Index to Inmates of Edinburgh Charity Workhouse

Posted on March 3, 2012 by vikkik

volunteer busy at work

Thanks to the tremendous hard work carried out by our committed band of volunteers, we are creating several useful indexes to a few records within our extensive collections. The latest index to be completed relates to a Register of Inmates of Edinburgh Charity Workhouse between July 1835 and June 1841 (our ref. SL146/9/1). This index is now available on our website in the ‘Find out about records we hold‘ section, alongside our other completed project indexes for readers to search.

Background on the Edinburgh Charity Workhouse

In 1739 proposals were published for founding a hospital or workhouse for the employment and maintenance of the poor, the care of orphans and foundlings and the support of out pensioners. A contract between the Town Council and kirk sessions was agreed in 1740 setting the terms of the foundation of the Edinburgh Charity Workhouse. The Workhouse was funded by donations and subscriptions, from an assessment levied on householders and an annual grant from the Town Council. It was to be managed by an executive committee of 15 managers.

The Workhouse opened on 20 June 1743 atBristoPortnext to the Bedlam for lunatics. The original Bedlam was used as an infirmary for the sick and as a children’s hospital. A new Bedlam was built in 1746. The Bedlam was partly demolished in 1836 and the lunatics were moved to the Children’s Hospital. The children were moved to the oldOrphanHospitalunder theNorthBridge.

The passage of the Poor Law Amendment Act in 1845 led to the foundation of Edinburgh Parochial Board. The Parochial Board assumed responsibility for the Charity Workhouse, which became the Edinburgh Poorhouse. The Craiglockhart Poorhouse and Hospital replaced the Edinburgh Poorhouse in 1870 and the Charity Workhouse buildings were demolished.

Index to Register of Inmates

The Register of Inmates and Index

The Register itself is divided in to three main sections relating to the House, the Children’s Hospital and the Bedlam. The index now online is a consolidated alphabetical list of all inmates from each of these three divisions. You can simply do a free text search within the index and see if any of your ancestors were inmates during this period. If you find someone you can pop in to our public searchroom and request to see the register to check for any further information. For more information on our opening hours and where to find us see our website www.edinburgh.gov.uk/cityarchives

TB: Vampires and Sunshine Cures

Posted on January 10, 2011 by peterc

Craiglockhart Hospital and Poorhouse, Tuberculosis Sanitorium, c. 1890s - early 1900s

Warm sunshine and fresh air – something that perhaps all of us are longing for during this coldest of Scottish winters. Such a therapeutic approach formed the basis of treatment of one very common disease in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Edinburgh’s Craiglockhart Hospital and Poorhouse - an institution that cared for infants, the elderly, the poor and the ill – was one place adopting this therapy. Edinburgh City Archives hold a wonderful collection of photographs of the institution from the turn of the last century. Although the photographs were carefully composed, the images give the viewer a glimpse of life inside the hospital’s walls. They are very much images of their time and show how certain serious illnesses were treated before later developments in medical science.

The image above is a photograph of a Tuberculosis ward at Craiglockhart Hospital and Poorhouse. Tuberculosis or TB is a highly infectious disease caused by the Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Although TB can affect other organs, the bacterium commonly attacks the lungs and is transmitted to others via the coughs and sneezes of an infected person. Left untreated, tuberculosis is often fatal.TB has a long history; the disease has been detected in human remains dating from 7000 BC. Before the Mycobacterium tuberculosis responsible for the chronic cough, night sweats and wasting associated with the illness were identified by Robert Koch in 1882, Consumption and Phthisis were the names most commonly given to the disease. Throughout the 19^th century, consumption was one of the most frequently cited causes of death in Europe and it is estimated that the disease claimed the lives of 100 million people worldwide throughout the 20^th century.

