Castlemilk

Castlemilk (Caisteal Mheilc) is a district of Glasgow, Scotland. It lies to the far south of the city centre, adjacent to the Croftfoot and Simshill residential areas within the city to the north-west, the town of Rutherglen - neighbourhoods of Spittal to the north-east and Fernhill to the east, Linn Park and its golf course to the west, and the separate village of Carmunnock further south across countryside. The area was developed by the Glasgow Corporation as a peripheral housing scheme in the 1950s to accommodate 34,000 people from inner-city slum areas such as the Gorbals. The new residents were provided with open spaces, a clean environment and indoor toilets and bathrooms. The modern development grew around Castlemilk House, a stately old mansion built around Cassilton Tower, which was started in 1460 on the site of a 13th-century castle, and was demolished in 1972. The population had dropped from 37,000 in 1971 to roughly half that number in 1991. However, despite the social problems associated with poverty and unemployment, the area has seen the benefits of a regeneration strategy implemented in the 1980s which has focused on improved housing and the development of local arts. Community groups and Cooperative housing associations have done a lot to regenerate the housing and improve the amenities for local people. A swimming pool, sports centre, shopping arcade and community centres have been developed. According to "The Incomplete History Of Castlemilk", by the Castlemilk History Group, Carmunnock did not escape the religious turbulence of the years following Mary Queen of Scots' flight to and later imprisonment in England. While Carmunnock church remained with the Established Church, several of its ministers fought for the National Covenant. The Rev James Mowbrae was dismissed in 1639; his successor Rev Matthew McKail was transferred to Bothwell in 1649, while Rev Andrew Morton was also dismissed for non-conformity in 1662. Rev Morton was to return in 1687 upon the decline of the rule of bishops.