165 Years Ago Today.
On the 29th October 1855 our Founder Moses McNeil was born at Belmore House on the shores of the Gareloch.
Moses was born on the 29th October 1855 at Belmore House which today is part of the Faslane Naval Base.
His father John was from Comrie in Perthshire and mother Jane Bain from Downpatrick in Ulster.
He was a natural athlete Powerful and of stocky build, it was said that was also known for his pace.
In the Ibrox trophy room is a cup won by Moses for a half-mile race at the Garelochead Athletic Sports on 1 January, 1876 and it’s the oldest Trophy that the Club has.
Moses played for the club he helped form for ten years, playing in the 1877 and 1879 Scottish Cup Finals. He was also a member of the first Rangers side to lift a trophy, the Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup in 1879.
He was the first Ranger to play for his country when Scotland defeated Wales 4-0 at Hamilton Crescent in Partick in 1876.
Moses led a nomadic lifestyle mainly due to his 20 year employment with the company Lang's whose name was synonymous with the famous brand of whisky.
Their premises, which Moses worked from, was at 70 Union Street in Glasgow.
During his time in Glasgow Moses lived at 169 Berkeley Street and 333 Dumbarton Road. These locations are among many others that we cover during the Founders Trail.
We have a wonderful newspaper report which details Moses and his friend and fellow Founder Tom Vallance attending the 1905 Scottish Cup Final as supporters.
Only 9 months after Moses passed Rangers would set their record attendance at Ibrox Park of 118,000.
It’s a comforting thought that our Founder was sitting in his cottage while the Club that he’d help form and nurture were now one of the biggest in the World. Moses spent the last few years of his life living with his sister Isabella in Clynder at Craig Cottage.
She died in 1935, to be followed by her brother, the last of the siblings, in 1938.
They lie together with their sister Elizabeth and Isabella’s husband, Duncan Gray, in the lovely churchyard at Rosneath.
Sadly for the man who gave Rangers their name his own isn’t inscribed
on the family headstone.
The late great Sandy Jardine was a supporter of the Founders project and had expressed a wish to have a plaque with Moses name on it placed at the churchyard at Rosneath, this is a project that we completed on Sandy’s behalf on Sunday 28th June 2015.
Our Restoration team cleaned Moses stone and placed an engraved plaque which was purchased after funds were raised via the Rangers support.
Moses McNeil was my great, great grandfather, Peter McNeil’s nephew. Can you please tell me the names of the people in the photograph on this page. Thank you.
well done to all who did this wonderful act of remembrance of the people who started our grate club