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Eurowalk 1 - Point A - Necropolis memorials to French and German figures from Glasgow industrial history

The Glasgow Necropolis is a fascinating location and there is a huge amount of historical information that has been gathered and can be found on this website:  https://www.glasgownecropolis.org/

The parkland used for the cemetery was believed by John Strang, Chamberlain at the Merchants’ House, to be "admirably adapted" to create Glasgow's own version of the famous Paris Pere Lachaise cemetery. It is a multi faith burial ground, designed for Glasgow's higher classes at the time. The first person to be buried here was Joseph Levi, who was actually Jewish, and was buried in 1832.

Among the particular people we have highlighted for our Eurowalk are the German Henry Dübs , the Frenchman Pierre Jacques Papillon and Professor Coats, who did some training in Wurzburg. All highlight the importance of European links in Glasgow's heritage.

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Henry Dübs 

At the Necropolis you can find a Memorial to Henry Dübs (1816 – 24 April 1876), a 19th century German-born engineer who worked in Glasgow. 

He was Works Manager and Company partner at Neilson and Company in Springburn, who built this locomotive for Finland :

This exquisite technical drawing from Neilson & Company from the Science Museum collection: https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/documents/aa110094432/drawing-of-5-0-gauge-6-wheel-1856g-336-cubic-feet-fuel-capacity-4-9-between-wheels-tender

Dübs then set up his own company Dübs & Co. in Queens Park at Polmadie.

Interestingly Dübs & Co was one of the first companies to employ women as tracers in their drawing offices.  He also invented a type of steam lifting crane to lift the locomotives.

A restored British "Neilson" steam locomotive, used in Finland from 1869 well into the 1920s, preserved at the Finnish Railway Museum in Hyvinkää, Finland.

Picture attrib: 
Janke at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Loco21.jpg

Photo of Henry Dübs memorial at the Necropolis by  J.Wilson

The archive of Dübs & Co. is held at https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/6e2c855b-6894-3a83-9582-a19f5c4df8dd but not much can be seen online.

More information: https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Henry_Dubs

A Dubs "long boiler" locomotive: https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co205734/ner-0-6-0-1001-class-steam-locomotive-and-tender-no-1275-1874-steam-locomotive
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Necropolis from Glasgow Cathedral - Photo : J.Wilson

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Pierre Jacques Papillon

There is also a memorial to the family of Frenchman Pierre Jacques Papillon, who introduced Turkey Red dye. In 1785, Papillon came to Glasgow from Rouen at the invitation of businessman George Macintosh. Papillon, a chemist from Rouen, came to Scotland to show him the dyeing process for this red dye, a process that had been imported from Turkey to the Rouen area of France.

Turkey Red was an important dye as there had been a hunt for a good red dye that would withstand light. :


A Turkey Red dyed bandanna - from an exhibition in Glasgow in 2014

The EU Funded project about Turkey Red dye: PowerPoint Presentation (gla.ac.uk)

Dalmarnock Turkey Red DyeWorks was established in 1785 by Highlander George Macintosh in partnership with David Dale and then Henry Monteith acquired the business in 1805 when it was renamed Barrowfield Dyeworks. It specialised in dye for these bright red Bandanna handkerchiefs. George Macintosh introduced Turkey Red to Scotland in 1785. 

From the same exhibition (2014), photographs of Mackintosh (on the left) and David Dale (on the right):

Pictures  J Wilson


Other good references including links to Alexandria and Vale of Leven and more about the process of dyeing:

There is a stone in memory of the Jamieson family and their connection with Pierre Jacques Papillon, of Turkey Red dye fame! https://www.glasgownecropolis.org/profiles/papillion/

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Professor Coats

A Professor of Anatomy and Pathology who had also trained in Wurzburg in Germany

https://www.glasgownecropolis.org/profiles/professor-joseph-coats-md-professor-of-pathology-university-of-glasgow/

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Joseph F. Gomoszynski

This is an interesting history of a young Polish man and his infant son who are buried at the Necropolis

https://www.glasgownecropolis.org/profiles/joseph-f-gomoszynski/ 

Very interesting video - November Uprising and the story of Józef Gomoszynski - YouTube (video also mentions Thomas Campbell (poet) - Wikipedia)


Photos J. Wilson 

The memorial was restored in 2013 by the Consulate of Poland who have left a notice, which shows how highly this man is regarded.  

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John Knox

A statue of John Knox dominates the Necropolis. He is shown wearing a Geneva gown, or preaching robe, which was a robe typically worn by ordained ministers in the Christian churches that arose out of the Protestant Reformation. Knox founded the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Knox and others, were taken prisoner during the siege of St Andrews castle and he subsequently spent time as a French galley slave!. In February 1549 after 19 months as a galley slave, he was released. From 1554, he spent some time in France, Geneva and then Frankfurt. In Geneva, he met John Calvin. His history is summarised here: John Knox - Wikipedia and this regarding Knox in Geneva: Tudor Times | John Knox: Life Story (Geneva)

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Waldemar Arend, Dorothy Arend and Ronald Arend


We have discovered that Waldemar was a flour merchant in Glasgow, working for Kosmack & Co. which was based between Berlin and Glasgow. (Reference: https://archive.org/details/informationregar00smit). Waldemar seemed to be in charge of purchasing flour within Britain. 
He lived in various residences in the West End of Glasgow and at Redcote in Helensburgh. His son Ronald attended Kelvinside Academy but was killed in WW1 fighting for the Royal Scots (Reference: http://warmemscot.s4.bizhat.com/warmemscot-post-82452.html).

Other links that were found regarding where he lived:
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François Foucart (1793 - 1862)

And .... a further memorial with European connections to explore:

https://www.glasgownecropolis.org/profiles/the-pattison-family/

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🚍   Getting to the Necropolis: 

https://moovitapp.com/index/en-gb/public_transportation-Glasgow_Necropolis-Scotland-site_8149152-402    



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