Exhibition at World’s Fair
An exercise to find out if Stirling – and other parts of the country – were ready for war took place in March 1939, when a ‘big black-out’ was staged.
It was, said the paper, `the first and greatest spectacle of its kind to date’ and generally declared a success.
Townsfolk in Stirling cooperated in `splendid manner’ and the appeal for lights out between 10pm and midnight was `readily obeyed’ – although some had to be told by Air Raid Precaution wardens to `put that light out’.
An Observer reporter made a tour of darkened streets during the black-out and found residents `groping their way home apparently without difficulty’ but, judging by the jokes being cracked, accepting the conditions in a `light frame of mind’.
Special constables and wardens were at their posts when the siren sounded, marking the start of the exercise, but it was not clear what their exact duties would be until a sealed envelope containing their orders was handed over.
As sounds of exploding bombs were played across the town, news of the first real `incident’ emerged.
An incendiary bomb had apparently exploded at Broad Street, in front of the Mercat Cross, causing a `great conflagration. However, as the Observer pointed out, it was a bonfire comprising old boxes and paper.
A large crowd gathered to see how the wardens and firefighters reacted to the pretend emergency. Firefighters took a few minutes to find a fire hydrant but eventually extinguished the flames.
The next `emergency’ occurred outside the County Buildings where mustard gas was said to have been released.
Wardens sounded the wooden rackets – used specially as a warning
There was considerable interest in the Stirling area in the opening in early 1939 of a `Scottish village` exhibit created at a world’s fair held in San Francisco.
Assisting the city’s Mayor Rossi at the event was 93-yearold John Mclaren, a native of Bannockburn, who had won worldwide horticultural fame for his achievement in laying out San Franciso’s Golden Gate Park.
Mr Mclaren had lived in California for 63 years.
In his younger days, he showed an aptitude for horticulture and trained as a gardener, firstly at Bannockburn House and then at Blair Drummond House and later found work in Edinburgh, which enabled him to attend classes at the Royal Botanic Gardens where he met his wife.
He left Scotland for California in 1872 and was appointed superintendent of Golden Gate Park, a post he held for 53 years.
In 1935, another park in the Bay Area, extending to 400 acres, was opened and named after him.
His speciality, said the Observer, was in landscape gardening but his fame Statesside had been won for the conversion, under his guidance, of thousands of acres of shifting sands into a `veritable gigantic botanic garden.’ Mr Mclaren was said to be a great personal friend of Sir Harry Lauder.
Many of the shrubs, flowers in the Scottish comedian’s garden at Lauder Ha’ in Strathaven, near Hamilton, were sent from Mr Mclaren.
San Francisco’s Golden Gate Exposition opened on February 18, 1939, and ran until September of the following year. It was held on the shoals off Yerba Buena Island partly to celebrate the completion of the Golden Gate and Oakland Bridges.