In 1866 the Glasgow City Improvement Trust commissioned Thomas Annan to photograph areas of the city slated for demolition. Although he was more interested in documenting the closes (narrow cul-de-sacs between buildings) than their inhabitants, in this photograph, Annan nonetheless recorded the blurry forms of two figures in the doorways on the right. Their ghostly forms seem to anticipate the fate of the buildings, which would soon vanish from sight.