Clyde Model Dockyard
A historic Glasgow model and toy retailer associated especially with nautical models, model railways, and model-making accessories.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Clyde Model Dockyard was a historic toy and model shop in Glasgow, Scotland, best known for its nautical models, model railway stock, mechanical toys, and supplies for amateur model makers. The business was established in 1789 and operated from premises at 22–23 Argyll Arcade, making it one of the long-standing specialist retailers associated with Glasgow’s commercial and manufacturing culture. Although its name suggested a maritime focus, the shop’s activities extended well beyond boats. Over time it sold and commissioned model ships, sailing yachts, toy steam engines, railway locomotives, rolling stock, railway accessories, die-cast cars, model aircraft materials, and components used by scratch-builders. The business’s early history was connected with the Galletti family. Antoni Galletti was recorded at the Argyle Street premises in 1829. He had begun as a carver and gilder and also made scientific and mathematical instrument sets from premises in Nelson Street. Antoni and his sons later became associated with optical instruments and spectacles. His son John Galletti subsequently took over the shop, followed by Andrew McKnight. In its earlier period, the firm produced nautical models for the Admiralty. By the late nineteenth century it had broadened its commercial range to include toy steam engines and railway locomotives, many sourced from English, French, German, and American manufacturers. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Clyde Model Dockyard occupied a position comparable to major London toy retailers such as Gamages in the retailing of mechanical metal toys, particularly products connected with shipping and railways. It issued substantial seasonal catalogues and stocked standard products from leading German makers including Carette, Schoenner, and Märklin. The firm also commissioned special products from Gebrüder Bing of Nürnberg and from Birmingham manufacturers such as Carson, including larger gauge III railway items. Although there is no clear evidence that Clyde built its own railway products, it carried out detailing and preparation work in a small workshop in a converted drawing-room flat on Argyll Street. The workshop did manufacture wooden-hulled model boats in different levels of finish. After the First World War, the business became an important agent for Hornby 0 gauge trains and also promoted toy locomotives made by Glasgow firm Bar Knight. It continued to offer imported German products and some American-made items. The inter-war period later became the focus of considerable nostalgia, although contemporary accounts indicate that the firm’s quality and ambitions were stronger before 1914. Clyde nevertheless remained an important centre for Scottish model making. In the 1930s it encouraged amateur scratch-builders and provided substantial trophies for competitions. Its extensive stock of fittings, fixtures, and construction materials was an important part of the business alongside finished toys and models. The shop remained active after the Second World War, serving customers interested in 00 gauge trains, sailing yachts, die-cast cars, steam toys, and model aircraft. It was one of only a small number of central Glasgow shops supplying balsa wood and related aeromodelling materials into the 1970s. The Clyde Model Dockyard Trophy was competed for annually by aeromodellers. Changing consumer tastes, the growth of different retail formats, and broader changes in specialist toy retailing weakened the business during the 1960s, and the original shop finally closed in the early 1970s. Clyde Model Dockyard has retained a place in Scottish popular memory. A full-scale recreation of its shopfront formed part of the Glasgow Museum of Transport’s 1930s Glasgow Street display when the museum was rebuilt at Kelvin Hall, and the frontage was recreated again at the Riverside Museum on Clydeside. The rights to the name were later acquired, and the business was relaunched in late 2024 with a range of marine-related scale models. The relaunched identity therefore connects a contemporary model brand with a much older Glasgow retail and craft tradition.
