Glasgow
*Page under construction*
Glasgow intro*
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Cathedral Precinct
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Murals
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Glasgow Cross
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The Barras
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Glasgow Science Centre & Pacific Quay
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Shipbuilding Heritage
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Lobey Dosser, the Sheriff of Calton Creek, is used to the Scottish weather and so never goes anywhere without his cowboy hat! The cartoon character, created by Glasgow author and artist Bud Neill (1911-1970), is portrayed mounted on his trusty steed El Fidelo with his arch enemy Rank Bajin hitching a ride on the horse`s back. Lobey Dosser`s comic strip adventures appeared in the Evening Times and later the Sunday Mail newspaper between 1949 and 1959.
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This statue of William F. Cody, better known as Buffalo Bill, lies in Dennistoun in Glasgow`s East End. It commemorates the legendary cowboy`s visit to the city with his world famous Wild West Show which ran there from 16 November 1891 until 27th February 1892.
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The venue chosen for the extravaganza was the East End Exhibition Centre in Dennistoun, which had been converted into a 7,000 seat amphitheater to cope with the projected demand. Entitled The Drama of Civilization, the show was structured in six parts to show how western culture and courage had triumphed over the barbaric and primitive Native American Indians. Episodes would always end with Buffalo Bill and his `goodies` riding to the rescue of a beleaguered wagon train, homestead, or stagecoach and scattering the pesky `Redskins`. 
Buffalo Bill and Sitting Bull.
One of the highlights proved to be a biased re-enactment of the Battle of the Little Bighorn when `brave General Custer` and the troopers under his command met their end at the hands of the despicable Indians. Impressive special effects were used to simulate a prairie fire and a `twister`and there was even a small herd of buffalo to `hunt` or round up.
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In addition there were demonstrations of essential Cowboy skills such as lassoing, riding bucking broncos and other feats of horsemanship. Sharpshooting also featured with Annie Oakley being the most popular star in that department. The Indians were genuine First Nation Lakota people, better known as Sioux, recruited from various reservations in South Dakota. Once formidable warriors such as Kicking Bear, Short Bull and One Bull, nephew and adopted son of the legendary Lakota chief Sitting Bull, all became familiar sights in Glasgow`s East End during their stay.
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Even with the city`s tough reputation it`s doubtful that the locals would have given these braves any trouble, especially as they were all veterans of Custer`s Last Stand in 1876. Kicking Bear had been the last Lakota warrior to surrender to the Federal government in January 1891. Most of the Native Americans had been imprisoned following the end of hostilities which had ensued following the infamous massacre at Wounded Knee and were given the option of joining Buffalo Bill as part of his show as an alternative to continued incarceration. During the show`s three-week run in Glasgow the Cowboys and Indians made the most of their visit and it became clear that they liked a `bevy`. |
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It wasn`t all plain sailing though. On Hogmanay, like numerous Glaswegians traditionally did, one of the Indians named Charging Thunder got drunk in an East End pub. He returned to the show while the afternoon performance was underway and, for reasons known only to himself, battered one of the shows interpreters, George Crager, over the head with a large block of wood! The Glasgow `Polis` were summoned, the Indian got `the jail` and was given a weekend lie-in at the now derelict Tobago Street Police Office (left). When he eventually appeared in court the best defence he could come up with was that the lemonade he`d been drinking must have been spiked with whisky! The Sheriff wasn`t impressed and Charging Thunder was sentenced to thirty days in the Bar-L, Glasgow`s notorious Barlinnie Prison. |
During his stay, Buffalo Bill attended a football match at Ibrox between Rangers and Queen`s Park and, before they headed south after the Glasgow show finished its run, a team of cowboys took part in a charity football match at Celtic Park. Buffalo Bill returned to Scotland in 1904 but by that time his show had become more like a circus with much of the content featuring material unrelated to the Wild West. Although his show never lost its popularity with the Glasgow audience there`s no way that Buffalo Bill could have imagined that 100 years later pigeons would be `plopping` on his statue in the city`s East End!
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War Memorials (LINK)*
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Many more additional images relating to Glasgow can be found in my Stock Photography Archive.