An interwar crematorium groups chapel, columbarium and plant around a calm landscaped setting while continuing its original funerary purpose.
Quick facts
- Date
- Built in 1938
- Architect / designer
- James Steel Maitland
- Type
- White-harled interwar crematorium complex with chapel, columbarium and tall chimney
- Designation
- Listed building, Category B (LB38929)
- OS grid reference
- NS 47040 64025
Architecture and continuing use
Low white-harled ranges gather around a rectangular chapel with a shallow-pitched roof and tall square-headed windows. Ashlar porches, urn finials, paired chimneys and a glass-domed columbarium distinguish ceremonial and technical functions.
Its story
James Steel Maitland designed the crematorium in 1938 for Paisley Cemetery Company. It remains privately run and continues to provide cremation, remembrance and memorial services.
Why it is included
The building is a comparatively early Scottish crematorium whose architecture carefully combines modern funerary practice, landscape and ceremonial dignity.
What to notice
- The broad ashlar porch and urn finials.
- The separation between chapel, columbarium and service ranges.
- The unusually tall plant chimney behind the lower ceremonial buildings.
Reading the surroundings
This is an active funerary site. Attend only for services, memorial visits or arranged enquiries; protect mourners’ privacy and follow the crematorium’s current opening and conduct guidance.
Timeline
- Built in 1938 James Steel Maitland designed the crematorium in 1938 for Paisley Cemetery Company.
- Present Operating private crematorium and memorial garden.
What we know — and what remains uncertain
Renfrewshire Council identifies Woodside as privately run; operational details should be confirmed with the crematorium rather than assumed from council cemetery information.
Sources & further reading
- Historic Environment Scotland: Woodside Crematorium, LB38929 — Designation category, mapped location, construction phases, fabric, authorship and architectural interest.
- Woodside Crematorium — Current crematorium operation, services, contact information and memorial provision.
- Renfrewshire Council: cemetery locations — Public-sector confirmation that Woodside Cemetery and Crematorium is privately run and separately managed.
Location
OS grid reference NS 47040 64025 · Location confidence: High: the statutory designation supplies a mapped National Grid Reference and a current official operator, responsible public body or institutional source confirms the Place relationship and present identity. · Select the marker to open its satellite view in Google Maps. On desktop, drag Pegman (the yellow figure) onto a blue road. On mobile, turn on the Street View layer and tap a blue road. Other photo markers may be user-contributed.
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