Possilpark, colloquially known as Possil,[1] is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow, situated north of the River Clyde and centred around Saracen Street.
In the wake of the Saracen Foundry's closure in 1967, this part of Glasgow became one of the poorest in the United Kingdom, and decades later deprivation and crime rates remain high.
In 1644 James Gilhagie of Kenniehill bought the estate, part of an old and rich Glasgow family with interests in coal, the Caribbean, Madeira and the Canary Islands.
However, by 1698 Gilhagie had fallen on hard times, and after burning his properties in 1677 in Saltmarket and adjoining streets, applied to the Scots Parliament for assistance.
After being owned by his son, the estate was sold to in 1744 to merchant William Crawfurd of Birkhead, who in 1749 acquired Easter Nether Possil, he thus reunited the lands which had been subdivided in 1588.
With its beautiful gardens, its grassy slopes, and its clear lake, Possil formed as delightful and retired a country residence as any in the county.On the death of Colonel Campbell in 1849, the estate passed to his son.
Following the lead of his friend Sir Tom Hunter, in April 2008, English real estate tycoon Nick Leslau spent 10 days in Possilpark filming Channel 4's The Secret Millionaire, eventually giving away £225,000 to projects including Possobilities, formerly known as The Disability Community.