Although tuberculosis became known as a disease of the urban poor, it affected individuals from a variety of backgrounds. Famous sufferers include Robert Louis Stevenson, Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott. Curiously, throughout the 19^th century, the disease’s association with notable people and literary figures afforded a certain mystique and allure to an illness which physically ravaged and wasted its victims. In the past, TB was sometimes associated with vampirism as many believed sufferers slowly drained the health and vitality of others around them.

Once the nature of the disease was better understood, public health campaigns urged people to avoid coughing and sneezing carelessly and spitting in public places. These measures went some way to preventing the spread of the disease. Numerous Sanatoria were also established which isolated infected individuals and offered treatments of limited effectiveness such as bed-rest, sunshine, fresh air and good nutrition. In the late nineteenth-century, the Craiglockhart Hospital and Poorhouse adopted this approach to the treatment of TB.

This image of a group of TB patients typifies the environment and methods used to treat the disease during this period. Patients were located in a separate ward away from other hospital residents, usually in a specially adapted room with windows, often open, to let in fresh air and sunlight. Although some sufferers placed in Sanatoria did recover from their illness, it was not until the development of the antibiotic streptomycin in 1946 that successful treatment and cure were possible.

If you would like to see other photographs of the Craiglockhart Hospital and Poorhouse, click here.

Jamie Gorrie: a Penicuik Character

Posted on December 3, 2010 by kenb

Jamie Gorrie

The Black Collection is a remarkable record about Penicuik and surrounding area from 1880 to 1930. It is named after James Black and his son Robert, who assembled a mass of material about life in Penicuik. The collection includes research and lecture notes, newspaper cuttings, notebooks, postcards, photograph albums and many other items.

Amongst the cllection is an obituary to Jamie Gorrie, a well known Penicuik character.

Jamie Gorrie: a Penicuik Character
From the Midlothian Journal 24 January 1890

Jamie Gorrie’s Tree Fallen

Every native of Penicuik will hear with regret that the recent storm has demolished “Jamie Gorrie’s tree.” This fir tree, which is situated in the Bog Wood, on Sir George D. Clerk’s estate has been for nearly half a century the favourite pleasure haunt of the children of the village and round its base they have played together while the boys and even girls vied with each other in reaching the highest point and cutting their names in the wood. The result was that a considerable portion near the top was covered with names of boys and girls, who are now grown up and many of them gone to different parts of the world. The tree is 77 feet in length and two feet from the base measures 4 feet 2 inches in circumference.

From the appearance of the tree as it lies it would seem that its fall is due not to the weakness of the roots but to the fact that the children have been making fires at the side of it with the result that for nearly two feet from the base the tree is like a shell having been burned so much, and the wonder is that it has stood so long. The “Jamie Gorrie” tree in addition to being an interesting pleasure spot for the village children had the reputation of being the highest fir tree in the wood and the one most easily climbed – the branches spreading from the tree at regular intervals like a ladder, and from this cause there is scarcely a man or child in the village who cannot boast of having climbed it. Visiting it on Monday when the snow was lying deep on the ground and everything had the appearance of winter, we could not but think of the many who will hear of the tree being blown down with regret contrasting strongly with the sentiments of one of our local poets, who wrote recently in the Journal about the Penicuik bairns:

Simmer’s come again my lads,
Hurra! hurra! hurra!
Simmer’s come again my lads,
Hurra! hurra! hurra!
Awa’ wi’ buits or shoon
For freely we maun rin
By muir, or dalce, or linn,
O sae braw! O sae braw!
The ‘Bog’ we’ll hunt wi’ glee,
When we come frae the schule,
An’ roon’ the ‘Gorric Tree’
We’ll see nae dunce nor fuIe;
Or doon the ‘sunny knowe,’
Where the wee primroses grow,
We’ll play the auld row-chow
Frae the tap o’ the hill.

