History of the United Co-operative Baking Society Ltd.
Transcriber’s Note:
New original cover art included with this eBook is granted to the public domain.
CENTRAL PREMISES
BY WILLIAM REID
Published by United Co-operative Baking Society Limited
M‘Neil Street, Glasgow
1920
The chief advantage of prefaces is the opportunities they give authors for making apologies and for returning thanks. In the present instance the hurry with which the book has had to be written did not allow time enough to do many things which the writer would have liked to do. He would have liked to linger with the old-time enthusiasts who laid the foundations of the Society, to have made himself as familiar as possible with the times in which they lived and with the thoughts in their minds, so that he might be able to present to his readers a picture of their times as they saw them, and of their difficulties as they had to encounter them. For this there was no time, and so he has had to content himself with telling a plain, unvarnished tale of difficulties met and overcome, of a faith which refused to be dismayed, and of a triumph which is visible to all.
Unfortunately, there is no one alive to-day who had any active part in the inception of the Society. This increased the difficulty of presenting a true picture of the beginnings of the Society, but some help in this direction was got from the “Year Book,” which had been written by Mr Lochrie in 1896. The writer is also very much indebted to Mr David Brown, of the office staff of the Society, who prepared synopses of the various minutes of the Society. These synopses, by indicating the salient points in the minutes, greatly lightened the labour of selection; but, in addition, every minute has been carefully read at least once, and many of them much oftener, so that complete accuracy might be secured.
Great assistance in dealing with the history of the last thirty years has also been given by Mr James H. Forsyth, cashier of the Society, whose knowledge of the transactions of that period is unparalleled.
William Reid
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PREFACE.
CONTENTS.
ILLUSTRATIONS.
IMPROVING CONDITIONS.
THE FACTORY SYSTEM.
CO-OPERATION AS WE KNOW IT.
CO-OPERATIVE BAKERIES.
STIRLINGSHIRE AND HILLFOOTS SOCIETIES.
BAKING SOCIETIES IN FIFE AND THE NORTH.
BAKING IN THE BORDERLAND.
GLASGOW SOCIETY.
THE FIRST FEDERATED BAKERY.
THE SOCIETY FORMED.
DIFFICULTIES BEGIN.
A MANAGER APPOINTED.
SOMETHING ATTEMPTED, SOMETHING DONE.
THE NEW PREMISES.
THE CHAIRMAN RETIRES.
MORE CAPITAL WANTED.
SLOW PROGRESS.
PROPOSALS FOR BETTER WORKING.
JOHNSTONE SOCIETY’S REPORT.
BARRHEAD OPPOSITION.
BARRHEAD DECIDES TO WITHDRAW.
DISSATISFACTION IN PAISLEY AND JOHNSTONE.
A BRANCH IN GLASGOW.
THE END OF THE PROPOSAL.
BARRHEAD, JOHNSTONE, AND PAISLEY PROVIDENT WITHDRAW.
UNINFORMED CRITICISM.
EXTENSIONS AND A FIRE.
RESIGNATION OF MR CRAIG.
A BAD INVESTMENT.
GOOD NEWS.
MACHINERY INSTALLED.
GETTING RICH.
FURTHER EXTENSIONS PROPOSED.
THE RESULTS OF TEN YEARS’ WORK.
RELATIONS WITH EMPLOYEES.
CANVASSING FOR TRADE.
THE GROUND ANNUAL.
DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT.
PRESIDENT AND TREASURER RETIRE.
KEEPING DOWN PRICES.
THE OAKMILL INVESTMENT.
FURTHER EXTENSIONS.
COSTLY LITIGATION.
TRANSFERABLE CAPITAL.
STILL FURTHER EXTENSIONS.
PURCHASE OF M‘NEIL STREET GROUND.
BUILDING DIFFICULTIES.
THE OPENING CEREMONY.
AN UP-TO-DATE BAKERY.
PROPAGANDA WORK.
RECOGNISING LOYAL SERVICE.
A STABLE INSPECTOR.
FINANCE.
AN INVESTMENT.
A RIGHT OF WAY CASE.
A NEW VENTURE.
THE CHAIRMAN RETIRES.
INCREASES ALL ROUND.
FURTHER EXTENSIONS.
THE U.C.B.S. AND THE S.C.W.S.
AN ACCIDENT.
RESIGNATION OF FOREMAN BAKER.
RESIGNATION OF MANAGER.
THE FIRST GLASGOW BOYCOTT.
A NEW PRESIDENT.
MAJORITY CELEBRATIONS.
THE DINNER.
STILL MORE EXTENSIONS.
STILL FURTHER EXTENSIONS.
NEW BUILDING COLLAPSES.
MORE BUILDING.
THE SCHEME APPROVED.
INSURANCE FUND STARTED.
ADVERTISING THE SOCIETY’S PRODUCTS.
A PURVEY DEPARTMENT.
