This literary club was in fact an institution, in the sense of being a building where club members met for in/formal literary and social events and activities. The club was founded in 1911 and located at 266 St Vincent Street. It had club rooms, bedrooms, a dining room as well as its own library for club members. Membership lists were separated into town and country members.

Whilst later in date than the materials considered in this project (and later than the magazines investigated in our sister project, Literary Bonds), of interest amongst the collection for this group is the club’s magazine. The earliest is dated Christmas 1921, and is entitled the Glasgow Literary Club Magazine. This issue contains type-written original poetry, essays, artwork, music, and recipes. Later, in the 1930s, the club had another magazine called The Chap Book, which contains original essays and poetry, and reports on various events at the club. It also included news of various reading and study circles that were running within the club. For example, there was a study circle, French circle, and Poetry and Literature circle.

Date of Existence

Premises opened 1/5/1911 (Formal Opening 15/5/1911) -1964?

Source of Information

The Glasgow Literary Club (Constitution and bye-laws, 1928-51; membership records, 1911-49; magazines, 1921-35; visitors books, 1934-40; finance, 1958)

Repository

Glasgow City Archives

Reference Number

GB243 TD1858

Additional Notes

The documents from this club are contained in 2 large boxes with the following reference numbers on them: first box: TD1858/8/1-6; second box: TD1858/1-7, TD1858/9-11. In pencil underneath is the following ‘(See Box 2/2 for TD1858/8)’.

The members of this group (and/or their parents) were originally from Orkney and Shetland, and had since settled in Glasgow. This society is a type of nineteenth-century county association. In the stricter sense, county associations were groups whose members (or whose parents) were former residents of counties across Scotland who had moved to Glasgow. This type of group incorporated elements of a benevolent society in that they could offer a combination of accommodation, advice, referrals, and general assistance to newcomers in the city when they arrived, while also offering aid to widows, unemployed members, or members undergoing financial hardship. In addition, they might offer to provide for the education of their members’ children, or money to support their higher education.

Formed in 1862, the Glasgow Orkney and Shetland Association (to use its current title) is still running. This is an uncommon case of a literary society founded in the nineteenth century that continues to meet (a number of Burns clubs have survived, but they are, arguably a special type of  literary society). In addition, it has the further distinction of having the largest known and most complete collection of materials available on any nineteenth-century Glasgow literary society that we have come across. In 2015, the records and the majority of the books from the association’s library were deposited in the Shetland Archives in Lerwick, where they are currently housed.

The history of the Association has already been the subject of a book by Jerry Eunson and Olivia D. Scott. The book provides an overview of the history of the Association, and covers the years from its founding until 1962, when the authors discuss its then current state and reflect on the Association’s centenary. A more in-depth case study was done on this society by Lauren Weiss in 2017. It also covers the association’s history, but focuses on the group’s ‘literary’ history, that is, the role of reading, and the production and consumption of their own manuscript magazines in the fulfilment of its objects and aims. Only the records between 1862 and 1914 were covered.

Date of Existence

9 November 1862-present

Source of Information

1. Papers of Glasgow Orkney and Shetland Literary and Scientific Association (almost complete records and remaining library books from association library; includes minutes, manuscript magazines, typescript magazines, copies of papers given to society, financial records, membership records, annual reports, printed year books, scrapbook, and photographs) (SA, D58);

2. Eunson, Jerry and Scott, Olivia D., The Glasgow Orkney and Shetland Literary and Scientific Association, 1862-1962 ([Glasgow]: [The Association], 1962) (ML, Mitchell (GC) 367 EUN);

3. Glasgow Orkney & Shetland Literary & Scientific Association Year Book. 1942-1966 (ML, Mitchell (GC) 367 669976) (for full holdings, apply to staff);

4. Smith, Brian, ‘Significant archive donation’, Unkans, The newsletter of the Shetland Heritage and Culture Community, 48 (February 2015), 2 <http://www.shetland-museum.org.uk/downloads/data/unkans/Unkans_no48.pdf> [accessed 7 May 2015].;

5. Weiss, Lauren, ‘The Literary Clubs and Societies of Glasgow during the Long Nineteenth Century: A City’s History of Reading through its Communal Reading Practices and Productions’ (unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Stirling, 2017): The Literary Clubs and Societies of Glasgow during the Long Nineteenth Century

Repository

Mitchell Library (ML)

Shetland Archives (SA)

Reference Number

(See Source of Information)

Additional Notes

See Glasgow Orcadian Literary and Scientific Society.