About a year ago an old man visited the village and asked to be directed towards “Jamie Gorrie’s tree.” On being shown, he remarked “I maun see hit ye ken, for its the only freend I can mind o’ an’ its thirty ‘ear since I saw’t an’ played aboot it.” Such no doubt will be the exclamation of many who are now for various reasons unable to see the old relic of the past.

“Jamie Gorrie” after whom the tree was called was a painter to trade, but having sustained an accident his brain became affected and for years he was the character of the village, running messages and doing odd jobs for a living. He was generally in a happy mood, but sometimes when he was threatened with punishment he would take refuge in this tree from his tormentors, and thence the name has originated. When the band was out he always accompanied it – ready to assist in the carrying of the drum. Gardeners Walks and Whupmen Plays were his great days, and he aIso attended all the funerals in the district. He played the whistle and triangle, and was often smart in answering those who tried to raise a laugh out of him.

‘Rab and His Friends’: a Midlothian Story

Posted on November 1, 2010 by kenb

: Rab and His Friends

Rab and His Friends by Dr John Brown: A Midlothian Story

John Brown was born on 22 September 1810 in Biggar, Lanarkshire, the son of a minister and bible scholar. In 1822, the family moved to Edinburgh. Brown was educated at The Royal High School and Edinburgh University, where he studied medicine under the eminent surgeon, James Syme, whom Brown revered. As an adult, Brown lived two lives: he was a well-respected doctor and also an essayist with a wide circle of literary friends, including Lords Jeffrey and Cockburn, Thackeray and Ruskin. A popular man and a brilliant conversationalist, he wrote on a variety of subjects, including medicine and theology, but he is best remembered for his entertaining essays. He died in May 1882 and is buried in New Calton Cemetery in Edinburgh.

John Brown’s most popular work was his short story Rab and His Friends. Originally given as a lecture, Brown felt that he had not delivered it very well, but the story struck a chord with his audience and was an immediate success. It was published in 1859 and brought the author considerable fame.

The narrator recalls his boyhood encounter with Rab, a majestic grey mastiff, and his master James Noble, a simple horse-cart driver. A few years later, James brings his wife Ailie to the hospital where the narrator is now a student. She has breast cancer and the surgeon tells her that it must be operated the following day. James and the dog are allowed to remain nearby and to watch the operation. Described as a ‘gentle, modest, sweet woman, clean and lovable,’ Ailie endures her ordeal in brave silence, commanding respect from a boisterous group of students. James nurses her tenderly, but she develops a fever and dies a few days later. ‘James buried his wife,’ says the story, ‘with his neighbours mourning, Rab watching the proceedings from a distance.’ Shortly after her burial, James also falls ill and dies. Rab refuses to eat, becomes hostile and is killed by the new driver. According to the story: ‘He was buried in the braeface, near the burn, the children of the village, his companions, who used to make very free with him and sit on his ample stomach, as he lay half asleep at the door in the sun, watching the solemnity.’

Hugely popular in its day, Rab and His Friends is considered one of the finest examples of Victorian melodrama. Modern readers are unlikely to sympathise with its maudlin sentimentality, but the story is valuable for several reasons. It contains a vivid description of an operation carried out in the era before anaesthetics, the kind of operation John Brown would have witnessed as a medical student. The story captures the simple honesty of ordinary country people, something that the author had often experienced and greatly admired. Ailie and James accept their fate with great dignity and courage, trusting in God’s grace and their love for each other, and never uttering a word of complaint.

Rab and His Friends: a Dog Fight

In addition, the story reflects the extraordinary insight that James Brown had into canine temperament and the human nature of dogs. The dignity and devotion of the elderly couple are reflected in Rab’s noble behaviour towards his owners and the annoying lesser dogs that trouble him in the street. Brown further developed his ideas in his essay Our Dogs, which was published in 1862. Both stories have continued to enchant dog-lovers ever since. Rab and His Friends was very popular with Scottish exiles living overseas, in part because of its affectionate depiction of ‘auld Scotland’. The book went through numerous editions and is still in print.

