page_title: Blackhill, Glasgow
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Blackhill, Glasgow / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Scan of photograph of Blackhill locks from appendix 3 of Accidents in Glasgow canals with special reference to the Monkland Canal.
context_page_description: Blackhill is an area of north east Glasgow, Scotland. It is directly bordered by the M80 motorway to the west and the M8 motorway to the south. The neighbourhood falls within the North East ward under Glasgow City Council.
context_section_description: Blackhill was developed as a council housing estate in the 1930s. Most of the new development was designated Rehousing, the lowest grade of council housing intended for those cleared from Glasgow's 19th century slums, particularly those in the Garngad (now Royston) area. The new buildings were three-storey, slate-roofed tenements built of reconstituted stone. The eastern side of Blackhill, nearer to Provanmill and Riddrie, was designated Intermediate, a grade up from Rehousing, and housing was of the cottage flat-type with front and rear gardens and a measure of landscaping in the streets ("Rehousing" areas cost £250 per house to build, while "Intermediate" areas cost £1000).
  Blackhill was built on a country golf course (see Glasgow Golf Club), near the Monkland Canal with its Blackhill Locks. Many early residents report summers of country rambles, often along the Molendinar Burn – now the only place this historic burn is still visible on the surface – to the loch at Hogganfield. There was (and is) a strong sense of neighbourliness, partly encouraged by the enclosed nature of the site, due to industry, railways and main roads cutting it off from other districts. It was, however, built close to a gasworks (Provan Gas Works) and a distillery, which did not add to the health of the area and, perhaps for this reason, it gained a reputation for being "difficult to let". Nearby is a prison, HM Prison Barlinnie, which may also have encouraged negative evaluations of the area.
  
  The area was comprehensively redeveloped in the early 21st century, with all of its tenement stock demolished and replaced with modest semi-detached houses. A landscaped park was created around the Molendinar Burn. A 2007 community survey reported residents' concerns were similar to those in other urban areas: 
  "In the last issue we reported the findings of a local survey that helped to pinpoint the top 10 priority issues for your neighbourhood – things like road safety, litter and vandalism, dog fouling, dumping and youth disorder all featured strongly."
caption: Blackhill Locks on the Monkland Canal
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