Halfway, South Lanarkshire

Main row of shops in Hamilton Road

Halfway is a largely suburban area in the town of Cambuslang, Scotland located within the local authority area of South Lanarkshire. Halfway borders the smaller areas of Lightburn, Cairns, Flemington, Drumsagard and Hallside. It was named in the days of the Glasgow to Hamilton stagecoach when passengers would stop halfway to change the horses, have a rest etc. There is a long history of coal-mining in the area (especially around Flemington), but no colliery is still in operation.

The district also has the older name of Gilbertfield, the castle of which name still stands. The above named 'castle', as it is known locally, is in fact a stately home. It was owned by Hamilton of Gilbertfield. He was a friend of Robert Burns and wrote a poem about William Wallace called Blind Harry's Wallace, a rendering into contemporary English of a medieval Scots poem, which was eventually used as the basis for the screenplay that became the Mel Gibson blockbuster Braveheart.

Flemington-Hallside Parish Church

The area sits near Dechmont Hill, an extinct volcanic rock, 300 foot above sea level. There is evidence, written by the Welsh chroniclers, that King Arthur's 12th battle, the battle of Calaan, took place there against the two sons of his rival Caw, (or Cawn), king of Strathclyde.See

Halfway is home to two places of worship, Flemington-Hallside Parish Church ^[1] and St. Cadoc's Roman Catholic Chapel.^[2] There is also a lawn bowling club, a fuel filling station, a local park with play area, a public library,^[3] a small medical centre and a typical selection of local shops, takeaways and public houses. All these amenities are located either on the main thoroughfare, Hamilton Road, or just off it.

Logan Tower

There is no train station in the immediate area, although northern parts of Halfway are within walking distance of Newton station. The main road is on a busy bus route between Glasgow and Lanarkshire (the same route taken by the historic stagecoaches mentioned above).

Primary schools in the local area include Cairns, St. Cadocs RC, Park View and Hallside. Older children normally go on to Trinity High School (Rutherglen), Cathkin High School or Stonelaw High School depending on which primary school they attended.

Halfway is the main centre of population for the Cambuslang East ward of South Lanarkshire Council. The area is served by Halfway Community Council.^[4]

Notable people from Halfway include boxer Scott Harrison, a World Featherweight champion; TV political news reporter Bernard Ponsonby; Davie Wilson, Scotland and Rangers F.C striker; Kyle Hutton, midfielder, who also played with Rangers; and Mick McGahey union leader of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).

In March 2017 an application by Persimmon Homes to build almost 400 houses in land immediately to the north of Gilbertfield Castle was approved by South Lanarkshire Council's planning committee; this was somewhat controversial as the land had previously been designated Green belt. Various concerns were raised by local residents, community councillors (representing Halfway/Cambuslang East district), the Lowland Reserve Forces and Cadets Association who have a rifle range adjacent to the site, and Clare Haughey and James Kelly, MSPs for the area, which were presented to the committee along with a 1300-signature petition opposing the development, without success.^[5][6][7][8] Revisions had already been made to the plans after the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency objected to the builder's initial submission in 2016.^[9][10]

References

Coordinates: 55°48′45″N 4°08′46″W / 55.81238°N 4.146223°W / 55.81238; -4.146223