THE TOWN OF PAISLEY: XXII. In the beginning of 1873, a subscription sheet was opened for the purpose of building a Town Hall. The following were some of the principal sums obtained :- When the sum of nearly £14,000 had been raised, official intimation was received by the Provost that Mr George A. Clark, of Newark, N.J., had bequeathed the sum of £20,000 for the erection of a Town Hall, and other sums to publie institutions in town. The following is a copy of that portion of Mr Clark's will relating to these bequests: "To remedy a want long felt in my native town of Paisley, I bequeath to the Provost, Magistrates, and Town Council the sum of twenty thousand pounds for the erection of a Town Hall, and, combined with this Hall, a large Reading Room for working men, where they can sit and enjoy smoking, and the room shall be open from five o'clock in the morning until twelve o'clock at night-said building shall be erected in that part of the town called the New Town. HISTORICAL SKETCH. "To the Paisley House of Recovery I be queath £1000. "To the Paisley Ragged School I bequeath £1000." A committee was at once appointed for the purpose of fixing on a suitable plan and superintending the erection of the Hall. This committee consisted of certain members of the Town Council and the respective members of Messrs Clark & Co., Anchor Thread Works. The plan' of Mr Lynn, of Belfast, was chosen as the most suitable. This will involve a cost of £50,000, of which £10,000 will be required for the site, but the Clark family have determined to sup plement any deficiency that may occur. The site chosen is that extending between the corner of Smithhills Street and the Abbey Close U.P. Church extending to the river. In December, 1877, the materials of the buildings on the site were sold. There had been for many years a talk of erecting a Town Hall, but it had met with very little encouragement from those ablest to assist its erection till 1873. A public meeting of ratepayers was held in May, 1869, to discuss the matter; but it was left to Mr Robert Cochran to show the benefits to be derived from it. Many strongly denounced the scheme as likely to add to the public burdens Only about 250 people attended the meeting. On the 8th of October, 1874, the monument to Alexander Wilson was unveiled by Provost Murray in presence of a multitude of people. Speeches were delivered by ex-Bailie Caldwell and the Provost. A banquet was afterwards. held in the County Hall, at which the Provost presided. The idea to erect a monument to Alexander Wilson originated with the Alexander Wilson Lodge of Oddfellows. Their first meeting for this purpose was held on the 28th June, 1844. Great difficulty was experienced in raising sufficient funds, and subscriptions were received from America. In November, 1856, a general meeting of subscribers was held in order to consider what should be the character of the monument, but this meeting was found prema. ture, as sufficient funds had not been obtained. Another meeting was held in 1859, when it was decided that a statue should be erected, and a THE TOWN OF PAISLEY: committee was appointed to communicate with sculptors. The model furnished by Mr John Mossman, Glasgow, was chosen at a meeting held on 18th February, 1862, and the work was then ordered to be proceeded with. In 1875 the Abbey Close was widened by the removal of the houses on the east side of the street. Some of these houses were very old, and had been owned by the families of Abercorn and Dundonald. Under one of the houses, which had been a place of evil repute, a skeleton was found. There was also found an old foundation, composed of a course of dressed stones, which was probably the remains of the "staitlie yett hous" built by Abbot Tarvis. A neat parapet wall and railing was raised, enclosing the Abbey churchyard. In 1875 there were 86 public works in Paisley, among which were 23 dye works, 8 scouring and finishing, 1 brewery, 1 distillery, 1 paper work, 10 thread works, 2 carpet works, 3 chemical works, 1 tan work, 1 oil work, 7 engineering and boiler works, 1 powerloom factory, 3 bleach works, 1 candle work, 10 various. In 1877 the Brodie Park was opened to the public. It was bequeathed to the town by Robert Brodie, Esq., of Carriagehill, and consists of about 30 acres. About £2500 have been spent in laying it out. Mr Robert Brodie was born on the 3rd of June, 1807. He was the son of a respectable Renfrewshire farmer, and came to Paisley in 1824. He was for many years a clerk in the old Paisley Bank, and afterwards accountant in the National Bank. He lived a quiet unobtrusive life, and died on 20th February, 1871. In 1877 the town, after having been in a state of insolvency for 35 years, got clear of debt. In this year the estimated population was 50,865. (To be concluded in Saturday's Express.) HISTORICAL SKETCH. XXIII. [CONCLUDED.] The most valuable institution in Paisley is the Infirmary, which, in 1877, issued its 92d annual report, from which we take the following tables and notes: Of the 72 patients who died, 6 were moribund when admitted, and did not survive twenty-four hours. 596 132 728 65 56 16 72 717 155 872 HISTORICAL SKETCH. The number of patients admitted during the last five years to the Medical and Surgical and Fever Wards respectively, is as follows: 1816 Miss Maxwell, of Williamwood, Daniel Campbell. Paisley 1818 Robert Arthur, London 1820 W. Findlay, of Trees, Shares Hugh Thomson, Paisley James Wylie, writer, Paisley 1831 Matthew Lochhead, Paisley 1832 John Lochhead, Paisley James Buchanan, Paisley £50 0 31 10 0 100 0 50 200 0 0 5 0 100 0 ... 100 0 20 0 50 0 50 0 0 50 0 0 1833 Alex. Watson, and Catherine 1834 Miss Margt. Wilson, Paisley, 1835 The Heirs of the late David 5 0 0 10 14 0 10 0 0 220 0 59 2 100 0 0 19 19 0 19 19 100 0 150 0 0 200 0 0 5 0 500 50 0 0 10 O 19 19 0 100 0 0 |