They were the pioneering tower blocks that would serve as the template for residential developments in Glasgow for decades to come. And the best bit? They're still standing.
For a generation of local families, Moss Heights in Cardonald represented the major step up from the cramped and squalid inner city tenements that were no longer fit for purpose.
Built in 1954, Moss Heights made history by becoming the Glasgow Corporation's first experiment in providing high-rise homes for working families. They were completed within a year of Crathie Court in Partick, which had been built specifically for single women.
READ MORE: Incredible 1980s photos show Glasgow tower blocks that have since been demolished
Designed by architects AG Jury and based on the principles laid out by Swiss-French social housing visionary Le Corbusier, the three 10-storey giants contained 219 dwellings and were very much a symbol of what was to come in Glasgow over the next couple of decades.
Originally the hilltop site at Berryknowes Road in the south-west of the city had been earmarked for 180 new homes in traditional three-storey tenements, but housing director, Ronald Bradbury had other plans. He felt the time was right for Glasgow to look skywards and construct the first multi-storey development.
But Moss Heights was not about packing in people like sardines in a tin. Each flat was designed to the highest specifications and equipped with the latest modern amenities.
Every flat was fitted out with an internal kitchenette, bathroom, living room and lounge, and multiple bedrooms for parents and children. There was ample shelving and storage space and central heating and soundproofed walls helped ensure comfort, cosiness, and maximum privacy.
Compared to the dilapidated single-ends of yesteryear, this was very much a luxury development and at the cutting edge of social housing in Scotland at the time.
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Moss Heights' solid reputation would continue into the 1960s and 1970s, by which time there were dozens of multi-storey developments covering practically every corner of the city. In terms of social housing, however, there was something special about the Cardonald flats.
In the early years, Moss Heights appeared to be a cut above the majority of Glasgow's post-war housing stock.They were seen as hugely desirable properties and until the 1980s, when there was a drop in demand, would-be tenants faced a lengthy waiting list to be in with a chance of securing one of the flats.
High-rise housing has fallen out of favour in recent years, with many notable post-war developments such as those at Red Road, Sighthill and Hutchesontown razed to the ground, the Moss Heights flats have endured. Renovations have been carried out on the properties in recent years, and the future of Glasgow's 'first high-rise flats' looks fairly secure for the time being.
Former residents recalled the Moss Heights flats on the Glasgow City Archives Facebook page.
Katrina Clarke said: "I lived at number 40 from 1963 until I moved away in 1978. My parents eventually moved in 1984-ish. The houses were great and the heating system unbelievable (having moved there from a tenement in Dennistoun)."
Margaret McTaggart wrote: "For those of us who grew up there it was a GREAT place to live. The sense of community was strong. The flats were comfortable and safe. Considered luxurious for the times. Let's face it they were luxurious compared to the old tenements the majority of Glaswegians had to live in. They were neither cheap nor nasty."
Billy Mcdonald posted: "Lived there from 1972 in number 100 then moved to 60 good flats at the time and you had to prove you could afford the rent."
Stuart R Leggat said: "Fabulous views from these multi-storey flats built on a hill."
Kiimberley McGill commented: "Loved staying up here as a kid, stayed from when I was five till I was about 16. Always out playing, loads of places to go and thing to do. Was brilliant."
Fiona Metcalfe said: "This was a great place to grow up. I lived there from age two to 25, leaving in ‘91. Might not have been everyone’s experience, however as a child, there was always someone to play with, going to shops for elderly neighbours and very much a vertical village. Some of my lifelong friendships were made there."
Jackie Brennan wrote: "Moss Heights were always more requested for housing than any other multi storey complex if i recall."
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