Excerpt from Glasgow Central Conservation Guide.
The Cathedral Character Area comprises the ancient ecclesiastical centre of Glasgow and the upper part of the High Street that linked it to the mercantile centre beside the River Clyde. With the exception of the Cathedral and Provand’s Lordship, all visible remains of the mediaeval ecclesiastical centre have been removed and the sites redeveloped from the later 19th century. The High Street layout survives however. Although recent developments have attempted to repair the cohesion of the area, the adjacent road network and some substantial gap sites still present a fragmentary appearance and create a sense of isolation from the modern City Centre. The area contrasts with the City Centre in that it contains large individual historic complexes rather than a closely integrated whole. The Cathedral, Royal Infirmary, Provand’s Lordship, Museum of Religious Life, Barony Hall, Glasgow Evangelical Church, and Bell o’the Brae tenements are the principal structures. Green space is a significant feature of the area, which includes the Necropolis, Cathedral Square Precinct, Cathedral Square Gardens and the Old and New Burying Grounds.
Fir Park was transformed into the city’s first commercial cemetery, the Necropolis, in 1831. Its impressive monuments and mausoleums have dominated the skyline of the area since, marking the final resting places of Glasgow’s great and good. The Bridge of Sighs was built at this time to span the Molendinar Burn and link the Cathedral area to the Necropolis.
To the south of the Necropolis Tennents’ Wellpark Brewery expanded substantially as industrial processes were introduced to their brewing operation. The Molendinar Burn, which once flowed past Kentigern’s ”dear green hollow”, had become an open sewer and hazardous to health. Between 1860 and 1896 the burn was culverted and Wishart Street, named after the Bishop who supported Wallace, was created.
