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Situated next to the present school building on LOCHEND ROAD the Schoolhouse can be found. Once the home of head teachers and their families, it is now privately owned.
The toilet would have been external........and so far, its location hasn't been found.
The oldest part of the building is the central pitched roof section. Much smaller in size, it comprised a panelled living room and scullery/kitchen (downstairs) and three bedrooms. All these rooms had open fires ,the kitchen had evidence that the" fire" there had been a range as a concrete area was discovered around a chimney opening when the present owners were renovating their family bathroom (the site of the original kitchen) - a walk-in larder was discovered under the stairwell behind the bath....having spookily been sealed up since the early 20th century!
What did it look like?
THE ORIGINAL BUILDING
At first sight onlookers might be forgiven for believing that the "Old Schoolhouse" also celebrated its centenary in 2013 - this is not the case, however, as the central section of the house is, in fact, some forty years older and is one of the village's oldest dwellings. A front section can be dated to 1913 and an additional single storey rear extension is date unknown, c. 1913 and the 1920s.
THE PITCHED ROOF SECTION - PREDATES THE PRESENT SCHOOL BUILDING (over 140 years old)
The original front door opened out straight onto Lochend Road and is now an internal door. Lochend Road, of course, at that time was the main road through what would then be a village growing due to the Fireclay and Ironworks industries The rear door went onto a cobbled area with possible outbuildings.
In his account ""Gartcosh Primary School A Brief History -The First Hundred Years See Gartcosh Primary School, Bryan Johnston states that the original school building was "reputedly built of red sandstone". The oldest part of the Schoolhouse is mainly grey sandstone but differs from the 1913 and post 1913 sections in that red sandstone is used around all original window openings..... this would appear to suggest that red sandstone might indeed have featured in the school building too!
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Dated 2 JULY 1875 for the purchase of 1/2 acre of land .
THE POST 1913 SCHOOLHOUSE
Research continues by the current owners into the reasons why the original building was extended. The Post 1913 rooms were much larger and it was obviously decided that the Head Teacher should have an interior bathroom and WC.
The present owners had a visitor some years ago from a lady, who stayed in the house during the 1930's as a young child .... she reminisced fondly of the house with its " breakfast room" "sitting room" "dining room" "reading room" etc. much to the amusement of the present incumbents, who are still searching for these rooms! Sadly, it was before the GLHG and the lady, who had travelled from the USA wasn't "grilled" for photographs and information.
Why was a Schoolhouse built?.
Gartcosh was, in spite of the railway, still a rather isolated location and with the 1872 Education Act making education compulsory a schoolhouse was provided for the head teacher. Schoolhouses were common practice in rural areas. Before private ownership, the schoolhouse at Gartcosh was the property of numerous School Boards, the earliest being Cadder, and Education Authorities.
PURCHASE OF LAND 1875- Land Register Extract.
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