Paisley’s Black Hogmanay
On the 31st December 1929 everything was as it should have been in Paisley until the afternoon matinee at the Glen Cinema on the corner of High Street and Gilmour Street.
It is estimated that around 700 children had paid to see the aftertnoon matinee “The Crowd”. Each film then was projected using several film spools, and when one was changed and taken to a seperate room for rewinding, something happened. sone reqound it was placed in its tin canister and began to to emit smoke. The projection assitant attempted to get it out of the building, but found his closest exit locked shut. He left the canister to seek help and by the time he returned the passway was filling with the smoke and fumes. It began to make its way into the cinema itself and someone cried out “Fire”.
A panick led to the children scrambling to find exits, to find all of the exits closed, some jumped from the balcony landing on other below, while those who had reached the exits found themselces at the front a large crowd and were being crushed against the doors.
In all 71 children from the age of 18 months old up to 16 died in the cinema that afternoon, or just afterwards in hospital.
Many of the children were buried at Hawkhead cemtery in a mass burial while others were buried in family lairs elsewhere.
The list below, compiled from lists published in newspapers in Wales and Dublin along with the names on the Hawkehad memorial shows how the Tragedy affected the whole town. Of the 71, only 1 child came from outwith the area: Hugh Blue of Boghead in Beith Ayrshire.
| 1 | ROBERT | ADAMS | 10 | 42 Thread Street | |
| 2 | ROBERT | ALEXANDER | 6½ | 98 Abercorn Street, Paisley | |
| 3 | JOHN | BELL | 26 Kilnside Rd | ||
| 4 | WILLIAM | BLACK | |||
| 5 | HUGH | BLUE | Boghead, Beith | ||
| 6 | JOHN | BOWES | 10 | 11 Camphill, Paisley | |
| 7 | DAVID | BOYD | 8 | 61 Camphill, Paisley | |
| 8 | CAROLINE | BRAIN | 6 Moncrief Street, Paisley | ||
| 9 | LILY | BUCHANAN | 5 | 10 Oakshaw Brae, Paisley | |
| 10 | JOHN | CAIRNS | 10 | 38 Gordon Street, Paisley | |
| 11 | DANIEL | CORBETT | 53 Canal Street, Paisley | ||
| 12 | ELIZABETH | CORRICAN | 15 Maxwelton Rd, Paisley | ||
| 13 | ACNES | COYLE | 9 Shortroods, Paisley | ||
| 14 | ROBERT | CRAIG | 10 Underwood Rd, Paisley | ||
| 15 | FRANCIS | CURRAN | 2 Glasgow Rd, Paisley | ||
| 16 | ELIZABETH | DEMPSTER | 8 Anchor Buildings, Paisley | ||
| 17 | LEAH | DIXON | 11 | 34 New Street, Paisley | |
| 18 | MARY | DOLAN | 8 | 6 Moncrief Street, Paisley | |
| 19 | GEORGE | ELLIOTT | 8½ | 11 Neilston Rd, Paisley | |
| 20 | HENRY | ELLIOTT | 9½ | 60 Causeyside Street, Paisley | |
| 21 | ELIZABETH | FINLAY | 9 | 6 Glen Street, Paisley | |
| 22 | ENSO | FIORI | 6 | 8 Silk Street, Paisley | |
| 23 | WILLIAM | FITCH | 7 | 11 Storie Street, Paisley | |
