Fountains in Glasgow 'left to languish' despite investment
Stewart Memorial Fountain in Kelvingrove Park pictured on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest) A total of £96,262.16 has been spent by the council on the Stewart Memorial Fountain in Kelvingrove Park between the 2020/21 and 2024/25 financial years.
The fountain was erected in 1872 to commemorate the contribution of Lord Provost Robert Stewart to the campaign to pass the 1855 Loch Katrine Act which paved the way for a fresh water supply in Glasgow.
However, more than 150 years later, no fresh water is flowing through the fountain despite investment which has seen repairs to leaks and stonework, and inspections and testing to ensure water and electrical systems are operating 'effectively and safely'.
Pictures taken this week show the fountain is not switched on, with debris seen in the pool of water at the base.
(Image: Newsquest) Stewart Memorial Fountain in Kelvingrove Park pictured on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest) Meanwhile, a total of £54,158.50 has been spent carrying out similar works on the Doulton Fountain in Glasgow Green over the same period.
Considered one of the largest terracotta fountains in the world, it was created in honour of Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887 and was originally erected in Kelvingrove Park.
Doulton Fountain pictured on Friday, July 11, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest)
It was moved twice before being settled outside the People's Palace in 2004.
A council spokesperson said both fountains require structural repairs to operate fully.
However, in the same period of time, no money has been spent by the council on repairing or maintaining the Cameron Memorial Fountain on Sauchiehall Street - which has been fenced of for years - or the Saracen Fountain in Alexandra Park according to the FOI response.
Damage to the Doulton Fountain pictured on Sunday, June 8, 2025 (Image: Paul Sweeney MSP)
(Image: Newsquest) In December 2023, the Glasgow Times reported the council was working with Fiona Sinclair, a conservation-accredited architect, to carry out a condition survey of the Baroque-stye Cameron Memorial Fountain.
No money has been spent on the fountain since then. Pictures show the structure remains fenced off with plants growing out of it as of this week.
The B-listed fountain was constructed in 1896 in memory of Liberal politician Sir Charles Cameron who was a former editor of the North British Daily Mail and leader in the temperance movement.
It's noticeable tilt was first reported almost a century ago in 1926.
Cameron Memorial Fountain on Sauchiehall Street pictured on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest) The ornate A-listed Saracen Fountain has also seen no financial investment from the council since 2020.
Friends of Alexandra Park launched a fundraiser in 2021 to help "restore it to its former glory" saying it has "decayed over the years".
It has so far raised around £2150 towards its £25,000 target.
Saracen Fountain in Alexandra Park pictures on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest) Pictures show the fountain also has plants growing out of some sections with paint peeling off the structure.
The base is filled with stagnant green water.
Built in 1901, the fountain was sculpted by David Watson Stevenson and the foundry was Walter Macfarlane & Co at their Saracen works in Possil.
A council spokesperson said they are exploring options to restore both fountains.
Saracen Fountain in Alexandra Park pictures on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 (Image: Gordon Terris, Newsquest) Sweeney said it is "frustrating" all the fountains are our of operation, saying the city should be able to be proud of its Victorian fountains.
He said: "Despite some investment to maintain Glasgow's iconic public fountains in recent years, it is frustrating that they are all currently out of operation due to a lack of routine maintenance, and in the case of the Doulton Fountain at Glasgow Green, have suffered significant vandalism as a result.
"The terracotta Cameron Memorial Fountain at Charing Cross has yet to receive any funding for restoration work and has been fenced off for several years now.
"I have been working with the Friends of Alexandra Park to raise funds to restore the cast iron Saracen Fountain in Dennistoun.
"Although the city's most prominent fountains, the Stewart Memorial Fountain in Kelvingrove Park and the Doulton Fountain in Glasgow Green have had some maintenance work done since 2020, both these landmarks are yet again looking worse for wear and have not been switched on this year so far, leaving them to be clambered over and inevitably damaged."
He continued: "It was depressing to see the state of the Doulton Fountain during the Tour of Britain Family Cycling Festival last month - as one of the four coats of arms on the 137-year-old terracotta beauty had recently been smashed, with the fragments of 'Let Glasgow Flourish' scattered in the basin.
"The little St. Mungo chess pieces have also all been damaged.
"Staff at the People's Palace used to turn the fountain on each morning, but since the museum closed indefinitely last year, the fountain has been left to languish.
"Glasgow City Council must commit to urgently cleaning, repairing, and turning on both the Stewart and Doulton fountains daily, especially as we are now well into the summer and the height of the tourist season in Glasgow.
"In our 850th anniversary year, Glaswegians should be rightly proud of these magnificent Victorian legacies rather than embarrassed by their dilapidated condition."
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