Edinburgh History - Longstone

Recollections

Robert Laird

Longstone, Edinburgh

Thank you to Robert Laird who wrote:

Demolition

"Here are some photos of Longstone Road circa 1960, taken just before all the buildings on the opposite side of the Longstone Inn were demolished to make way for flats."

Longstone Inn

More Demolitions

"The prefabs opposite Gray's Mill were also knocked down around the same time, then Inglis Green Laundry and McNab’s the dry cleaners were flattened, as were a row of small cottages on Inglis Green Road."

Gray's Mill

Milk Delivery Round

"As a boy in 1960, I delivered milk from age eleven until I left school at fifteen.

The run started at Willie Bauld's house just under the Bonnie Prince Charlie bridge at the foot of Craiglockhart Avenue. It finished at the top of Longstone Road where it meets the Calder Road.

We were out in all weather, with a double-delivery on Saturdays and precious few 'tips'.

But many boys did 'the milk' or delivered morning and evening papers back in those times."

Mrs Brand's Shop

"The shop next to the Longstone Inn was owned by Mrs Helen Brand.

The Shop

Her son, Ralph Brand, was a famous Rangers football player, and would always take time to speak to the boys, my age, when he was around."

Old Quarry

"About the time these photos were taken the old quarry at Longstone was a landfill site for the council rubbish, and was close to being full.

Houses now sit where it once was."

Summer Holidays

"In the 1960s, Wester was a collection of smallholdings. I spent a couple of summer holidays playing on one of them with a school chum who’s parents owned it.

Wester Hales later became a large council estate."

'Snowballs'

"A very small factory, just off Longstone Road, made 'Kingsknowe Snowballs'.

Every week I went round with old bread for their hens and got a box of bashed snowballs."

Canal

"The railway and canal viaducts were magnets for the boys, as was the canal itself where many a naval battle took place on flimsy hand made barges."

Prison

"Saughton Prison backed on to Longstone Road, behind the school. Every day I could see prisoners working in the fields and when they were close to the Murray Burn, they would often ask me to run and get cigarette papers for them."

Robert Laird, Longstone, Edinburgh, December 12, 2006

Recollections

James Hey

Deltona, Florida, USA

Thank you to James Hey who wrote:

Snowball Factory

"I enjoyed Robert Laird's comments about the Snowball Factory on Kingsknowe Road North as I am the Grandson of the owner, Frank Hey.

'Cameron and Hey, Confectioners' was in business from the 1930s to 1962. They made Snowballs, Macaroon Bars and nougat wafers to make sliders."

James Hey, Deltona, Florida, USA: April 16, 2008

Recollections

Robert Laird

Longstone, Edinburgh

Thank you to Robert Laird who replied:

Snowball Factory

"Once again, the mention of the area where I spent my childhood evoked strong and happy images in my mind.

I vaguely remember how the Hey's Kingsknowe Snowball factory was set out. But what I am not vague about is the dog that sat outside, on a cord, that frightened the living daylights out of me back then.

So good were the rewards for "feeding" the hens and braving the guard dog, that any risk of being savaged was worthwhile."

Robert Laird, Longstone, Edinburgh, April 17, 2008

Recollections

Margaret Leslie nee Ellis

London

Thank you to Margaret, nee Ellis, who wrote:

Inglis Green Road

"I was so pleased to see some recorded evidence of my childhood in the photographs of Longstone and especially Robert Laird''s photo of the agricultural machinery supplier, James H Steele, on the Inglis Green Road.

In the stone-built house behind Steele's white-painted building (which was an office I seem to remember) lived the Cowie family."

Prefabs

"My family moved to one of the six prefabs opposite Steele's from Lochinvar Camp in 1948 when I was four years old, and moved again 10 years later to a flat in Moat Drive.

The names of the families in five of the six prefabs were:

- McCardle

- Ellis

- Flockhart

- Ormiston

- Niven.

I left Edinburgh in 1961 for London where I still live.

Margaret Leslie, nee Ellis, London: July 17, 2008

Recollections

Margaret Leslie nee Ellis

London

Thank you to Margaret, nee Ellis, who wrote again with more memories of the Longstone district.

Margaret wrote:

Water of Leith

"On the other side of Steele's yard from Inglis Green Road ran the Water of Leith. Children in their wellies, including my sister and I, would climb over the wall by Steele's gates to fish with their jeely jars and nets for minnows and sticklebacks. The riverbank behind the wall was well worn from all this activity.

A horrible accident happened around 1951 when the father of a classmate of mine was killed after he lost control of his motorbike and flew over the wall into the river by Steele's."

Beside Saughton Prison

"Further down at Longstone village, the Water of Leith met the Murrayburn and continued past the embankment that carried a path alongside the fencing of Saughton Prison. This path took one out to Stenhouse Road.

I don't know if the following memory is a dream or of something real but I seem to remember there was a watermill at the end of this path, nearly opposite the prison warders' houses.

Just down from the confluence of the Leith and the Murrayburn, the river was wide and full of boulders and there was an island. Many children played around this section of the river and many fell in."

Escape

"On my family's annual visit to Corstorphine Zoo we had just turned on to the path, over 'The Longstone', in order to get the bus from Stenhouse when, high excitement, a Saughton prisoner had escaped and was being pursued by a warder.

He finally captured the escaper on the shore of the island. The local carrier took both men, who were thoroughly drenched, back to Saughton. The prisoner was placed in the corner of the lorry by its cab and the warder stood guard over him."

Margaret Leslie, nee Ellis, London: August 13, 2008