Harvie’s Dyke: The People, their Liberty and the Clyde

In 1822, Thomas Harvie, a newly rich Glasgow distiller, bought Westthorn estate on the eastern edge of the city. To mark his boundaries, he erected two walls. One (‘Harvie’s Dyke’) was massive and fortified – and its fragments can still be seen. It blocked a much-used pathway alongside the river Clyde.

Outraged, local workers demolished the obstructions – but Harvie rebuilt them. A six-year legal struggle culminated in a Lords’ ruling in 1828 that sustained ‘the liberties of the banks of the Clyde’.
Commemorative medals were cast and still survive, as do poems and songs.

One of the first rights of way campaigns in the UK, this talk from Christopher Whatley OBE asks why the event has been largely forgotten, while also revealing the deep enthusiasm among ordinary Glaswegians for fresh air, exercise, nature, and access to the Clyde walkway.

Christopher Whatley is one of the country’s leading historians. After leaving school at 16 and working in retail and as a machine setter/operator he managed to secure a university place. Thereafter began his long journey investigating and writing challenging history about Scotland’s past. He is best known for his work – and views – on the Union of 1707, and popular protest. He has written about industrialisation and work, everyday life and the legacy of Robert Burns. His book about Pabay, the Hebridean island off Skye where his family once lived, featured at Winter Words in 2020.