See also entry for Ultima Thule; later changed to The Manuscript Magazines of the Glasgow Orkney and Shetland Literary and Scientific Association; later changed to The Pole Star on our sister website, Literary Bonds.

According to club records, this group was founded in 1871 by William Sloan, and its ten original members were dominies (Scots for schoolmasters). Meetings took place on Friday nights on North Street (in the Anderston area, to the west of the city centre). (For more information about this area, see Michael Moss’s article, ‘Industrial Revolution: 1770s to 1830s. Neighbourhoods. Anderston‘ on The Glasgow Story website). Over the years, the venue would change, with meetings being held at various restaurants and hotels across the city. From its beginnings, in addition to their weekly meetings, members met on a number of other occasions during the year for Burns suppers, Christmas suppers, concerts, and for various local and regional excursions during the summer.

Whilst being more informal and primarily social in nature, the meetings were nonetheless well-organised: members took it in turns to read aloud their original compositions on a variety of topics, which the other members then ‘criticised’ the piece (in the sense that they expressed their judgement). The chairman resided over the proceedings. Recruitment of new members was confined to friends of current members who came along to the meetings, and (eventually) a vote would be called to decide if they were to be admitted.

A rather interesting tradition has evolved in the meetings. Included in the club’s possessions is ‘The Green Lady’. This is a small, green, early twentieth-century terracotta suffragette bell that bears the inscription, ‘Votes for Women’. According to the Archivist of the club:

‘[t]he bell is placed on the table during Ours Club meetings. If any member thinks that any speaker is being unduly verbose he places the green lady in front of him. The hint it taken.’

(‘The Green Lady’, D. K. Macaskill,  [Inventory of the Glasgow Philological and Literary Society. Ours Club. Archive — Minutes and Associated Paper], 12 January 2015 (copy of original in possession of club Archivist, D. K. Macaskill)).

The club produced a magazine in 1909 that included original contributions written by the members (see ‘Additional Notes’ below).

The group continues to meet at the Glasgow Art Club (185 Bath Street).

Date of Existence

1871-present

Source of Information

1. Minutes and associated papers (includes minutes, club rules, members lists, syllabi, original poems and songs: ‘A Book of Ours’, Burns suppers, Christmas suppers, concerts, photos, 1871-1971 (GCA, TD1896); records from 1971-present are in possession of club Archivist, D. K. Macaskill (Glasgow);

2. ‘A Book of “Ours”‘ (“Ours” Literary and Social Club. A book of “Ours.” Contributions by the members. [Andrew Lyon, Editor] (Glasgow, 1909) (print magazine)

Repository

Glasgow City Archives (GCA) (minutes and associated papers)

University of Glasgow Special Collections (UGSC) (print magazine)

Reference Number

TC1896 (GCA)

Sp Coll Bh11-c.28 (Wylie Collection) (UGSC)

Additional Notes

Thomas Gildard was President of the “Ours” Club from 1882-1893, and was also a member of The Literary and Artistic Society.

See also entry for A Book of “Ours” on our sister website, Literary Bonds.

This club was formed in Glasgow as it was thought there was a need for the city to have its own society similar to the ones then running in Edinburgh and beyond.

The object of the club was to encourage the study and knowledge of drama as well as the works of Shakespeare. Members had to be at least 18 years old to join. The amount of the entry money to be paid upon joining is not given. The club started its own library.

