Coal Lorry accident at the foot of Arthur Street

Coal Lorry - Accident

It was good to see this photo of the Hugh Leckie & Sons coal lorry (with its advert 'Grate Expectations' on the doors) stranded in Holyrood Park at the foot of Arthur Street.

Thank you to Ron Leckie for sending me the photo of the lorry at rest in the park, after having come down the steep Arthur Street with no driver on board.

Ron explains:

The Photo

"I grew up in Edinburgh – part of the Leckie coal family at St. Leonards. I have lived in California since 1976

On your site, you have recollections of Leckie’s lorry careening down Arthur St. in the Dumbiedykes. So I submit to you the photo of the resulting crash into the park – with kids hovering to pick up the coal without the policeman seeing them. :-)

Some of the coal seemed to disappear that day and many of the local kids had dirty hands.

I was not the original photographer. I was given the photo via a friend from a relative of the man who originally took it."

The Accident

"I remember the day well, when my Dad came home very stressed-out with that story. He was just so relieved that nobody got hurt. Apparently, the brakes were set and wheels turned into the curb – but the vehicle just slid on the wet cobblestones without its driver, the angle of that steep street overcoming the friction between the rubber and the cobblestones.

Well, that was the story I heard."

Coal Deliveries

"As a youth, I remember my weekend and school holiday job of carrying and delivering coal up tenement stairs. I was very fit physically then, but it mentally made me resolve to pursue my career in electronics – something I’ve never regretted. :-)"

Ron Leckie, California, USA: July 11, 2007

Here is a another picture sent to me by Ron Leckie. It's a photo of the family's coal yard at St Leonard's, taken on a cold winter's day, around 1965.

Question

Arthur Street Coal Lorry - Accident

Do you recognise anybody in the picture?

Several contributors including Jean Rae (Edinburgh) and Eric Gold (known to many as Eric McKenzie) (East London) and John Ballantyne (Edinburgh) have mentioned this accident in their recollections of Dumbiedykes and elsewhere on the EdinPhoto web site.

If you recognise any of the children in this photo, please e-mail me.

Thank you. Peter Stubbs: July 15, 2007

Reply 1

Thank you to Eric Gold (Eric McKenzie) who replied:

Memories

"That's a great photo. I'm thrilled with it. Leckie's company took me back. Every time I look at the photo, I see something different that jogs my memory, especially the gas lamps running up the brae, and I can still remember the gas man lighting them up at night.

The photo was in my era, as Dod Dickson's car is in shot. We lived opposite Dod's in East Arthur Place. I can see my ma's hoose from that angle, Dod's grocers shop, also Spier's the newsagents and the end of Prospect Street too."

'Bairns and Polis'

"I don't recognise the bairns or the policeman. It wasn't 'Big Ginger, the Polis' (ha ha ha). He would just let us help ourselves."

Eric Gold, East London: July 16+17+18, 2007

Reply 2

Thank you to Jim Di Mambro who replied:

'Two Kids'

"I remember the accident well. My brother and I, Jim & Frank Di Mambro, could be the two kids at the back corner of the lorry. We lived in 82 Dumbiedykes Road. That was the stair next to The Bowlers Rest pub."

Shops

"The chippy near the bottom of Arthur St was owned by my Aunties, Rena & Vera Canale.

The first shop turning left into Dumbiedykes was owned by Mrs Pentland (the Penny Vantis).

Then, there was Park Cafe (the ice cream shop) owned by the Copola family - two sons, Freddie & Victor.

Shovelling Coal

"My fondest memory of the free coal was of a local character, Mrs. Wynn, shovelling it into her message bag.

Jim Di Mambro, July 19, 2007
Jim has lived in South Africa since 1973.

Reply 3

Thank you to Jim Di Mambro who added

'Ginger'

"Eric Gold's mention aboot Ginger (the polis) brought back memories. We used to play fitba ('3 an yer in').

The goals were Cowan's big door, and Ginger often used to have a wee go before retiring intae his box (by the park gate) for his tea."

