Stirling’s Gala Days

The very first Gala Day may have been held in Loanhead in 1770 when the miners from the Dryden Colliery and their families were invited to celebrate the birthday of local landowner, Lord Lockhart of Carnwarth.

Gala Days then evolved into community-organised celebrations, and by the mid-1800s they were being held across Scotland to commemorate the achievements of the workers’ rights movement. It was a chance for hard working industrial and agricultural communities to come together and have a well-deserved day off work, having fun with family and friends. Gala Days are still celebrated by towns and villages all over Scotland, and the traditions vary, but many involve the crowning of a child as the Gala Queen, fancy dress, floats, a parade through the main street, races, and large outdoor gatherings and parties.

‘Arches’ are built outside the house of the Queen and her courtiers, and now they can take the form of anything from castles to recreations of movie sets. These modern arches stem from the original tradition of constructing huge wooden arches which spanned the roads in front of the homes of the Gala Queen and her courtiers. Then as now, things got competitive, and prizes were given out for the best arches. Bunting would line the streets, and the whole community got behind the event, with Gala Day Committees spending all year organising the day itself, and keeping their fingers crossed for good weather. Some things never change!

The images in this blog post were collected and donated to the Stirling Archives as part of their Re:Collections project, so we have to say a huge thank you to the donors for sharing their photographs with us and giving us glimpses of Gala Day’s past.

Stirling Archives Re:Collections project aims to use local libraries as hubs for people to come in and share their images and memories. If you want to find out more, contact archives@stirling.gov.uk