Zoom into South Lanarkshire

The former county of Lanarkshire was covered by North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire and Glasgow. The county has historically also been called Clydesdale after the River Clyde.  In 1975, South Lanarkshire separated, and currently borders the City of Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway, East Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire, the Scottish Borders and West Lothian.   

The larger settlements are Blantyre, Cambuslang, East Kilbride, Hamilton, Lanark and Rutherglen. Smaller settlements include Biggar, Bothwell, Carnwath, Leadhills and Cleghorn. 

South Lanarkshire has a rich industrial past with cotton mills and coal mining. The area is also the birthplace to the explorer David Livingstone, garden designer John Caldius Loudon, and writer Allan Ramsay. 

Here, we suggest a few items from our digital collections about South Lanarkshire. 

Where to find local collections:  

There are local history collections in the four main libraries, Hamilton Town House, East Kilbride Central, Rutherglen and Lanark 

https://www.slleisureandculture.co.uk/info/103/local_history_heritage_and_family_history

South Lanarkshire Council Archives and Information Management Service https://www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk/info/200165/local_and_family_history/588/archives_and_records/8