Gorbals

The Gorbals is an area in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, and former burgh, on the south bank of the River Clyde. By the late 19th century, it had become densely populated; rural migrants and immigrants were attracted by the new industries and employment opportunities of Glasgow. At its peak during the 1930s, the wider Gorbals district (which includes the directly adjoined localities of Laurieston and Hutchesontown) had risen in population to an estimated 90,000 residents, giving the area a very high population density of around 40,000/km2. Redevelopment after the Second World War has taken many turns, and the area's population is substantially smaller in the 21st century. The wider Gorbals area was once home to 16 high-rise public housing apartment blocks built in the 1960s and 1970s; now only four remain standing in the Waddell Court area of the Gorbals after the 2025 demolition of the 24 storey Caledonia road high rise flats.