A stone’s throw from Glasgow Cathedral, the Northern Necropolis is one of four in the city. The Southern Necropolis rests within the Gorbals district, the Eastern Necropolis is situated near Celtic Park in the Gallowgate area, while the smaller Western Necropolis adjoins St. Kentigern’s Roman Catholic Cemetery in Lambhill. Although the Necropolis is not as big as its southern counterpart, it was the first to be built, and is the more famous due to its proximity to the Cathedral.

The Necropolis opened in 1833 and features over 3500 monuments. Many were designed by famous architects and sculptors, including Alexander “Greek” Thomson. There are over 50,000 souls interned here, many of whom do not even have gravestones. 

The main access to the garden cemetery is via the Bridge of Sighs, over what used to be Molendinar Burn. Don’t expect to see a river though; the waterway was covered over in the late 19th Century. The bridge was designed by architect David Hamilton, who, along with his son James, also designed the Edington Gate. From here, you can walk up the path that swirls around the hill that the site is built upon. You can admire several monuments and headstones on the walk up. Once you reach the top, you’ll find a statue of famous Scots clergyman John Knox, which predates the Necropolis by a decade.

Among the 50,000 people buried there, one of the most famous is Andrew McCall. While there is little information on McCall himself, the Celtic Cross that marked his final resting place was the first solo commission of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Unfortunately, the cross was damaged and repaired at least twice. In 1991, the head was broken when it fell over. It was put back together in 1996 by J. & G. Mossman. Further damage meant that it had to be repaired again in 2005, this time by Kenneth Pollok-Smith of Mossmans.