Although prolific, they were not the only small publisher to attempt to cash in on the post-war boom in Scottish football. I have collected a number of club brochures from the 1940s which were produced by two small Glasgow publishers, and which are now rare and sought after.
The trend began with Argyll Publishing Company of 65 Jamaica Street, who brought out three pictorial souvenirs in 1947, covering Celtic, Rangers and Hamilton Accies (pictured below). The first two had obvious commercial potential, the latter perhaps less so. Retailing at a shilling each, they offered photos and information, printed A4 on good quality paper, and seem to have been approved by the clubs as they contained welcome messages from the managers William Struth (Rangers), James McGrory (Celtic) and James McStay (Hamilton). The number of pages were determined by the number of adverts sold, hence the Rangers had 36 pages, Hamilton had 32 and Celtic had 24.
They have a great deal of contemporary charm, with good information about the players and the staff at the clubs, and are all well illustrated, but are light on statistical detail. Sizes range from 24 to 36 pages, again depending on advertising sales, and they are all A4. The Third Lanark and Ayr United brochures even have a colour team photo.
Here is a checklist of all the known brochures in the British Football Annual series: Airdrieonians, Ayr United, Clyde, Dunfermline Athletic, Elgin City, Falkirk, Hearts, Hibernian, Manchester United, Morton, Motherwell, Partick Thistle, Queen of the South, St Mirren, Stirling Albion, Third Lanark and Lanarkshire League. If anyone can add to that list, please let me know.