Howegate village

The story of Rab and His Friends is based on real events. A native of the parish of West Linton, John Jackson (‘James Noble’) married Margaret Todd (‘Ailie’) in Penicuik in January 1807. The couple had seven children. They lived in a small cottage in Loanstone, just east of Penicuik, although John ran his carrier business from the village of Howgate. A carrier was a delivery person, who carried loads about the country with his horse and cart. Howgate was once on the main road from Edinburgh to Peebles and further south. The Howgate Inn was an important stopping place and was frequented by Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott.

Margaret Todd died in December 1830 and John soon afterwards, in January 1831. They were buried in Penicuik churchyard in unmarked graves. In August 1920 a memorial was unveiled in Penicuik churchyard to the Howgate Carrier and his wife ‘Ailie’. The memorial was paid for by public subscription and unveiled by the Midlothian author Mrs Burnett Smith, better known by her penname of ‘Annie S Swan’.

An artist’s daughter

Posted on August 25, 2010 by kenb

Some of William McTaggart's children with Betty (right)

William McTaggart (1835-1910) is recognised as one of the great Scottish artists. He is famous for his paintings of the sea and the countryside although he considered himself primarily as a portrait painter. He was especially interested in children and often included them in his work.

In 1890 William McTaggart moved to a house called Dean Park in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian where he lived until his death in 1910. There is a family tradition that he moved away from Edinburgh to escape hostile gossip about his second marriage to Marjory Henderson, who was 21 years younger than him.

William and Marjory McTaggart had nine children together, three of whom died young. Their fifth daughter Eliza or ‘Betty’ was born in 1896.

Betty McTaggart never married and lived most of her life in Bonnyrigg before moving to a house called Davaar in Longniddry, East Lothian. She died in an Edinburgh nursing home on 10 October 1986. Sometime after her death her nephew, Neil McTaggart presented a collection of McTaggart family papers to the Bonnyrigg and Lasswade Local History Society. These papers are now held by Midlothian Local Studies on behalf of the History Society.

Betty McTaggart inherited some of her father’s talent and was an accomplished artist in her own right. She obtained a DA degree and held exhibitions of her work.

Amongst the McTaggart family papers there are a large number of sketchbooks of Betty McTaggart’s work. Many of her sketches feature children.

Children from Cowgate Nursery School (with Betty McTaggart?)

At some time in her life, possibly in the 1940s, Betty McTaggart seems to have worked at Cowgate nursery school in Edinburgh. In 1937, the Church of Scotland opened a Free Breakfast Mission in Fishmarket Close to provide meals to local children. The school was designed to help the children of poor families living in and around the Cowgate area of Edinburgh, then a notoriously deprived part of the city. In 1942 the school moved to a new site at Guthrie Street. It was taken over by the Edinburgh Corporation in 1959 and rebuilt in the early 1960s.

This photograph is thought to show Betty McTaggart (centre) with children from Cowgate Nursery School awaiting a royal visitor to Edinburgh

During her time at the school, Betty produced many sketches of the pupils, often showing them in the playground or at their lessons. Some of these delightful sketches were drawn literally on the backs of envelopes and scraps of paper.

Children in Cowgate nursery school playground by Betty McTaggart

It is interesting that some the children in the sketches are named:

Charlie Ainslie
Joan Cairns
Anna Conway
Peter Daly
Nancy Day
David Elder
Catherine Gardiner
Sandra Huggan
Isaac McCallum
Martha McEwan
Joe McGlyn
Josephine McGlyn
Alec McGregor
Robert Marshall
Linda Milne
Catherine Mooney
Jimmy Moore
Janette Niven
Mary Niven
Maureen O’Connor
George O’Donnel
Maureen Sandman
James Taylor
Rosemary Watt

Martha McEwan by Betty McTaggart

Linda Milne by Betty McTaggart

Cowgate Nursery school children at tea by Betty McTaggart

It would be nice to trace some of these children, who now would be in their 70s and 80s, and to reunite them with their sketches. We will be contacting Cowgate nursery school in due course but if anybody has any further information about either Betty McTaggart or Cowgate nursery school then please contact Midlothian Local Studies.

