Buildings and Places : Scotland

"The Lodge" Helensburgh

When John Logie Baird was born his family lived in a house called "The Lodge" in West Argyll Street Helensburgh. This building still exists and is seen here with a plaque to celebrate the inventor's residence. John Logie Baird was the first person to demonstrate television. This took place in Soho, London on January 26th, 1926. Within five years of this demonstration he had shown colour, and stereoscopic systems, as well as patenting radar.

Urie house, Kincardineshire

Alexander Baird of the Gartsherrie family purchased the estate of Urie in Kincardineshire in 1854 from the executors of the late Robert Barclay Allardice. This fine estate is situated near Stonehaven and lies on both banks of the river Cowrie. Alexander Baird built the present house of Urie (as pictured). In 1860 he increased his property by about a thousand acres from Patrick Keith Murray of Dunottar. On his death the property passed to his brother John. He had also purchased the estates of Inshes and Delmore in Inverness-shire and Drumkilbo in Forfarshire.

Vulcan Maltings, Glasgow

Hugh Baird and his brother Frank opened their first malting at Springbank, Glasgow, in 1832. The firm prospered and expanded. This malting was built at No 116 Vintner Street, 1893 for Hugh Baird & Sons, to designs by Russell & Spence. These buildings were obsolete by the mid-1960s, when drum malting replaced the more labour intensive floor malting. Bairds moved their business out of the city to countryside locations in the late 1960s, and these buildings were then demolished.

Wellwood House, Muirkirk

Built in the late 1870s by John G. A. Baird whose uncle bought the 17,566 acre estate in 1863 from the Campbell family. The house had been demolished by the 1950s. These views were published, with historical notes, in a collection of photographs of 'inhabited castles and mansions' of Ayrshire.