THE KNOWE
WHERE IS IT? At the corner of Albert Drive and Shields Road in the Pollokshields district.
The Knowe is an Italianate Romanesque style villa designed by Alexander Thomson for John Blair, a hat and cap maker. The original designs were drawn up in 1850, with the building completed a couple of years later in 1852.
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While many of the features of the original building survive, much restoration or extension work has taken place on the villa itself. The surrounding wall and coachman’s house and gate, Knowe Lodge, have also survived reasonably well. However, the large gardens were developed into large blocks of flats in 1974.
The name of the house, Knowe, comes from the Scottish form of “knoll,” meaning a small rounded hill. The villa itself is built on one of these hills (trust us, it’s a fairly steep walk up there).
The house underwent a name change in 1892 when butcher William Hood bought the property. The next owner after him decided to revert the name back to the original in 1909.
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