History of Douglas Park
The Douglas Park site has been a public open space since the construction of the surrounding houses in around 1905/1906 and was given to the local authority in the 1950's for sole use as a community ornamental garden.
Originally forming part of the agricultural lands of the Duke of Hamilton in the 18th and 19th centuries, Douglas Park and its surrounding environs were sold to local builder Daniel Stewart in 1904 for the development of housing on what was then the southern edge of Cambuslang. The land, now known as Douglas Park, formed plots one and two of the sale. For reasons unknown, plots one and two were never developed as housing and were left as an open area on the boundary between the new street of Stewarton Drive and the extension to Douglas Drive. Following the death of Daniel Stewart, the site was given to the local authority in Lanarkshire in 1954 for the sole use as an 'ornamental garden' for the public. This was a function the park would continue to serve for the next 40 years. It was also during this period that the site became known locally as 'Douglas Park'.
At the time the ornamental garden was created, hard landscaping features such as pathways, formal rose beds, and bench seating were installed and the site became a central feature for those in the surrounding area. The photo below, courtesy of Colin Findlay, was taken around the early 1970's.
The site continued in use as a formal ornamental garden until the mid 1980's when the character of the park began to change. The squeezing of local Council budgets around this time meant that the hard landscaping features in the park started to gradually fall into disrepair and were removed without being replaced. This process continued into the early 2000's by which time the park became as it is found today; a grassed area with remnant pathways but no formal hard landscaping (see the photo below).
The removal of the hard landscaping has in many cases restricted access to the park for several sectors of the community including older people and those with disabilities; however Douglas Park continues to be used by dog walkers, children and families for recreation.
A change in the nature of Scottish land law in November 2004, with a move away from a basis in feudal law, brought a new challenge for the park. Under the provisions of this legal change, any existing feudal burdens on land (such as the clause to use the land solely as an ornamental garden) were removed. This removal of burdens was subject to a 10-year review period during which time they could be reinstated if requested. As the wider community remained unaware of both this change to the law and its potential impact on the burden protecting the park, no challenge to its removal was raised prior to the expiry of the 10-year review period. Therefore, in November 2014, the ornamental garden burden became invalid and the future of the park was no longer secure.