Jim Di Mambro, South Africa: July 20, 2007

Reply 4

Thank you to Brian Gourlay who wrote:

Coal Deliveries to Arthur Street

"My dad used to deliver coal to Arthur Street in the 1930s – firstly by horse and cart and latterly by lorry.

He talked about getting stuck once with the loaded lorry about half way down the hill. For some reason, he didn’t think it was safe to go further down the steep gradient, but couldn’t get back up again until they had taken some of the load off.

Needless to say, he was not short of locals to help him off load the bags of coal. However, there were lots of folks with black hands that day - and fewer bags got back to the top of the hill than they took of the lorry.

He often said that delivering coal to Arthur Street, and others in the area, wasn’t so much a problem, but getting the money was often another story.

The mind boggles as to how you delivered coal to Arthur Street with a horse and cart."

Brian Gourlay, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland, August 1, 2007

Reply 5

Thank you to John Ballantyne who remembers:

Accidents

"Arthur Street was very steep. There were many accidents there. A coal lorry, a sweet lorry and a coal lorry all 'ran away' out of control down Arthur Street.

The best laugh was watching the men with their fruit-barrows. There were several of these being pushed around the streets, but when they came to the hill down Arthur Street, the owners had to hold on tight to the barrow handles to prevent the barrow from running away down the street.

The local children knew this, so they used to run down the street beside the barrows, pinching the fruit, and there was nothing that the owner could do about it!"

John Ballantyne, Boswall, Edinburgh, August 31, 2007

Reply 6

Thank you to Joe Coyle who wrote:

My Sister

"My sister is the little girl on the left in this photo."

Date of the Accident

"Does anyone know the date that the coal lorry crashed down the hill in Arthur Street?"

Joe Coyle, The Inch, Edinburgh, October 22, 2007

I don't know the date of this accident, but I've e-mailed Ron Leckie to see if he knows. It was Ron who sent me the original photograph and his family that owned the coal lorry.

- Peter Stubbs: October 22, 2007

Reply 7

Thank you to Ron Leckie who replied:

Accidents

"My mother died in early 1960, and I remember she was still with us at the time of the accident. As I remember it, I can’t have been too young - maybe around 10 years old. That would put it around 1959.

I’ll ask my cousins and see if we can collectively narrow down the date of the incident. I'll get back to you if we can narrow it further."

Ron Leckie, California, USA: November 2, 2007

Reply 8

Thank you to Richard Martin, Borders, Scotland, who wrote:

Coal Lorry

"That incident with Leckie’s coal lorry was not the first mishap to happen to them in the Dummie as we called it then.

Horse and Cart

"One winter in the early 40s, half way down the hill at the steps leading up to Salisbury Street, after a snow storm, Leckie's were delivering coal by horse and cart and unfortunately the horse slipped on the snow/ice and fell to the ground.

After securing the load and uncoupling the horse from the shafts a number of men, using ropes and empty coal bags wrapped round the horse’s hooves, in an attempt to prevent further slipping, tried repeatedly to raise the animal. The more they tried the more fatigued the horse became.

Eventually, after giving the horse food and water and allowing it to recover somewhat they managed to get it to its feet. I don’t think the horse suffered any damage as it managed to walk away (without the coal wagon).

The whole exercise must have taken well over an hour to complete. As kids a number of us watched from the high wall at the foot of 'Soly'.

Richard Martin, Borders, Scotland: August 5, 2008

Recollections 9

Susan Keaney wrote:

'Big Ginger'

"I lived at 107 Dumbiedykes Road, and when I was only four years old, I ran away from home with my favourite blanket in my mum's washing-up bowl.

'Big Ginger', the policeman, found me up at the top of Dumbiedykes Road and took me back home. I remember him being very tall, with red hair, a short beard and a moustache.

Do you have any information or pics of 'Big Ginger' please? **

I don't know why the memories of that place and time have stayed with so many. You only have to look at all the stories. It must have been a very special place.

Susan Keaney, County Sligo, Ireland: October 8, 2008

'Big Ginger'

** I don't have any pictures of 'Big Ginger', myself, but he is remembered in Reply 1 and Reply 3 above.

- Peter Stubbs: October 9, 2008