George T Smith wrote:

Trace Horses

"While I have no personal recollection of the trace horses, I  do remember that the east side of 'The Walk' had smooth stone slabs  let into the cobbles to provide an easier pull for horse drawn  traffic coming up hill from Leith.

I do not think that the other side  of the road surface was similarly laid out but  I think other steep cobbled streets had similar 'rails' let into them."

George T Smith, Nanaimo, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada:  November 13, 2007

Alfred Bouch wrote:

The Bell Man

"I was brought up in Edinburgh  and I wonder if anyone knows anything about the 'Bell Man' who used to walk around Leith Walk, at least, with a can of Brasso and some rags, polishing the brass stair door bell pulls and name plates, all for, I think, a sixpence a fortnight.

This was in the 'fifties and into the 'sixties.   He must have collected a lot of tanners in his time, but I have never seen or heard anything about him, not even on this site.  Can any of your correspondents shed some light on him?"

Alfred Bouch, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England:  April 6, 2008

GM Rigg wrote:

Halloween

"I remember:

-  toffee apples

-  dooking for apples

-  treacle scones on a string hanging from the pooley

-  other high jinks at Halloween."

Bonfire Night

"On Guy Fowkes' or bonfire night, someone always had on old settee that we could rip apart, looking for loose coins inside,  before burning it on the bonfire.

Our bonfire was always erected opposite the GPO sorting office, on the site of the demolished store house, once used by Grants of The Bridges."

GM Rigg, Edinburgh:  Message posted in EdinPhoto guest book:  April 15, 2009

Parade and Contest

Clydesdale Parade

"I remember the Clydesdale Parade, once a year.  It went down Albert Street and turned left onto Leith Walk.

The horses would come from the stables with decorations on, such as ribbons and bows, and their manes in pigtails.  They always looked splendid. 

These horses were entering a contest.  All the harnesses and bridles were shining, and sometimes the manes and hoofs were braided and ribboned."

Carts

"I remember so many carts being driven with the drivers standing up on the carts, very proud of their entries.

If memory serves me correctly, these horses and their carts carried the milk from the coop."

Memory Lane

"My grandfather was the night watchman.  He sat in the box in the middle of the street.

I think it would be very interesting to have more trips down memory lane, as those are very much part of history."

Mary Johnson, Jamestown, Foothills of California, USA:  November 22 + 23, 2009

RS McColl

"I lived at 11 Albert Place, Leith Walk, and I recall the little RS McColl sweetie shop, right across from the Shrubhill tram depot.

I could go in there after school and buy a penny worth of sweeties. The lady would weigh them on little scales and put them in a little white paper bag."

Betty Wallace (nee Baxter), Hamilton, Ontario, Canada:  January 18, 2010

Hugh O'Donnell

"I'm hoping that someone will remember my grandfather, Hugh O'Donnell.  He lived at 334, Leith Walk from about 1910 till he died in 1934.

He worked at the docks and was married to Elizabeth.  He had four children:

-  Mary (b.1904)

-  Hugh (19006, d.1910)

-  George (b.1908, d.1910

-  Thomas (b.1912)

Thomas was my father.  I have no information on any of the family as my dad came to England after his parents died and settled in Paddington, London.

All I know about the family in Edinburgh is their address in Leith Walk and the details above.  So if anybody could tell me what school Mary and Thomas went to, or has any photos of any of the above, I would be truly grateful."

Kate Wyatt, nee O'Donnell, Thetford, Norfolk, England:  May 3, 2010

Bell Man and Lamp Lighter

"I remember the 'bell man' in Leith Walk in the mid-1950s polishing the Brass plates on the doors as well as the bells.  There was also the man who lit the gas lamps,  I think they were related.

We emigrated to Oz in 1958.  We came back to Leith Walk in 1962/63 for a holiday.  The 'Bell Man' was still working there, but unfortunately the lamp-lighter was no longer lighting the lamps.

My Granny lived in 78 Leith Walk, which fortunately has been Heritage Listed.  The 'Bell Man' had a cuppa in her wee flat on many occasions – the cost of the cuppa?  - of course, it was a polish up.

My Mum and Granny are both gone now, so unfortunately I can’t ask them about him.  But I'll ask my Dad if he remembers the 'Bell Man'.  Dad may, as he was the Meter Reader."

Rag & Bone Man

"I also remember the rag and bone man, and trying to get money for trash in 1962/63."

Steam Lorries

"I remember, well, the steam lorries (from the brewery?) chugging up Leith Walk when I was about three.

We lived in a fourth-floor flat on Leopold Terrace, at the corner with London Road, and I could just glimpsed them from my bedroom window.

One morning, my mother popped out to the shop after leaving me harnessed to my bed with a large safety pin and the window open. She returned to find me standing on the parapet with a crowd, including police and fire brigade below!

I only wanted to get a better look at the steam lorries on Leith Walk.  It seemed quite reasonable to me !!!

Finding your website brings it all back"

John Elliot, Leicester, Leicestershire, England:  November 22, 2010

Bell Man

"I remember the Bell Man working in McDonald Road in the 1950s and 1960s.  As a toddler, I used to shadow his progress down the street  from my pedal car as he cleaned the brass bell pulls and door handles of his customers

He always wore denim blue overalls and carried his cloths and Brasso in a tin can under his arm, his hand on that side didn’t seem to operate.

He was a friendly chap and at the end of the street (or as far down it as I was allowed by my mother to go) he would polish the chrome radiator on the front of my car."

David Mitchell, Portobello, Edinburgh:  December 5, 2010

Bell Man

"The 'Bell Man' who cleaned brass bells and name plates used to come to us in Easter Road around the 1950s and 1960s.

His name was Willie.  I can't remember his last name.  He had a disability, possibly as the result of polio.  He was a shy, quiet and studious man.

Willie married later in life and lived in Williamfield Square opposite the Police Station in Portobello.  His hobby was Classical and Church music.  I may be wrong, but I think he played the organ in a church in Portobello"

Bill Hall, Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland:  December 16, 2010