Picture in Time: Glasgow 1262

Its time for “Picture in Time” to move on once again and for the next couple of weeks we’re going to be unusually featuring photos from a closed first generation system as we’re off to Glasgow.

The Glasgow Corporation Tramways probably needs very little introduction to readers of this website, it being the last of the great city tramway systems in the UK when it finally succumbed to closure on 4th September 1962. At its height the 4’7 ¾ “ gauged system totalled 141 route miles and possessed over 1,000 tramcars, many of which were built in the Corporation’s own workshops. It is a system that is well represented by trams in preservation with its very familiar fleet livery always turning heads.

In the lead up to its closure in 1962 it became a magnet for enthusiasts to sample the system one last time and the below photo was taken during the final year. We’re at Central Station and 1262 is about to go under the station as another car comes towards us with a lorry, cars and pedestrians all adding to the scene which is likely to take some of you back over 60 years.

1262 was one of the 150 strong class of Coronation Cars built at Coplawhill Works between 1936 and 1941. Whilst 1262 survived until the last year it was to be withdrawn and scrapped although four of the class survived into preservation, including 1245 now at Summerlee and 1282 at Crich.

Photograph by Tony Stevenson, 1962

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