St Simon Partick church fire: Glasgow Polish community react as 'heart of community' engulfed in late-night blaze

The Polish community in Glasgow has reacted to the ‘extremely sad news' of the fire at St Simon’s Church in Partick which has been at the heart of the Polish Glaswegian community since World War Two.

St Simon's Church in Partick's Bridge Street in Glasgow went up in flames last night after an alarm was raised at 2.40am with emergency services including more than 30 firefighters in attendance.

The cause of the fire is not yet known at Glasgow’s third oldest Catholic Church .

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Pictures of the fire across social media show the severity of the fire, with one video showing the roof collapsing into the flames.

Polish communities react to devastating fire at St Simon's church in Glasgow (Photo: Amy Iona @amyionaphoto)Polish communities react to devastating fire at St Simon's church in Glasgow (Photo: Amy Iona @amyionaphoto)
Polish communities react to devastating fire at St Simon's church in Glasgow (Photo: Amy Iona @amyionaphoto)
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A staple of the Polish community in Glasgow since WW2 when Polish troops would march to weekend services there, the devastation of the church has caused great upset in the community.

Chris Sagan, chair of the board of trustees at The Sikorski Polish Club, a focal point for Poles and those interested in Polish heritage in Glasgow, said: “It has definitely left a hole in the community.

"It’s going to hurt a lot of Polish people in Glasgow but Polish people are able to move on and we will make and mend.”

Photograph of The Sikorski Polish Club in 1954 in front of their building at Park Grove Terrace in Glasgow. Some of the ex Polish Soldiers and their families who founded the Society are photographed (Photo: The Sikorski Polish Club).Photograph of The Sikorski Polish Club in 1954 in front of their building at Park Grove Terrace in Glasgow. Some of the ex Polish Soldiers and their families who founded the Society are photographed (Photo: The Sikorski Polish Club).
Photograph of The Sikorski Polish Club in 1954 in front of their building at Park Grove Terrace in Glasgow. Some of the ex Polish Soldiers and their families who founded the Society are photographed (Photo: The Sikorski Polish Club).

The Gothic-style church was built in 1858 for the Roman Catholic Community of Partick and was started by Daniel Gallagher, famous as ‘the priest who taught David Livingstone Latin’.

Originally known as St Peter's Church until 1903 when St Peter's Church in Hyndland Street was built, the church then became known as Bridge Street Church until 1945 when it was renamed St Simon's.

Between 1940-1943, Polish soldiers marched to the church from Yorkhill Barracks for Mass every Sunday and was then known as the Polish Church.

To this day, many Poles who settled in Glasgow after the war continued to attend the church.

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Mr Sagan whose father was one of the 70,000 Polish soldiers stationed in Scotland during the war and is now a Polish citizen, added: “It’s a very meaningful centre of the community.

“Polish people are very catholic in a traditional European sense and it means so much to them especially when the communists tried to get rid of religion – the Polish went in a different direction and took it deep within their hearts."

The Sikorksi Polish Club is based in the West End on Park Grove Terrace half a mile away from St Simon’s.

Mr Sagan added: “We’ve always had a very close close and meaningful relationship with the church and Father Marian.

“It’s always the church that we go to so we will need to support Father Marian and we will reach out to him.”

After temporary closure due to lockdown, St Simon’s has been operating in recent weeks with daily services, and Masses for the Polish community on Sundays.

A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Glasgow said: “The destruction of St Simon’s church by fire will be a blow to people far beyond the west end of Glasgow.

“Though small in size, St Simon’s was well-frequented and was the spiritual home of the Polish community in the west of Scotland who had established a shrine there.

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“It was also a focal point for the local community, and especially the homeless who benefited from a café on site which had to be suspended during the pandemic.”

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