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Details
Ref: St Mary’s Church – location of the initial meeting for the establishment of Celtic
Date: 6 Nov 1887
See Also: The Search for St Mary’s Hall
Overview
Celtic Football Club was formally constituted at a meeting in St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church hall on East Rose Street (now Forbes Street), Calton, Glasgow, by a Marist Brother named Brother Walfrid on 6 November 1887.
While the church hall has recently been demolished – to make way for housing – the actual church still stands proudly on Abercromby Street and in May 2008 was the venue for the funeral of local lad and Celtic legend Tommy Burns.
Although far from ornate St Mary’s remains a quietly impressive building which remains at the heart of the community just as it did when it became the focal point for the formation of Celtic. The original tenements which would have surrounded the church in the Victorian era have long gone but the area around St Mary’s is still mainly residential.
From the site of St Mary’s now demolished church hall the massive stands of the modern Celtic Park can clearly be seen. The huge steel structures with there massive slopes of green seats contrast sharply with the rather humble surrounds of St Mary’s. When the founders of Celtic met at that very location in 1887 it is highly unlikely that any of them had the slightest inclination that their humble idea would one day become a sporting institution and one of the biggest names in world football with a truly global fanbase.
In June 2008 the land surrounding St Mary’s – including the Church Hall site – was predominantly wasteground which was to be earmarked for housing development. Celtic supporters had still found a way though to use the land to pay tribute to one of their own.
While much has changed dramatically since the days of Brother Walfrid, St Mary’s retains an active role in the local community and within the Scottish Catholic society.
