Dumbiedykes Survey Photograph

Waste ground near Arthur Street

behind the Pleasance

Here are children playing on waste ground behind the Pleasance, in the Dumbiedykes district of Edinburgh, close to Holyrood Park, in 1959.

Thank you to Eric Gold, formerly of Dumbiedykes and now living in East London, for describing this location. The photo appears to have been taken from close to the Friends' Chapel in the map below.

Eric wrote:

"The photo above shows the top of the brae were Arthur Street meets the Pleasance. The backs of the tenements in the Pleasance run across the top of this photo.

The waste ground were the kids were playing (probably me) is West Arthur Place (demolished) and to the far left of the photo is Oakfield Close which leads on to the Pleasance.

Oakfield Close is not shown on this map, but can be seen in this photograph below of the Pleasance tenements, taken from the Pleasance. Oakfield Close is the 'opening' in the wall in the block of tenements below.

View the front of these Pleasance buildings

Recollections - 1
1.	Bob Henderson Burdiehouse, Edinburgh	Near Arthur Street
2.	George Stevenson Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland	Pleasance Waste Ground
3.	Frank Connor Hadlow, Kent, England	94 Pleasance The Pleasance 1960s
4.	Maureen Hogg (nee Connor) Cape Town, South Africa	June Oddie
5.	Dave Elgin Dundee, Tayside, Scotland	94 Pleasance The Back of the Buildings The Front of the Buildings

Recollections

Bob Henderson

Burdiehouse, Edinburgh

Thank you to Bob Henderson for sending me the following recollections of life in this area in the 1940s. Bob wrote:

Near Arthur Street

"I was born in 'Elsies' (Elsie Inglis maternity hospital) in 1938 and lived in Arthur Street until 1950.

I think this picture shows the top of Arthur Street, in front of he tenements in west Arthur place on the left side of Arthur Street as you look up the hill.

Just to the right of the edge of your picture there was a large open top water tank, on the flat-top of the waste ground on the corner of the pleasance and Arthur Street. We used to sledge from it to the bottom of Arthur Street, sometimes only being stopped by the park wall.

The water tank was also a great plaything for us boys as it was always kept full for use by the fire service in case of incendiary bombing which thankfully never happened."

Bob Henderson, Burdiehouse, Edinburgh

Recollections

George Stevenson

Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland

Thank you to George Stevensons, Livingston. George wrote:

Pleasance Waste Ground

"My brother thinks that my sister and I might be in the Pleasance waste ground photo, which was at the back end of Scotchie Hill.

Maybe, maybe not."

George Stevenson, Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland

Recollections

Frank Connor

Hadlow, Kent, England

94 Pleasance

Frank Connor, who used to live at 94 Pleasance explains:

"This photograph shows the rear aspect of the Pleasance. Our tenement was the end block of that row, No 94.

"This view of the front aspects show the block after they had demolished no 94, but before they demolished the rest of that row."

Frank Connor: October 21, 2007

Frank added:

The Pleasance

"As I have been away from Edinburgh since 1966 (back for a period between 1974-76), anything to do with Edinburgh and especially the Pleasance where I was brought up, I read with avid interest.

I remember all those situations about Leckies coal lorry going through the wall at the park gates, the 'Scotchie' and all the side streets in between. In fact when I was 15, I used to deliver Sunday newspapers down there for Bill Curran who had taken over the newsagents at the bottom of our stair.

I lived above Lawrence Smiths the grocer and wine merchants and I went to St Ann's/St Patricks primary schools before going on to St Anthony's.

Our family, my dad Norrie Connor, mum Mary Connor, and sister Maureen, (now resident in South Africa) lived in 94 Pleasance. The building is pictured in the Dumbiedykes survey 'Waste ground behind the Pleasance' pictures. Ours is the top flat, two windows on the right , above Ben Dobbies garage. The middle window of the block, slightly lower, was in the staircase.

I lived there from birth until I was 9 then we moved across the street to 63 Pleasance (the new hooses built 1939). I owned that flat until 1989 when my dad couldn't climb the stairs any more, so sold it and bought a ground floor flat along St Leonards way, East Crosscauseway. The biggest mistake I made was selling it, should have kept it and bought the other one.

Frank Connor, Hadlow, Kent, England: October 21, 2007

1960s

Frank became a member of 'The Crusaders' and 'Johnny and the Falcons'.

Please click here to read his memories of Edinburgh Music Groups.

Recollections

Maureen Hogg (nee Connor)

Cape Town, South Africa

Maureen Hogg (nee Connor) wrote:

June Oddie

"I knew June Oddie very well in the 1950's. I lived in the Pleasance and we spent a lot of time together dancing at the Palais and checking out all the talent in and around Edinburgh!

I lost touch with her and many other people after moving to England in 1961. I have lived in Cape Town since 1970.

It would be great to hear from anyone else who remembers me."

Maureen Hogg, nee Connor, Cape Town, South Africa: October 23, 2007

Unfortunately, I cannot find Elma's e-mail address, so cannot pass the message above on to her. II hope she reads it here and gets in touch.

If anybody would like to contact Maureen Hogg, please e-mail me and I'll pass your message on to her.

Thank you.

- Peter Stubbs: November 18, 2007

Recollections

Dave Elgin

Dundee, Tayside, Scotland

Dave Elgin wrote:

94 Pleasance

"I have just been viewing your photographs of the Pleasance which shows 94 Pleasance from the front and back of the building."

The Back of the Buildings

"As you look at the back of the building, on the right hand side of the photo is a window on the third floor. This was the bedroom of the house we used to live in back in the early 1950s.

We lived in a two room flat at the top of the building. The house had an outdoor toilet which we shared with another family. My family lived there till about 1965 when we were moved to Broomhouse near Corstorphine."

The Front of the Buildings

"It was really nice to see these photos and brought back many memories of the other buildings beside the entrance to 94 Pleasance. As you look at the entrance to 94, the little shop on the left was a bakery where we used to buy bags of broken biscuits every Friday night as a treat.

It's good to see these photos again"

- Dave Elgin, Dundee, Tayside, Scotland: October 8, 2008