Queenslie Industrial Estate in the 1950s, and a familiar sight to travellers heading for Edinburgh in later years before the completion of the M8 Motorway.
Built by Scottish Industrial Estates, Queenslie Industrial Estate was opened in 1948, and is the largest industrial estate lying wholly within the city. Initially it was somewhat isolated from the city, but new housing developments in the East End soon brought a large labour force to the Easterhouse area. In 1956, factory space amounted to 680,000 square feet, where twenty-three firms turned out a variety of products which included typewriters, miners' lamps, ladies' wear, potato peelers, car springs and gas meters.
At the time of the photograph, Olivetti's typewriter factory was the largest at Queenslie, with a workforce of 900. The firm had been able to move into the large premises in 1948 when it required only a small area within the building, and this allowed easy expansion as business increased. Most of the typewriters' components were manufactured on the premises and 40 per cent of output was exported.
Reference: Glasgow City Archives, P7634
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
exports, factories, industrial estates, light industries, Olivetti, Queenslie Industrial Estate, Scottish Industrial Estates, typewriters
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