| Comment | The Saracen Head was originally built in 1755, but was converted to shops and houses in 1791. Today's Saracen Head pub isn't even in the same building as the original; the original now long demolished.
If the Sarry Heid had a) not closed down in 1791 and b) was still in the same location then it would be able to claim the title of oldest and would have beat The Scotia, which was built in 1792.
Today's Saracen Head can only claim the title of having the oldest surviving *pub name*, while the Scotia has a solid claim as of being the actual oldest pub. There's another caveat to it all though. It depends on whether we count the age of pubs as being in Glasgow or not at the time of being built. There are some pubs that claim to be older than the Scotia, but they were built or established at a time when they didn't fall into Glasgow's boundaries. So, The Scotia can claim to be the oldest and longest running pub that has always been within Glasgow, but there are others within today's Glasgow that are older. |
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