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Recollections
Jamaica Street
Edinburgh New Town
- Between India Street and Howe Street |
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History of the Street
This was planned in 1802 as
the only street of artisan housing in Edinburgh's Northern New Town.
The street was were demolished in 1960. The site was redeveloped as
Jamaica Mews in 1981.
Source: The Place
Names of Edinburgh (Stuart Harris)
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Demolition - Update
Comments from
Tim Jeffrey, London |
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Thank you to Tim Jeffrey who wrote:
"I lived in a top floor flat at 7 India Street,
overlooking Jamaica Street, from 1964 until 1978.
I remember walking along Jamaica Street to go to Sinclair’s grocery
store, so the street was lived in at least
though into 1965.
I
remember, well, the
trepidation I had as a 5-year-old
walking along a very run-down street;
I normally took the longer Heriot Row route.
Jamaica Street lay derelict and empty for a
period, so it cannot have been demolished
until at least 1965 or 1966. I remember watching
the ‘bongers’ for hours as it was demolished.
Does anyone have any photographs of Jamaica Street?"
Tim
Jeffrey, London: August 18, 2010 |
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Recollections
1.
Ian Sergent
Redditch,
Worcestershire, England |
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Thank you to Ian Sergent who wrote:
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Living in Jamaica Street
"My
father, Robert Sergent, was born
in Jamaica Street and lived there in the
early 1950s.
He left in 1955, came to England
and joined the RAF just to get out of the poverty and have three
meals a day.
It's
hard to believe some of the stories he tells me -
they sound more Victorian than 20th century.
He had a brother,
Alan, and has two sisters,
Agnus and Jenny.
My
grandfather (my father's father) was
doorman at the Regal Picture House.
picture house."
Question
"In Edinburgh, my father was friends with Jim Patience. He
would like to get in touch with Jim again, if at all possible.
Does anybody know where he is now? I
hope you can help."
Ian Sergent, Redditch, Worcestershire, England: September 10,
2009 |
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Do
you know how to contact Jim Patience. If so, please email me,
then I'll pass on your message to Ian.
Thank you.
- Peter Stubbs: September 10, 2009
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Reply
Thank you to Robert Williamson who wrote:
"Ian Sergent has been looking for a friend of his father, Jim
Patience. There is a Jim Prentice now living in Alberta.
He comes from Leith, at about the same time"
Eddie gave me the email address for Jim Patience of Alberta.
I've now passed it on to Ian Sergent.
Robert (Eddie) Williamson, Pickering, Ontario, Canada: May 14, 2010 |
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Recollections
2.
Pat Brown |
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Thank you to Pat Brown who wrote:
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Living in Jamaica Street
"My
dad moved to Jamaica Street from Boness when he was about 11 after
his mother died. He never told me about what it was like there and I
would be thrilled if I could find out now.
He was the youngest of 11 children and he was called James Brown.
Could you tell me about him and where he lived?
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His brothers' names were Robert, Matthew, William and John
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His sisters' names were Annie, Jennie and Lizzy
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There were also others that I don't know anything about.
It would be nice if you could tell me about them as well."
Pat Brown: May 11, 2010 |
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Reply
I
don't know anything about Pat's dad's family myself, but perhaps
somebody else will know about them. If you'd like to send a
message to Pat, please email me, then I'll pass it on.
Thank
you.
Peter Stubbs: May 13, 2010 |
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Recollections
3.
Stewart Mayne
near Ashbourne,
Derbyshire, England |
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Thank you to Stewart Mayne who wrote:
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Banned from Jamaica
Street
"My mother was born and brought up in India Street,
from 1919 until the war. She used to
tell me that she and her brother and sister were banned from Jamaica
Street when they were little.
Once, they sneaked off there and bought
sweeties. Eventually they confessed to their father what they had
done because people had told them they would be poisoned by the
sweets sold there.
Luckily he said that they would be unlikely to be ill,
but might have had short measure. He was
very sensible and became a noted judge."
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Visits to India Street
When I was little, I used to go with my
mother on the tram from Morningside to visit the grandparents at
India Street. I don't remember going into Jamaica Street
which seemed to be full of tenements.
I do recall a barrel organ lady on the corner of Charlotte Square,
and the milkman making a noise on the cobbles with his pony and
cart.
The India Street house had a rear extension with bath, designed by
Basil Spence (!) and a coach house on Gloucester Lane (?).
My memories are vague because it was 60 years ago."
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Stewart Mayne, near Ashbourne,
Derbyshire, England: June 28, 2011 |
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Recollections
4.
Al Love
Leith, Edinburgh |
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Thank you to Al Love who wrote: |
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Home
"Somebody
was
asking how Jamaica Street used to be. Well, I can tell you my
experiences of the street as I lived at No.40, first flat,
for a short time with my Auntie Nan Hamilton my uncle
Jimmy and cousins Richard and Wilma in 1949-50.
Here is a photo of my Aunt Nan, in
her younger days, standing on the bridge at Deanhaugh Street,
Stockbridge:
©
Reproduced with acknowledgement to Al Love, Leith, Edinburgh
The
reason for my stay in Jamaica St. was my Mother passed away in June
1949 and the family thought it would be
too much for my Father to look after my Sister and
myself, so we went to stay with my Dad's
Sister, but strangely he couldn't live
without us.
The
street had a terrible reputation,
but I enjoyed my short stay there because I liked my
relatives."
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Pubs
"There
were quite a few Pubs and on a Friday and Saturday
night we would sit at the window, no telly then, and watch
the drinkers spill out of the Pubs at
closing time.
There never failed to be a fight of
some kind and if you have ever watched under-the-weather
drinkers fighting, it's better than any
Keystone Cops movie."
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Collars Limited
"On the corner of Jamaica Street and Howe
Street was Collars Limited where my Father
used to get his stiff collars starched."
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Emigration
My Aunt
and her family eventually emigrated to
America and lived in New York and I had the good fortune to
visit them in 1958 when I was on route to Christmas Island
during my Army Service.
I hope
that perhaps one of my Cousins might just read this.
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Al Love, Leith, Edinburgh: July 30, 2009 |
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Message for Al Love
If you
(cousins or anybody else) would like to send a message to Al,
please email me, then I'll pass on your message to him.
Thank you.
Peter Stubbs, Edinburgh: July 30, 2011 |
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Recollections
5.
Dorothy Finlay (nee
Cossar)
Queensland, Australia |
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Thank you to
Dorothy Finlay who wrote: |
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The Banks Family
"My friends
Peggy and Alan Banks lived
in Jamaica Street in the 1950s. Alan
was a skipper on the trawlers. Peggy had
red hair and five bairns. Does anyone remember them?"
Dorothy Finlay (nee Cossar),
Queensland, Australia:
message posted in EdinPhoto guest book, January 25, 2012 |
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Recollections
6.
James Patience |
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Thank you to
James Patience who replies: |
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The Coghill Family
"I stayed
at 34 Jamaica Street
in the 1950s. I
don't remember a Banks family living in the
street.
The only
family I remember living there, who had a
dad on the trawlers, were the Coghills.
They lived at 28 Jamaica Street. The father was lost
when the trawler sank in the 1950s."
James Patience: message
posted in EdinPhoto guest book, January 25, 2012 |
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