We are delighted to be throwing open our doors for Doors Open Day 2024.
Visit our beautiful Category B-listed Carnegie Library in Bridgeton, home to Glasgow Women’s Library since 2013. We’re an archive, museum and library dedicated to women’s lives, histories and achievements.
We’re working towards reaching operational net zero by 2030, guided by our Net Zero Handbook from Dress for the Weather Architects. This phased plan includes insulating the building, and eventually installing renewables. This year we’re embarking on the first steps of insulating the building – come and join us for a building tour focusing on the upcoming works and our practical plans to reduce our carbon footprint! Building tours will take place at 11am & 3pm on Friday 20th and 1pm & 3pm on Saturday 21st, no booking required.
As part of Doors Open Day 2024, Glasgow Women’s Library invites you to explore the rich tapestry of stories that make up our community with our special exhibition, ‘She Settles in the Shields’. Aligned with this year’s theme, “We’re All Here: Diversity and Diaspora”, the exhibition highlights the lives of migrant women who made Pollokshields their home between the 1950s and 1980s.
Told in their own words, these women share compelling narratives of hope, isolation, warm welcomes, cold weather, racism, and their journey towards acceptance and integration. This exhibition provides a unique opportunity to delve into the personal histories that have shaped the vibrant, multicultural fabric of Glasgow.
In addition, the exhibition will feature ‘She Settles in the Shields Sequel,’ which focuses on the intergenerational experiences of the 2nd and 3rd generation migrant women. This sequel showcases their contributions to the area and explores how their identities continue to evolve in the context of their rich heritage.
Find out more about the history of our building
Our volunteer Erin has written a very informative and comprehensive blog series about Bridgeton Public Library’s history and impact. There are six posts in total, you can read them here:
Carnegie’s Libraries in Scotland: The History of the Bridgeton Public Library
The Origin of the Public Library
The Women of Industrialising Bridgeton
The Library as an Arena for Self-Expression
A Library for Modern Bridgeton?
GWL- The Library for the Modern Woman
Booking
Part of the Doors Open Days Festival and booking is not required. Simply drop in to see us anytime between 10am & 4.30pm on Friday 20th September and between 12noon & 4pm on Saturday 21st September.
How to Find Us
Our address is:
Glasgow Women’s Library
23 Landressy Street
Glasgow G40 1BP
The Library can be found just around the corner from Bridgeton Cross – you can reach the Library on Landressy Street from London Road, or on foot from James Street.
Get directions to Glasgow Women’s Library on Google Maps.
Getting to us by bus
Take the 18, 43, 46, 64, 65, 164, 263 or 2 to London Road/Bridgeton Cross
For information on bus services call:
FirstGlasgow: 0141 423 6600
Glasgow Citybus: 0141 954 2255
Scottish Citylink Coaches: 08705 505050
Getting to us by train
The closest railway station to the Library is Bridgeton station – take the low-level train from Glasgow Central. Please note that Bridgeton Station is not wheelchair-accessible, and the platforms are accessed by a long flight of stairs. The closest wheelchair-accessible station is Dalmarnock Station, which is approximately 3/4 mile (1.2 km) from the Library.
For more information about trains visit the Scotrail website
Getting to us by bicycle
Cycling Route 75 follows the Clyde to Glasgow Green which is a 3 minute ride from Landressy Street along cycle paths. We suggest using CycleStreets.net to plan your journey to and from GWL.
There are bike racks in the small square on James Street as well as our very own bike shelter which is available for visitors. It is locked but please ask our front of house team if you would like to use it.
Parking at GWL
We always encourage our visitors to use greener methods of transport when visiting GWL but we understand that sometimes using a car is unavoidable. There is a space on the street outside the Library that is reserved for visitors with mobility issues, but there is no carpark at the Library.
Please contact the Library if you have any questions about access.
Accessibility
The Library is wheelchair accessible, with lifts to the first floor and the mezzanine and archive.
An induction loop is available for events – please let a member of staff know if you require this.
We have disabled toilets on the ground and first floors, and all the Glasgow Women’s Library bathrooms are individual closed stalls and are gender neutral.
If you need help accessing the library, or would like more information about access, please contact us and we will be very happy to offer you assistance.
We have created this Visual and Sensory Guide to help visitors understand how to get to and around Glasgow Women’s Library. You can download a PDF version of the guide here. Hard copies are available on request from the reception desk.
You can listen to an audio descriptive introduction to GWL, produced by VocalEyes, below. This recorded guide highlights GWL’s achievements, detail how to access our resources, outlines our provision for blind and partially sighted visitors, and includes descriptions of the architecture and layout of our building in Bridgeton.
Doors Open Days is coordinated nationally by the Scottish Civic Trust. It runs throughout Scotland every September as part of European Heritage Days. For more information see www.doorsopendays.org.uk . Glasgow Doors Open Days Festival is coordinated locally by Glasgow Building Preservation Trust. For more information see www.glasgowdoorsopendaysfestival.com
