Park St. George’s United Presbyterian Church, which was located on Langside Avenue. (For more information on this church, see ‘Queen’s Park UP Church‘ on The Glasgow Story website).

According to the printed ‘Constitution’ ([1874-1875 session?]) for this group, the society was called the Queen’s Park United Presbyterian Church Young Men’s Literary Institute (later, it would be called the Queen’s Park U.P. Church Literary Institute). Its object was to encourage its members’ improvement and a sense of conviviality. The group met every other Monday at 8pm from October until March.

To give a snapshot of this society, in the 1902-1903 session, the group met in the church Class Room on Monday evenings (an increase from the bi-weekly meetings in the 1870s) at the church. Meetings during the session included a lecture, five debates, 16 essays, and one Musical Evening. In the Annual Report for this session, the secretary reported that there was an average of 63% of the members (or 25.9 Ordinary Members) present at the 21 meetings held that year. At the end of March, there were 27 Honorary Members, and a total of 53 Ordinary Members (18 of which were new that session) on the roll. After calculating the number of resignations (n. 7) and deaths (n. 1), there were in total 45 members.

To compare, the annual report for the 1913-1914 session shows that there was an average attendance of 28.4 members at the meetings, and 28 Honorary Members and 57 Ordinary Members on the roll, thus this group appears to have been growing during the early decades of the twentieth century. Without any extant membership rolls, it is unknown if this society ever allowed women to join.

Members of the group produced a magazine between 1874 and 1878 that included original essays, poems and artwork (see ‘Additional Notes’ below). It appears that a magazine was started again in February of the 1913-1914 session, but it does not seem to have survived (Minute entry, 30 March 1914, Glasgow, Queen’s Park, St. George’s UP, UF Church, Latterly Camphill Queens Park, Literary Institute Minutes, 1909-20).

Date of Existence

1872-1927?

Source of Information

1. The Queen’s Park Literary Institute Magazine, 1874, 1875, 1877-78 (GCA, CH3/1471/42-44);

2. Literary Institute syllabus, 1875-1912 (GCA, CH3/1471/45);

3. Glasgow, Queen’s Park, St. George’s UP, UF Church, Latterly Camphill Queens Park, Literary Institute Minutes, 1903-09; 1909-20; 1921-27 (GCA, CH3/1471/39-41)

Repository

Glasgow City Archives

Reference Number

(See Source of Information)

Additional Notes

See also John Street U. P. Church Literary Institute, with whom they had joint debates in the 1870s, Govanhill Literary Association, with whom they had a joint debate in 1889, Pollokshields Free Church Literary Institute, Queen’s Park Free Church Literary Society, Camphill United Presbyterian Church Literary Institute, Langside Hill United Free Church Literary Institute, and Pollokshields Parish Church Literary Society, with whom this society held joint debates in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

See also entry for The Queen’s Park Literary Institute Magazine on our sister website, Glasgow’s Literary Bonds.