From small scale traders to large corporate entities, from the young to the old, men and women, Glasgow born and bred or from further afield, our research looks at business life across all parts of the city between 1861 and 1901.

Today we are used to living in cities that have zones with a concentration of businesses of a similar type, such as the ‘entertainment district’ where there might be half a dozen popular pubs and clubs. Or the street with all the ‘posh shops’.

You probably have a mental map of where in your nearest town or city you would expect to find certain shops and services. For instance, if you wanted to go clothes shopping, or need to get your car fixed.

Nineteenth century cities like Glasgow did not have planning regulations that might limit what was built in certain areas. The people who lived there often still walked to the businesses they needed to access, although new urban public transport systems were developing.  There were large numbers of migrants and visitors who needed to find their way in the city too.

Our research asks some fundamental questions about the nature and locii of business activity and commercial operations in this crucial formative period of rapid urbanization and unprecedented economic growth. As part of answering those questions we also need to know who the business proprietors were, to understand what impelled them to entrepreneurial activity