THERE is a grim determination on the faces of these mainly young girls as they steer the little paddle boats which used to be for hire at Victoria Park in Glasgow's west end.

The picture was taken in April, 1955, but alas the boats are no longer there.

The park, as the name suggests, was named after Queen Victoria, and built for her golden jubilee in 1887 by the Burgh of Partick. There was more to it than simply pride in the Royal Family though. Shipbuilding had taken one of its many downturns at the time, and the building of the park was a means to employ up to a 1000 out-of-work shipyard workers who would otherwise be destitute.

It really is quite a busy park. Apart from the boating pond which is still there today with bridges over to the small island seen in the background of this photograph, it has extensive floral displays - featured in an episode of Still Game where the pensioners queued up early in the morning to get the best park benches - play areas, putting green, bowling and the Fossil Grove.

Ah the Fossil Grove. Fossilised tree stumps. I have to admit that as a youngster I found them utterly underwhelming as perhaps I expected roaming dinosaurs or something more exciting.

Comedian Billy Connolly speaks fondly of his youth catching minnows in the pond at Victoria Park, and ruefully recalled watching "many a prize specimen die in a jam jar on my windowsill with its diet of breadcrumbs."