The meetings took place at 8.30pm on the second Monday in the months of February, May, August and November. At ordinary meetings (that is, meetings not devoted to business or social matters), members read original essays, and held conversations and discussion, with every other week being devoted to ‘conviviality’. In addition, the club held a yearly dinner to celebrate Shakspere’s birthday.

There are 12 Honorary Members on the roll who joined between 1838 and 1848 whose residences crossed the globe: while 5 (at least) lived in Glasgow, there was one member who moved to New Zealand, another to New York, and yet another who lived in Calcutta. In addition, there are 54 Ordinary Members on the roll who joined between 1838 and 1850.

There are a few interesting aspects of this club. The first is that the members wore some form of insignia during the meetings, as set out in the ‘Laws and Regulations’. It is currently unclear what form this took. The second was that every member had to choose a sobriquet from the characters of Shakespeare by which they would be addressed when at the meetings. Thirdly, the laws of the club required that all members had to know the Bard’s work so well as to be able to recite any passage should the President call upon them to do so. Lastly, the club had a detailed list of fines to be paid for various infractions, and these were dependent upon whether the transgressor was an office-bearer, a member, or an orator/respondent, with a few selected infractions having a fine ‘common to all’. The greatest fines were ‘For resigning office’ (2s 6d), ‘For refusal to accept office’ (2s 6d), ‘For absence at half-past 9 o’Clock’ (making him a half hour late, at 6d), and ‘For absence from Anniversary’ (1s), respectively.

Date of Existence

1838-1850?

Source of Information

Laws, Articles and Regulations of the Glasgow Shakspere Club, Instituted 1838 (Glasgow: Printed by Muir, Gowans, & Co. 1839) (also includes manuscript, ‘Bye & New Laws’, list of Honorary Members, and Ordinary Members with dates admitted, names, ‘cognomen’, and ‘remarks’)

Repository

Mitchell Library Special Collections

Reference Number

Mitchell (GC) 822.33 324627

Additional Notes

This club should not be confused with the Monday Shakspere Club (10 April 1879-November 1882?).

The online catalogue of the University of Glasgow Archives Services, Archives Hub, offers a summary of this society and its activities:

‘Administrative / Biographical History
Glasgow University Dialectic Society was instituted in 1861 at the University of Glasgow, Scotland, as a society for the discussion of literary, philosophical and political subjects. The Society, in some form, has been in existence for some years earlier. The Society has been prominent in University life and in 1885 , along with the Glasgow University Medico-Chirurgical Society , helped to establish the Glasgow University Union (GUU).

Originally a male only club, membership is now mixed and open to matriculated members of the University and ex-members upon payment of a subscription. The Society’s main aim is to foster and promote debate.’

(‘Records of the Glasgow University Dialectic Society, student society, University of Glasgow, Scotland’, ‘Administrative/Biographical History’, Archives Hub)

Date of Existence

(few years prior to) 1861-present

Source of Information

1. Records of the Glasgow University Dialectic Society (includes: Constitution and bye-laws; membership card; syllabus) (UGAS, GB 248 DC 38);

2. Records of the Glasgow University Dialectic Society (includes: Board minutes; Society meeting minutes; Membership roll books) (UGSC, GB 247 MS Gen 1307-1310);

3. (Newspaper clipping, annotated:) ‘Citizen, 4 Mch. 1912’ (MLSC, Young’s Scrapbooks, Vol. 33, p. 55);

4. ‘University Notes’, Evening Citizen, 4 March 1912, p. 10

5. University of Glasgow Dialectic Society Homepage

Repository

Mitchell Library Special Collections (MLSC)

University of Glasgow Archives Services (UGAS)

University of Glasgow Special Collections (UGSC)

Reference Number

(See Source of Information)

Additional Notes

Copies of the Evening Citizen are available at the Mitchell Library and the National Library of Scotland. Digitised issues are available through the British Newspaper Archive: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk.

