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Faces from Barlinnie’s Victorian past brought to life online


National Records of Scotland A mugshot of a young male prisoner., John Porter He is baby-faced with a mop of brown hair and is holding a sign with a 5 on it - the rest of the sign is cut off. The image is in sepia tones, and was taken on an old film camera. National Records of Scotland

Standing at 5ft 2in and 118lb, John Porter was photographed on the day he was released in March 1883.

The tale of John Porter, a homeless teenager who was sent to Glasgow’s notorious Barlinnie prison 140 years ago, is just one of the thousands of forgotten stories which can now be followed through newly-released photographs.

Two thousand images and 180,000 prison records from the Victorian era have been unveiled by Scotland’s People, a family history website.

John Porter appears three times in the collection, from 1883 to 1885, with the photos providing a visual snapshot into his time spent in prison.

The records detail how he was first sent to Barlinnie at age 17, where he served 60 days for being a “rogue and vagabond”, under a law that criminalised begging and rough sleeping.

National Records of Scotland A mugshot of a young man, John Porter. He has short, cropped hair and is looking forlornly into the camera. The image is in black and white. National Records of Scotland

John Porter looks older after his third conviction for crimes associated with homelessness and being “a rogue and vagabond”

His third photograph in the digital archive shows his final appearance at Barlinnie, aged 18, looking noticeably more matured.

He was sentenced to three months hard labour – which for some prisoners involved breaking rocks from the local quarry.

Porter was sent to Barlinnie a total of five times from the age of 17 to 18, all of which were for short sentences.

National Records of Scotland Photograph of prisoner Thomas Hynes, porter, age 24. Convicted of theft and served nine months in prison. National Records of Scotland

Thomas Hynes, age 24, who was convicted of theft and served nine months in prison

Only some prisoners were captured on camera. The photographs show imprisoned people on the day of their release. Most served sentences of only a few days for petty offences.

The harsh social conditions of the time are evident in the photographs.

Barlinnie’s five accommodation halls were built in stages between 1882 and 1897.

Life in the Glasgow prison was tough, with prisoners nicknaming it “Bar-hell” and the “bighouse”.

Misbehaviour would often result in inmates being handcuffed and left in a canvas jacket through the night.

Although most inmates had only committed petty offences, such as minor thefts and drunkenness, more serious criminals were also housed at the prison.

These included 17-year-old Thomas Johnston, who murdered his step-father, John Wood during an argument over the quality of his breakfast.

The digital archive also showed that infamous criminal, Hugh Abernethy, was also held at Barlinnie.

It show Abernethy was sentenced to 12 months after he famously tried and failed to shoot his lover, Euphemia Hamilton, twice, when he discovered she was married with an illegitimate child.

National Records of Scotland Photograph of prisoner Thomas Rushton, soldier, age 25. Convicted of robbery and served six months. National Records of Scotland

Soldier Thomas Rushton, 25, was convicted of robbery and served six months

Scotland’s People, which is run by National Records of Scotland, described the new images as a “fantastic resource for researchers” which will allow people to “put faces to names” in a way which is not possible for other records.



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