| 24 | JANET | FITCH | 10 | 11 Storie Street, Paisley | |
| 25 | JAMES | GATHERER | 6 | 84 Abercorn Street, Paisley | |
| 26 | MARGARET | GIBSON | 8 | 34 Underwood Rd, Paisley | |
| 27 | JOHN | GIELTY | 8 | 13 Barclay Street, Paisley | |
| 28 | JAMES | GIELTY | 6 | 13 Barclay Street, Paisley | |
| 29 | NORMAN | GILLIES | 158 George Street, Paisley | ||
| 30 | JOHN | GOODWIN | 9 | 10 Underwood Rd, Paisley | |
| 31 | HENRY | GREEN | 4½ | 7 West Street, Paisley | |
| 32 | MARY | GREEN | 19 Cochran Street, Paisley | ||
| 33 | ARCHIBALD | GROGAN | 6½ | 84 Abercorn Street, Paisley | |
| 34 | ANNIE | HAMILTON | 7 | 22 Incle Street, Paisley | |
| 35 | GEORCE | HAMMOND | 6 | 17 Smithhill Street, Paisley | |
| 36 | ELIZABETH | HART | 15 Smithhill Street, Paisley | ||
| 37 | PETER | HOUSTON | 9 | 24 Mill Street, Paisley | |
| 38 | THOMAS | HOWARD | 9 | 3 Garthland Lane, Paisley | |
| 39 | JULIA | IRVINE | 8 | 6 Hunter Street, Paisley | |
| 40 | WILLIAM | IRVINE | 6 | 10 Glen Street, Paisley | |
| 41 | THOMAS | JACKSON | 9 | 10 New Street, Paisley | |
| 42 | JAMES | JOHNSTON | 12 | 6 Glen Street, Paisley | |
| 43 | GEORGE | KENNEDY | 13 | 28 Canal street, Paisley | |
| 44 | THOMAS | KILKIE | 5 | 4 Shortroods Rd, Paisley | |
| 45 | HELEN | KILKIE | 10 | 4 Shortroods Rd, Paisley | |
| 46 | ELIZABETH | LEONARD | 11 | 7 Moncrief Street, Paisley | |
| 47 | SAMUEL | McBLANE | 7 | 10 Incle Street, Paisley | |
| 48 | SARAH | McCAFFERTY | 9 | 23 Thread Street, Paisley | |
| 49 | ROBERT | McCONNELL | 11 | 34 Abercorn Street, Paisley | |
| 50 | MARGARET | McENHILL | 3 | 11 Wallace Street, Paisley | |
| 51 | EDWARD | McENHILL | 10 | 11 Wallace Street, Paisley | |
| 52 | JAMES | McENHILL | 12 | 11 Wallace Street, Paisley | |
| 53 | DENIS | McGARRITY | 7 | 29 Causeyside Street, Paisley | |
| 54 | ROBERT | McGIRR | 9 | 39 Underwood Rd, Paisley | |
| 55 | HELEN | McGRAN | 8 | 11 Storie Street, Paisley | |
| 56 | WILLIAMINA | McGRAN | 18 Months | 11 Storie Street, Paisley | |
| 57 | JEAN M | McGRATTAN | 158 George Street, Paisley | ||
| 58 | MARY | McWATTIE | 10 | 4 Millar Street, Paisley | |
| 59 | MARGARET | MORROW | 10 | 14 Galloway Street, Paisley | |
| 60 | ROBERT | NIVEN | 141 George Street, Paisley | ||
| 61 | GEORGINA | PEACOCK | 9 Anchor Buildings, Paisley | ||
| 62 | THOMAS | PERKINS | 8 | 113 George Street, Paisley | |
| 63 | JOHN | PINKERTON | 7 Andrews Street, Paisley | ||
| 64 | WILLIAM | PINKERTON | 7 Andrews Street, Paisley | ||
| 65 | WILLIAM | RAE | 16 | 17 Abercorn Street, Paisley | |
| 66 | THOMAS | RENFREW | 11 | 16 Cotton Street, Paisley | |
| 67 | GEORCE | SCOTT | 8 | 7 Forbes Place, Paisley | |
| 68 | WILLIAM | SPEIRS | 23 Back Sneddon, Paisley | ||
| 69 | JANE | STEVENSON | 10 | 21 Greenhill Rd, Paisley | |
| 70 | ALEXANDER | TELFER | 5 | 37 Lady Lane, Paisley | |
| 71 | ROBERT | WINGATE | 12 | 9 Lawn Street, Paisley | |