Buffalo Bill's Show at the East Exhibition Buildings, Glasgow in 1891/2

[MonicaL]

I am sure you have  Really interesting story (which I knew nothing about!)

According to this story following the opening night:

.... As already mentioned, the great show is located in the building which was last year utilised for the East End Exhibition. The premises, however, have been entirely reconstructed, and now form perhaps the largest and finest all open building in Scotland. Last night an audience which could not number much less than 5000 gathered to view the opening performance.
https://codyarchive.org/texts/wfc.nsp11608.html

This reads as if the building was converted to have an open roof?

Have you searched newspaper for Glasgow at the time? Glasgow Herald issues available to view for free here https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC  You can as you know use paid for sites to be able to search by key word. The google version you need to search through by issue date if you know this.

Monica

[Skoosh]

Winterbloom, pic's of the stadium here.

http://centerofthewest.org/2020/07/10/points-west-glasgow-buffalo-bill-2/

A Tom.F.Cunningham is the keeper of the Scottish National Buffalo Bill Archive.

www.snbba.co.uk

His book, "Your Fathers the Ghosts!"

Skoosh.

[MonicaL]

Friday,  Nov. 6, 1891 Glasgow Herald - see pg 4, column 6 https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=18911106&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

This gives you a good summary of layout and design etc. Also covers how they dealt with H&S issues by the construction of viewing areas, stage and other display areas (keeping audiences contantained to one area only).

From other newspaper reports, between £5-6,000 was spent transforming the East End Exhibition buildings to accomodate the people and the animals involved in the show, and major reconstruction to include, amongst other things, a massive arena for the shows. The building and surrounding land was actually acquired by the management of "Buffalo Bill" which is what let them do what modifications they needed.

The building, East End Exhibition, was a temporary structure built solely for the  Glasgow East End Industrial Exhibition for which ran for 3 months between Dec 1890 - March 1891. So building put to good use it seems as there was nothing else suitable it seems for the show in Scotland at the time.

Monica

[MonicaL]

An adverstisement from the Inverness Courier on 13 November 1891. Admission charges shown. It may be that the children's show on Xmas Eve was free?

[MonicaL]

Found mention of the free admission for children for a show on 28 December 1891. From the Edinburgh Evening News 29 December 1891:

[MonicaL]

Actually, a more appropriate larger event for the children would be this one showing below. This is from the Glasgow Herald, 25 December 1891 - pg 4, col. 6 https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=GGgVawPscysC&dat=18911225&printsec=frontpage&hl=en

Just a clip below. Full article on the link above. The idea of 7,000 children, Xmas Day and a show like this...they must have had such a great time!

[Skoosh]

Nice work Monica, the show coincided with the opening of the adjoining Whitehill Secondary School.

Skoosh.

[Winterbloom21]

Thank you so much, Monica and Skoosh.     This is wonderful.     I sat here this afternoon trying to work out what the price of the tickets might have been and, funnily enough, seem to have come up with the same as the price of the cheap seats - 1 shilling!       But, as you say, I've been working on the idea that the Christmas Eve show might have been given free.     From what I've read, Buffalo Bill was an amazing businessman, but was also quite charitable, so it makes sense.

The pictures are amazing, though they seem to be pictures of the 1904 show, which was in a different arena, but never mind, they are still really interesting to see.      I'm going to go with a roof for the East End Exhibition Hall, I've decided.    They keep mentioning 'heating' so that's a big enough clue for me.

In case you're wondering what I'm up to, I'm putting together a slightly fictionalised version of my family tree story for the benefit of my grandchildren.      It probably won't bear much resemblance to the reality (bearing in mind that I never met my grandfather, and am going entirely on civil records and the odd family anecdote) but hey, some of it'll be true!

Many thanks again for all your help.

Siobhán

[MonicaL]

Nothing wrong with adding a little colour from local events at the time, Siobhán  Seems the show was a massive success. Wonder how many people came to see it by the end.

Monica