The University of Paisley

In this blog I am sharing a significant piece of work from Evelyn documenting the evolving story of Paisley’s further education campus now known as the University of West Scotland. 

The unique character of the University of West Scotland (Paisley Campus), formerly known as the University of Paisley, is the result of a hundred years of development and evolution within both a local and educational, not to mention industrial, context. As part of the centenary celebrations of the University, that context is explored in Evelyn’s book, ‘Forward By Degrees.’ 

‘Forward By Degrees’ (published by the University of Paisley in 1997) looks at the story of the institution within a local context, as well as highlighting the outstanding characters who developed the College into the institution it has become. The period of office of each Principal is given an individual chapter within which key developments and many of the characters involved are discussed. The text is supplemented with original photographs and diagrams illustrating the life of the institution and highlighting major developments. 

Along with the Mill Memories book, this publication was a significant diversion for Evelyn’s writing style. She was at this time no stranger to research, as she spent many hours in the Paisley Library researching the culture and history of Paisley so that her characters had the real vibrancy of Paisley as their environment. This book presented the challenge of relaying the story of an academic institution and its progression through the hundred years of its existence. 

Moreover, there was a real deadline to get this book published and into the public arena in time for the centenary. There were many meetings and trolling of archives to find the necessary material, and as it was being written it was checked over to make sure that it was in line with what the University (at that time) was looking for. In this regard, it was not the same type of creation that Evelyn was known for in her novels. 

The novels were still being worked on, however; at this stage Evelyn was dedicating herself entirely to writing and her husband was looking after everything else that needed attention; it was full steam ahead on the computer keyboard for Evelyn!

The book was published as planned and marked an historic time for the University and indeed Paisley itself. Much of the community would have known of the campus as a polytechnical college, however Evelyn’s book was able to journey the establishment’s progress from pre-college days to full-blown University in a meaningful and entertaining way, presenting the succession of Principals as characters with their own impacts and influences on the institution. 

Evelyn & Simon Hood