ABSTRACT
In the early 1850s, four hundred years after it had been founded, the High Street buildings occupied by the University of Glasgow were no longer suitable for a growing institution of higher education. Wilson W. Phipson’s contract with the University is preserved at the historical archives at the University of Glasgow. The fast-growing, coal-based economy of Glasgow was rapidly causing the air quality to deteriorate, with smoke, dust and coal particles saturating the air. In hindsight, one can ponder whether fresh air intakes could alternatively have been placed in the heavily vegetated slopes between the Gilmorehill plateau and the River Kelvin. After collaborating with Sir George Gilbert Scott at the Glasgow University project, Phipson moved on to work with other well-known architects, such as Alfred Waterhouse, where hybrid systems were developed with emphasis on the diverse heating and ventilation requirements of spaces with varying functional characteristics.
