Kelly's Directory of Glasgow 1968 - Digital Download or CD Archive

Product Description

Step back into the swinging sixties and uncover the history of Scotland’s largest city with this exact digital replica of Kelly's Directory of Glasgow 1968.

Whether you are a genealogist tracing your family tree, a local historian researching the evolution of the city, or simply nostalgic for the streets of Glasgow as they once were, this directory is an invaluable resource. Available as an instant digital download or a physical CD, this high-quality scan preserves every detail of the original publication.

Navigating the Directory

Please note that this directory is a scanned collection of PDF images. While it is not text-searchable in the traditional sense (you cannot press CTRL+F to find a name), it is incredibly easy to navigate. The directory is organized alphabetically—by street, by surname, and by trade—allowing you to jump directly to the section you need.

Tech Tip: Most modern PDF readers (including Adobe Acrobat and browser-based viewers) now perform OCR (Optical Character Recognition) on the fly. This means you can often use your reader’s search tool to find specific words, or simply copy and paste text from the images into your own notes.

Bridging the Census Gaps

For family historians, directories are essential for filling the "black holes" between census years. With the 1931 Census destroyed during the war and the 1941 Census never taken due to WWII, the mid-20th century remains a difficult period to research. The 1968 directory serves as a vital substitute, providing a "snapshot" of who lived where and what they did for a living, bridging the gap between the 1921 Census release and the future 1952 Census.

Contents of the Directory

This comprehensive volume is divided into several detailed sections to aid your research:

1. Street Directory: An alphabetical list of streets in Glasgow, showing the house numbers and the names of the principal occupants (head of household) at each address. Perfect for locating specific houses or seeing who the neighbours were.
2. Commercial (Trades) Directory: A classified list of businesses and tradesmen. From shipbuilders on the Clyde to the local baker, grocer, and publican, this section shows the commercial backbone of the city.
3. Court (Official) Directory: Lists of local government officials, dignitaries, public bodies, and churches. This includes magistrates, councilors, and medical officers, offering insight into the civic administration of the time.
4. Private Residents Directory: An alphabetical list of private residents (excluding tradesmen unless they also appear in the commercial section), useful for tracing the movement of middle and upper-class families.
5. Advertisements: Period advertisements for local businesses, offering a wonderful flavor of 1960s consumerism, fashion, and industry.

Glasgow in 1968: Context & Characters

This directory captures Glasgow at a turning point. The city was undergoing massive regeneration, with the slum clearances of the Gorbals changing the landscape and the brutalist architecture of the M8 motorway beginning to take shape.

• Football Mad: 1968 was a peak era for Scottish football. Just a year after Celtic’s historic Lisbon Lions victory, the city was dominated by the "Old Firm." You will find the homes of legendary players and managers associated with Celtic Park and Ibrox Stadium scattered throughout the residential listings.
• Industry: Despite the decline of traditional heavy industry, Glasgow was still a working powerhouse. The directory is filled with engineers, welders, and draughtsmen connected to the Shipbuilding industry on the River Clyde, as well as the burgeoning light industries moving into the new industrial estates.
• Famous Faces: While we cannot promise every celebrity is listed (directories only listed the head of household and usually omitted "ordinary" working-class tenants), you may find traces of famous Glaswegians who were active in the city during this era.
  • Billy Connolly: The "Big Yin" was a folk singer playing in the Glasgow clubs around this time, just before his comedy career exploded.
  • Sir Alex Ferguson: In 1968, he was a rising star playing for Rangers, living locally as a professional athlete.
  • Lulu: The global pop star, born in Glasgow, was at the height of her fame in '68.
  • John Byrne: The renowned artist and playwright was working in the city, famously employed as a "slab boy" at a carpet factory before his artistic breakthrough.

Important Disclaimer Regarding Maps

Please be advised that the original 1968 publication sometimes varied in its content. In this specific edition/scan, some of the fold-out street maps may be missing, torn, or were never bound into the original book we acquired for archiving. Every care has been taken to include all available pages, but please consider this if you are purchasing specifically for the cartography.

Unlock the doors to your ancestors' past and explore the industrial heritage of Glasgow with this fascinating historical record.