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By Mrs. Hamilton and Mrs. Russell, both of Morton Road.
Mrs. Hamilton writes: " Five years ago when I resided in Glasgow,
my husband and I saw an advert outside the McLellan Galleries stating that
there was an Overspill Exhibition taking place inside, so as already we
had given the matter some thought, we decided to enter and make enquiries.
As we wandered from one section to another we noticed the name ' Stewarton
'. This was not the first time we had heard of the place as friends of
ours had already moved from Glasgow to Stewarton and had told us how much
they liked it and how nice the people were, so we approached the gentleman
who was on duty that afternoon. He turned out to be the late Provost, Mr.
Walter Syme, who must have had a great love and affection for the town and
its inhabitants, as he convinced us that of all the towns represented at
the Exhibition, Stewarton was the place for us. We then filled in the
necessary forms and a few weeks later were informed that our name was on
the Stewarton housing list.
" While we waited I had many doubts—had I done the right thing? would it
be too quiet? would I miss all the assets the big city had to offer ? I
was also leaving my family and friends and although it would be easy
enough to come and visit them, I still wondered.
" After having lived here now for over two years, I can say without any
doubt that I have never ever regretted my decision. There is absolutely no
comparison between living in a tenement building in Glasgow and living in
the type of house we have here in Stewarton. In addition to keeping in
touch with the friends I left behind I have made many new ones here.
" Many families have now moved from Glasgow to Stewarton and I am quite
sure that like us they do not regret for one moment coming to live and
settle down in the ' Bunnet Toun '."
Mrs. Russell writes: "As one of the next Stewartonians who came
here through the ' Overspill Scheme ' I am glad to have the chance of
writing a few words of thanks for giving my family and myself the
opportunity of living out of Glasgow.
" Many of us are Glasgow born and bred, but for all that, would not choose
to live and bring up our children there. It is only through a scheme such
as ' Overspill ' that many of us could ever hope to leave the city and so
enable us to give our children the chance to enjoy their childhood as they
should—away from the smoke and grit. One must live in a city to realise
its disadvantages. For example, children cannot get out to play as the
streets are so congested with traffic and there is no peace of mind for a
mother who must always be at the window to make sure her children are
safe. You do not have the pleasure of opening your own door and letting
the children out into their own garden but instead must get the whole
family ready and then travel to the nearest park to find a piece of grass
where they can play in safety.
" To have a bathroom of one's own is also something new to many of
us—no-one knows, unless by experience what it is like to share a '
stairhead ' toilet with other families. Of course, these facilities are
everyday things to the people fortunate enough to have been born and
brought up in a place like Stewarton.
" Now a word about the people of Stewarton themselves. I am sure many of
you had qualms when it was first suggested that people from Glasgow were
coming to live in your town. Glasgow is a much publicised city—not always
in its favour, I'm afraid—but there are many decent people in Glasgow who
have no desire to form gangs or get into fights whenever they meet.
" We do hope that the families who have come to live in your town have
helped quell any doubts you may previously have had. There are many towns
in the ' Overspill Scheme ' but all of us who came here did so by choice,
as this was the place we liked best, and therefore desired to become '
Citizens by Adoption '."
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