Trees mark anniversary of Homes for Heroes Memories of Riverside houses

Riverside has been celebrating 100 years since the building of some of the first council houses in Scotland.

The Stirling community is marking the centenary of the ‘Homes for Heroes’ at Shiphaugh, which have both local and national significance.

The end of World War I in November 1918 brought a widespread demand for new houses.

The government passed legislation enabling local authorities to build houses, known as ‘Homes for Heroes,’ and Stirling Town Council was one of the first to build a council-owned housing scheme.

The town council considered various sites in Stirling and eventually, in April 1919, selected Shiphaugh in Riverside. Plans for developing the land, mostly already owned by Cowane’s Trust, were drawn up and a year was spent preparing and building, laying out roads and pavements, installing water and drainage and building the houses.

By Thursday October 28, 1920 four of the new council houses were ready for occupation. They were described in the local press as: “of the cottage type... [they had] a living room with a range and press, scullery with gas cooker, tub and sink, washing house with gas boiler, larder and coal house and also a place for a perambulator. Upstairs there [were] two bedrooms and bathroom.the houses [were] fitted up for a supply of hot water to the bath and scullery. The cooking could either be done by range or in the scullery by gas. The houses were lit by electric light.”

To mark the anniversary Riverside Community Council has planted a tree opposite the houses on Riverside Drive, distributed leaflets and are planning to install an information board beside the river footpath to explain the significance of the tree.

The effort has been supported by Stirling Council’s Community Pride Fund, Land Services and Library Archives; The Monument Press; Art is an Option and many Riverside residents.

Local resident Alistair Lamb was born in the front bedroom of his house in Sutherland Avenue in 1925. Apart from a spell living and working in Elgin, and his WWII service, he has lived there all his 95 years.

The houses in Sutherland Avenue were some of the first to be built as part of the Shiphaugh development after WWI and the first were ready for occupancy in 1920.

Mr Lamb’s parents moved to Sutherland Avenue in 1924. They were the second occupants of the house. He recalls that the first occupants weren’t happy as they found Riverside a bit ‘toffee nosed’.

But his parents loved living here and he himself still appreciates all the benefits of living in Riverside despite having seen many changes.

He said: “In the early days I knew all my neighbours in Sutherland Avenue and could be certain of a welcome, a cup of tea and a bun at any house [I] called into.”

While he still has friends in the area, at the time it was less built up and the houses between Sutherland Avenue and Abbey Road were built on open ground.

While a car was a novelty there was Jimmy’s Wee Bus and horse-drawn cars which were mobile shops Alistair Lamb