From the University of Glasgow Archives Services online catalogue Archives Hub:

‘Administrative / Biographical History: Glasgow University Dumfriesshire & Galloway Literary Society was formed at the University of Glasgow , Scotland, in 1876 . The object of the society was to “hold discussions of the chief literary and philosophical, social and political questions of the day and to keep its members acquainted with the spirit of the age” . Membership was open to students of the University and natives of, or connected to, Dumfriesshire and Galloway, Scotland (now Dumfries & Galloway).

A committee consisting of a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer and 4 regular members managed the society. The committee was elected at the annual general meeting held in the second week of November.

Regular meetings of the society were held on the second Monday of each month for the reading of essays, criticism and debate. The society was still functioning in 1882 but nothing is known about its activities after this date’ [accessed 28/01/18].

Date of Existence

1876-1882?

Source of Information

Records of Glasgow University Dumfriesshire and Galloway Literary Society, 1876-fl. 1882 (Constitution and bye-laws 1876; List of members 1881-1882; Treasurer’s account book 1876-1882)

Repository

University of Glasgow Archives Services

Reference Number

GB 248 DC 062/2

Additional Notes

–

Members of this association were most likely part of the congregation of the Kelvinside United Free Church (earlier known as the Kelvinside Free Church) which was located at the corner of Byres Road and Great Western Road in the West End of the city (now ÒranMór, an arts and entertainment venue). (For more information on this church, see ‘Glasgow — Kelvinside‘ on the Ecclegen website.) The group met in the Session House of the church.

In D. S. Riddoch’s Kelvinside United Free Church Glasgow: A Record of Fifty Years, 1859-1909, there is a brief history of this association from its founding until its jubilee in 1909. The group had two breaks in its history, but Riddoch nonetheless counted its 44 years of more-or-less continued existence as a marker of the long-standing, established nature of this association in the city. According to Riddoch, the group provided companionship and guidance for young men in regards to citizenship. While ladies were admitted to the meetings as early as the 1873-1874 session, it was only in 1890 that membership was opened up to them. (Interestingly, if ladies did attend, their names are not recorded in the minutes.) In 1907, the fortnightly meetings were changed to monthly ones. The group changed its name in the same year to ‘The Young People’s At Home’.

In 1873, a proposal was put forward to start a society magazine, and the topic was discussed at two subsequent meetings. It is currently unknown if the magazine was ever started (see ‘Additional Notes’ below).

Date of Existence

1865-(at least 1909)

Source of Information

1. Glasgow, Kelvinside, Free Church, U.F., Congregational committee minutes, 1867-8 (GCA, CH3/1012/9);

2. (Handwritten copy of syllabus for 1870-71, author unknown) (MLSC, Glasgow Scrapbooks, No. 21, p. 159);

3. Glasgow, Kelvinside, Free Church, U.F., Literary association minutes, 1871-84 (GCA, CH3/1012/11);

4. Kelvinside United Free Church Year Book 1904; Report and Financial Statement 1903; Lists of Office-Bearers and Agencies, Lists of Members and Adherents (Glasgow: Printed at the University Press by Robert MacLehose and Co. Ltd., 1904), p. 12; pp. 28-9 (ML, Mitchell (GC) 285.241443 KEL 272765);

5. Kelvinside United Free Church Glasgow: A Record of Fifty Years, 1859-1909, ed. by D. S. Riddoch (Glasgow: Printed at the University Press, 1909), pp. 58-60 (MLSC, Mitchell (GC), 285.241443 KEL 499011)

Repository

Mitchell Library (ML)

Mitchell Library Special Collections (MLSC)

Glasgow City Archives (GCA)

Reference Number

(See Source of Information)

Additional Notes

This society is not to be confused with Kelvinside Parish Church Literary Society, which is a Church of Scotland society.

See also Glasgow Western Literary Union.

See also entry for Kelvinside Literary Association magazine (currently unknown if ever produced) on our sister website, Literary Bonds.

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.