08 Southern Necropolis: The Final Resting Place of SFA’s 1st President, Archibald Campbell
The Southern Necropolis is a cemetery in southern Glasgow, which opened in 1840 to provide an affordable and respectable burial place for the people of the Gorbals.
Archibald' Archie' Campbell founded the highly influential Clydesdale Cricket Club in 1848, Scotland's fourth oldest cricket club.
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In 1872, he formed Clydesdale Football Club to maintain the fitness of his cricketers during the winter months. Between 1850 and 1914, there were more than 1,800 cricket clubs in the greater Glasgow area, and were the foundation of the explosion of football across Glasgow.
Clydesdale played in blue and orange hoops and was one of Scotland's top four clubs, alongside Queen's Park, Third Lanark Rifles Volunteers, and Vale of Leven.
The Victorian entrance to the Southern Necropolis.
The headstone of Archibald Campbell.
In March 1873, Clydesdale accepted an invitation from Queen's Park and six other clubs to form the governing body of football in Scotland: The Scottish Football Association.
Archie served as the first SFA president for two years during which time the Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup (more commonly known as the Scottish Cup) was instituted in 1873.
Clydesdale's final game was in 1890. Archie's team, in its short history, were Queen's Park's greatest friend and ally, and their most significant contribution is the two-handed shy.
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​​Sir Thomas Lipton created a tournament aptly called the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy, which was competed by four national footballing giants – England, Italy, Switzerland, and Germany – and was held in the Italian city of Turin.​
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The inaugural tournament was held in 1909, and a further competition was held in 1911. This international tournament became the template for not only the European Championships, but the template for the FIFA World Cup, and is thanks to another visionary Scot.​​​
The headstone of Sir Thomas Lipton
Southern Necropolis is a place of memorial and reflection. Please be respectful of this ground and the people around you whilst visiting, and ensure you use the existing pathways at the cemetery whilst on site.