Who are we?

The Hampden Collection was set up in 2017 and are a group of people dedicated to the preservation of our history, community and are collaborating to celebrate the magnificent story of Hampden Park. Yes, and there are 3 of them.

The Collection comprises all sorts from Poets to Artists, from Historians to TV Producers and from Bowlers to Football Fans.

Our mission is clear and we need all the help we can get. So please get in touch to find out how you can help us ensure that we restore, protect and promote the amazing legacy of the 3 Hampden Parks.

Why are the 3 Hampden Parks so important?

Hampden Bowling Club sits on the site of the First Hampden Park, home to Queens Park FC, Scotland’s National Team and Scottish Cup from 1873 to 1883. This was the world’s first purposefully built international football ground and template for all modern football stadia. Furthermore, this is where the ‘Scotch Professors’ developed the modern passing game of football and exported to the world, which is now played or watched by 3.5 billion people.

In 1883, Queens Park, Scotland and the SFA with their Scottish Cup, were forced to move from their first home to the Second Hampden at Cathkin, due to the building of the Cathcart Railway. They would move once again to their Third and present Hampden in 1903, when they realised that they had outgrown their current abode. They used thirty years of stadium experience to build the world’s biggest football ground.

This is no more exemplified than when Scotland played England on 17th April 1937 with a crowd of 149,547 and then a week later, Celtic played Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup Final with 147,365 fans officially in the ground. If only the Hampden Roar could have been recorded on those days.

We are not just living in the past. All 3 Hampdens have an important current and future role in the promotion of the beautiful game, including bowling to boot, and we will ensure that today and tomorrow is celebrated in equal measure.

Enter the world of The Hampden Parks here:

Enjoy our site – take a look around. This will astound you.