History
Clyde Model Dockyard was established in 1789 and became a notable specialist toy and model business in Glasgow. Its best-known historic premises were at 22–23 Argyll Arcade. The business developed within a wider tradition of Glasgow craft, instrument making, optical retail, and maritime commerce. Antoni Galletti was associated with the Argyle Street premises by 1829. Originally a carver and gilder, Galletti also made scientific and mathematical instrument sets and later became associated with optical instruments and spectacles. His son John Galletti took over the shop, and Andrew McKnight later succeeded him. The early firm concentrated on nautical models made for the Admiralty. During the nineteenth century it expanded into commercial toys, including steam engines and railway locomotives. Many of these goods were obtained from manufacturers in England and France, while imported German products became increasingly important. By the opening years of the twentieth century, Clyde Model Dockyard had become a major Scottish retailer of mechanical metal toys and model-related goods. Its range was particularly strong in shipping and railway products, and it issued extensive seasonal catalogues. The catalogue included standard products from German manufacturers such as Carette, Schoenner, and Märklin. Clyde also commissioned bespoke products from Gebrüder Bing of Nürnberg and from Birmingham makers including Carson. Some of these special products were made in gauge III, with a track dimension of 2.5 inches. The available historical evidence does not establish that Clyde manufactured its own railway products. Instead, it appears to have retailed imported and externally manufactured railway goods while carrying out detailing and finishing work in a workshop located in a converted drawing-room flat on Argyll Street. That workshop did produce wooden-hulled model boats in several grades of finish. After the First World War, Clyde became a major agent for Hornby 0 gauge trains. It also promoted toy locomotives produced by Bar Knight of Glasgow and continued to sell German and American products. The period between the wars later became central to the brand’s nostalgic reputation, although the firm’s pre-1914 quality and ambitions were regarded as stronger. During the 1930s, the shop supported amateur scratch-builders by maintaining stocks of fittings and fixtures and by offering substantial trophies for modelling competitions. Clyde continued operating after the Second World War. Its post-war range included 00 gauge trains, sailing yachts, die-cast cars, steam toys, model aircraft materials, and general model-making supplies. The shop was one of three central Glasgow outlets supplying balsa wood and related materials to aeromodellers into the 1970s. The Clyde Model Dockyard Trophy was contested annually among aeromodellers, reinforcing the shop’s role as more than a conventional toy retailer. The business was affected by changing tastes and retail patterns during the 1960s, as specialist shops faced pressure from new forms of mass retailing and changing consumer preferences. The original shop closed in the early 1970s. Its cultural memory survived through museum interpretation: a full-size reproduction of the frontage appeared in the Glasgow Museum of Transport’s 1930s Glasgow Street display at Kelvin Hall and was later recreated at the Riverside Museum on Clydeside. The Clyde Model Dockyard name was subsequently acquired and relaunched in late 2024. The revived business introduced marine-related scale models, reconnecting the name with its historic nautical emphasis while using the heritage of the former Glasgow shop as part of its identity.
- 2024
Heritage name relaunched
[1]The rights to the Clyde Model Dockyard name were acquired and the business was relaunched with marine-related scale models.
- 1970
Original shop closes
[1]The historic Glasgow shop finally closed in the early 1970s after changing tastes and retail patterns weakened the business.
- 1930
Support for amateur scratch-building
[1]During the 1930s, the shop encouraged amateur model makers through competition trophies and extensive stocks of fittings and construction components.
- 1919
Post-war Hornby agency and wider range
[1]After the First World War, Clyde became a major agent for Hornby 0 gauge trains and continued selling products from British, German, and American makers.
- 1900
Expansion into major mechanical-toy retailing
[1]By the early twentieth century, the firm had developed into a major retailer of mechanical metal toys, especially shipping and railway products, and issued substantial seasonal catalogues.
- 1829
Antoni Galletti recorded at the premises
[1]Antoni Galletti was associated with the Argyle Street premises, linking the business with his work in craft, scientific instruments, and later optical goods.
- 1789
Business established
[1]Clyde Model Dockyard was established as a Glasgow toy and model business.
Products and positioning
A heritage Scottish model-making brand combining maritime modelling with railway, mechanical-toy, and amateur construction traditions.
Scale models · 1789
Marine and nautical models
Nautical models were the firm’s original specialist focus, including models made for the Admiralty. The workshop also produced wooden-hulled model boats in different levels of finish. The relaunched business is described as offering marine-related scale models, continuing the strongest thematic association of the historic name.
Model railways
Model railway stock and accessories
Railway products became a major part of the range during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Clyde sold locomotives, rolling stock, and accessories sourced from British, French, German, and American manufacturers. It became particularly associated with 0 gauge products and later carried 00 gauge trains, while also detailing some items in its Glasgow workshop.
Mechanical toys
Mechanical metal toys
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Clyde was a prominent retailer of mechanical metal toys, including commercial toy steam engines and railway locomotives. Its catalogues carried products from leading German manufacturers and included commissioned items made by specialist producers.
Craft and modelling supplies
Model-making materials and fittings
The shop maintained substantial stocks of fittings, fixtures, and other materials for model makers. In the post-war period it also supplied balsa wood and related materials for model aircraft construction, serving amateur builders as well as buyers of finished toys and models.
Recent events
- 2024
Clyde Model Dockyard name relaunched with marine scale models[1]
Product launch · Other
The rights to the historic Clyde Model Dockyard name were acquired and the business was relaunched in late 2024 with a range of marine-related scale models.
Sources2 sources
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