Lesser Hampden

In 1923, Queen's Park were looking for an alternative venue for their reserves and youth teams,{{cite web |url=https://spfl.co.uk/news/by-stephen-halliday |title=Lesser Hampden – Living in the Shadow |first=Stephen |last=Halliday |publisher=Scottish Professional Football League |date=23 December 2005 |access-date=3 January 2014}} with a basic pitch to the south of the main stand at Hampden Park increasingly being used as a car park.[http://www.qpfc.com/Lesser/preplastic.htm Lesser Hampden], QPFC.com The club purchased a farm on the west side of Hampden and built a pitch and stands. When it opened in 1925, Lesser Hampden had a capacity of 12,000. To reduce costs, the original farmhouse building was retained and was converted into a pavilion and dressing room.[http://www.gerryblaikie.com/southglasgow/mount_florida.htm Mount Florida], Gerald Blaikie, Glasgow's South Side Illustrated Guides This farmhouse, now demolished, which dated back to the 19th century, was believed by football historians to be the oldest existing football stadium building in the world.{{cite web | url = http://www.scottishfootballleague.com/news/article/queens-park-to-build-solid-new-foundations/ | title = Queen's Park to build solid new foundations | access-date = 2013-04-19 | date = 4 May 2012 | publisher = Scottish Football League | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120519201149/http://www.scottishfootballleague.com/news/article/queens-park-to-build-solid-new-foundations/ | archive-date = 19 May 2012 }}{{cite web |url=https://spfl.co.uk/news/queens-park-lose-unique-world-record |title=Queen's Park lose unique record |work=spfl.co.uk |publisher=Scottish Professional Football League |date=3 October 2013 |access-date=3 January 2014}} The changing rooms were closed in 2013 for safety reasons.

During World War II, Lesser Hampden was commandeered by the British Government to serve as a base for the Home Guard. There were proposals to convert the site back to agriculture if there were food shortages, but the ground was returned to the football club at the end of the war in 1945.

File:Football Practice - geograph.org.uk - 50788.jpg

File:Lesser Hampden - geograph-1920423.jpg

During the 1970s, several Queen's Park first team games were played at the stadium. During the redevelopment of the main Hampden Park stadium in the 1990s, the club played Scottish Football League matches at this ground. The ground served as a staging area for pre-game tailgate parties hosted by the Scottish Claymores American football team when they played at Hampden Park.

During preparations to make use of the site for the 2002 UEFA Champions League Final, it was discovered that Lesser Hampden was tainted with toxic chromium (VI), a byproduct from an old chemicals plant located in nearby Rutherglen.{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1874911.stm |title=Toxic waste found near Hampden |work=BBC News |publisher=BBC |date=15 March 2002 |access-date=3 January 2014}} This was cleaned up at a cost of around £40,000.

Lesser Hampden is tightly hemmed in to the west by surrounding housing and commercial developments. It has some areas of terracing, floodlights and a small covered grandstand adjacent to the original farmhouse building. The natural grass pitch was replaced with a 3rd-Generation astro-grass pitch (funded partly by donations from local businessman Willie Haughey and partly from proceeds from well-attended cup ties)[https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12381967.to-play-for-the-sake-of-playing/ To play for the sake of playing], The Herald, 22 January 2009 and was used as a warm-up area for athletes competing in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, as the track and field events were held at Hampden Park.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/19834277 |title=Hampden will be closed to football for Glasgow 2014 preparations |first=John |last=Barnes |work=BBC Sport |publisher=BBC |date=4 October 2012 |access-date=3 January 2014}} Like the main stadium it was temporarily converted into an athletics venue and thereafter returned to football use.[https://www.iancairnsmedia.co.uk/f526883506 Lesser Hampden] [multiple image albums, 2014], Ian Cairns Media

Since Hampden's 1999 redevelopment, a row of Portakabins on the north side of the Lesser Hampden pitch had housed the Queen's Park club offices, with a proposed rebuild of the site as an elite youth development facility never materialising.[https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/queen-s-park-face-a-race-against-time-1-1371381/amp Queen’s Park face a race against time], The Scotsman, 24 March 2002 In 2013 a new clubhouse at the south-west corner was completed, named the J. B. McAlpine Pavilion to honour the club's record goalscorer.[http://www.qpfc.com/Lesser/pavillionconst.htm Lesser Hampden J.B. McAlpine Pavilion Construction], QPFC.com[https://spfl.co.uk/news/queens-park-honour-jb-mcalpine Queen's Park honour JB McAlpine], Scottish Professional Football League, 18 September 2013

File:Lesser Hampden 2023.jpg

In September 2018, it was announced that Queen's Park would return to Lesser Hampden to play first team matches on a permanent basis after agreeing to sell Hampden Park itself to the Scottish FA, which had been leasing the larger ground as the base for the national team.{{cite web |title=Hampden v Murrayfield: Scottish FA opt to keep games in Glasgow |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45344645 |access-date=11 September 2018}} In November 2019, the club released plans to upgrade Lesser Hampden to an SPFL-standard venue which included an extension of the existing west stand, a new east stand and associated facilities, with a seating capacity of 1,774.[https://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/18051154.glasgows-queens-park-reveal-stadium-plans-lesser-hampden/ Glasgow's Queen's Park reveal stadium plans for Lesser Hampden], Evening Times, 21 November 2019[https://reglasgow.com/glasgow-football-club-kick-off-1700-seater-stadium-plan/ Glasgow Football Club Kick Off 1,700-Seater Stadium Plan], reGlasgow, 20 November 2019[https://queensparkfc.co.uk/hampden-sale-completed/ Hampden Sale Completed], Queen's Park FC, 4 August 2020 Work on Lesser Hampden was delayed, which meant that Queen's Park had to groundshare at the Falkirk Stadium, at Firhill{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/57344319 |title=Queens Park: League 1 club to play home games at Firhill next season |website=BBC Sport |date=3 June 2021 |accessdate=3 June 2021}} and then at Ochilview Park after their lease on Hampden expired.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/may/05/queens-park-close-to-scottish-top-flight-return-but-there-is-sting-to-this-fairytale |title=Queen’s Park close to Scottish top-flight return but there is sting to tale |website=The Guardian | author=Ewan Murray|date=5 May 2023 |accessdate=7 June 2023}}

The club released a revised plan in early December 2021;[https://queensparkfc.co.uk/bigger-and-better-for-lesser-hampden/ Bigger And Better For Lesser Hampden], Queen's Park FC, 4 December 2021[https://publicaccess.glasgow.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=QY5BBIEXM9A00 21/02646/FUL {{!}} Alterations to stadium including erection of directors stand with associated hospitality function (Class 11). {{!}} Lesser Hampden Park Letherby Drive Glasgow], Glasgow City Council Planning Application Documents. Retrieved 5 December 2021 within two weeks, demolition of the farmhouse and byre had commenced.[https://www.glasgowtimes.co.uk/news/19793390.amp/ Residents react to demolition of Lesser Hampden farmhouse in Glasgow's Mount Florida], Sara Paciaroni, Glasgow Times, 17 December 2021

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Category:Queen's Park F.C.

Category:Football venues in Glasgow

Category:Scottish Football League venues

Category:Sports venues completed in 1925

Category:Association football training grounds in Scotland

Category:1925 establishments in Scotland