A NEW FORM OF BOYCOTT.
FEEDING THE HUNGRY.
A WORK’S FIRE BRIGADE.
CONTINUOUS GROWTH.
INCREASING BUSINESS.
THE OPENING CEREMONY.
THE POSITION OF THE FEDERATION.
NEW STABLES.
ORGANISATION.
MANAGER OR NO MANAGER.
THE SOCIETY AND THE C.W.S.
THE BIG BOYCOTT.
RELATIONS WITH MASTER BAKERS.
SOME NOTEWORTHY ALTERATIONS.
THE FARMING ASSOCIATION.
ACCIDENTS.
THE OATCAKE DEPARTMENT.
ADVERTISING AND ENTERTAINING.
DONATIONS.
A WORKS DEPARTMENT.
A FOUR YEARS’ RECORD.
PROPAGANDA IN IRELAND.
SEEKING TRADE IN ENGLAND.
THE SOCIETY AND ITS EMPLOYEES.
A GENERAL MANAGER.
THE TEAROOMS.
THE DELIVERY QUESTION.
GLASGOW EXHIBITION.
EXTENSIONS.
INCREASING TRADE.
A DISASTROUS FIRE.
A BAD SMASH.
EARLY BAKING PROPOSALS.
DISPUTE WITH LOCAL BAKERS.
SCOTLAND COMES TO THE RESCUE.
THE BAKERY.
THE BAKERY COMPLETED.
THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
CONTINUOUS PROGRESS.
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS.
THE WAR AND ITS EFFECTS.
ST MUNGO HALLS.
MR M‘CULLOCH RETIRES.
AN AMALGAMATION PROPOSAL.
PURVEY AND CONTRACT DEPARTMENT.
THE FIRST MOTOR VAN.
A BREAD EXPERIMENT.
PROPAGANDA AND PUBLICITY.
UNEMPLOYMENT.
THE EFFECT ON CO-OPERATION.
SOME BUSINESS ITEMS.
THE SOCIETY’S POSITION.
EXTENSIONS.
THE QUALITY OF THE BREAD.
THE TEAROOMS.
ORDERS FROM EGYPT.
ORGANISATION.
ANOTHER UNEMPLOYMENT CRISIS.
RAILWAYMEN’S CONGRESS ENTERTAINED.
THE BAND.
PROPAGANDA WORK.
THE SOCIETY AND ITS EMPLOYEES.
THE OLDEST SCOTTISH SOCIETY GOES UNDER.
THE CO-OPERATIVE INSURANCE SOCIETY.
THE SOCIETY’S PROGRESS.
COVER-PLATE OVENS.
COMPLETION OF M‘NEIL STREET BAKERY.
A SERIOUS FIRE.
A NEW VENTURE.
BLEACHED FLOUR.
A BREAD TEST.
ADVERTISING WORK.
FRESH OVERTURES TO C.W.S.
TESTING DEPARTMENT CONSIDERED.
PROPOSED SUPERANNUATION FUND.
THE INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATIVE CONGRESS.
THE HOLIDAY CAMP.
THE SOCIETY’S PROGRESS.
HALF-PAY TO SOLDIER EMPLOYEES.
ARMY CONTRACTS.
DEATH OF BISCUIT FACTORY MANAGER.
MORE ARMY CONTRACTS.
EXTENSIONS AND ALTERATIONS.
BUSINESS ORGANISATION.
THE PRICE OF BREAD.
BISCUIT AND TEABREAD TRADE.
THE SOCIETY AND ITS WORKERS.
DELIVERY DIFFICULTIES.
BAKERS’ DIFFICULTIES.
THE POSITION OF THE U.C.B.S.
A BIG LAND PURCHASE.
ILLNESS OF PRESIDENT.
A NATURAL WORKING DAY—BY ORDER.
ENTERTAINING SOLDIERS.
BRANCH BAKERIES.
ROTHESAY BRANCH.
SUBSIDISED BREAD.
AN INDUSTRIAL COUNCIL.
EMPLOYEES ON MILITARY SERVICE.
THE END OF THE TASK.
A NEW DEPARTURE.
THE DEPUTATION.
A SECOND DEPUTATION.
VALUABLE WORK.
THE YEARS OF WAR.
GABRIEL THOMSON.
JAMES BORROWMAN.
DAVID SMITH.
ROBERT CRAIG.
WILLIAM BARCLAY.
THOMAS SLATER.
ANDREW BROWN.
ALEXANDER FRASER.
JOHN FERGUSON.
DUNCAN M‘CULLOCH.
JAMES H. FORSYTH.
JAMES YOUNG.
PETER GLASSE.
D. H. GERRARD, J.P.
JAMES BAIN.
THE PRESENT BOARD.
STATISTICS.
OUR FALLEN HEROES
GLASGOW
CLYDEBANK BRANCH
BELFAST BRANCH
LEITH DEPOT