For further information on William McTaggart and his association with Bonnyrigg and Lasswade please click on this link: Bonnyrigg and Lasswade Local History Society

The World’s Oldest Pit Woman

Posted on June 21, 2010 by kenb

The collection includes research and lecture notes, newspaper cuttings, notebooks, postcards, photograph albums and many other items. It is particularly strong on papermaking, the Thistle Lodge of Free Gardeners, the Penicuik Rifle Volunteers, and Penicuik and the First World War.

The main part of the collection is a series of carefully compiled scrapbooks on life in Penicuik. The subjects range from local industries, sport, clubs and societies, and biographies of Penicuik people.

In the 1970s, the Black Collection was gifted to Midlothian Library Service by James Black’s grandson, William. The originals have been indexed and microfilmed, and these can be consulted in Penicuik Library or in Local Studies at Loanhead.

Amongst the Collection is a scrapbook about Coal and Ironstone Mining in the Lothians, which includes a newspaper cutting from February 1910 about Isabella Somerville, who was described as the Oldest Pit Woman in the World.

Bell Somers, as she was better known, was born at Old Craighall in Midlothian sometime around 1824. She had her first job at the age of six-years-old when she was employed as a ‘slype drawer’ at Edmonston Colliery near Edinburgh. A slype was a curved wooden box on iron runners which was used for taking coal away from the cutting-face. Bell was attached to the slype with an iron chain and she had to drag it along on her hands and knees through the mine to the bottom of the shaft.

Bell then worked at Pinkie Colliery in East Lothian where she learned to ‘howk’ coal, push it on hutches and carry it in creels to the surface.

She also worked at Harlaw Muir Colliery near Carlops in the Scottish Borders. Here she had to carry the coal away from the coalface and up a ladder to the surface where it was collected by horse-and-cart.

She worked at Harlaw Muir Colliery until women were expelled from the mines in 1843.

Bell was married to one Sergeant John Harrison.

The employment of child labour now strikes us as appallingly cruel and barbaric but apparently it didn’t do Bell very much harm. According to the report: ‘She is still hale and hearty, living in Tranent.’ She died in 1915. Nobody really knew her correct age but she was certainly well into her 90s.

Doubtful Old Men, Dissolute Women

Posted on April 8, 2010 by peterc

Craiglockhart Poorhouse and Hospital, Edinburgh City Archives

In the current period of debate on the role of the state, public sector austerity and retrenchment in social services it may be timely to reflect on the ancient and bygone system of social care in Scotland. The Scottish Poor Law of 1579, amended in 1845, placed the responsibility for the poor and disabled upon the parish itself. Edinburgh’s Craiglockhart Poorhouse and Hospital, opened in 1870, was purpose-built to house a wide variety of people. The institution could hold up to 1569 residents and functioned not only as a poorhouse, but also as a reformatory and hospital with separate wards for infants, the elderly and the mentally ill. Edinburgh City Archives hold an excellent collection of photographs of residents and staff at the institution at the turn of the century. These images give some idea of how late Victorians cared for their ill and vulnerable and how people would have experienced life in the poor house.

The Craiglockhart Poorhouse was not unlike a small self-contained village. Complete with coalhouses, an onsite chapel, a farm yard, a smith shop, laundry, stick factory, stable and bakery, most daily necessities were provided for within the institution’s walls. People entered the poorhouse for any number of reasons – mostly because illness and old age prevented them from working to support themselves. In some instances, if they had nowhere else to go, unwed mothers would take up residence in the poorhouse. In return for food, shelter and medical care, residents were subject to a life with very little privacy and a lot of discipline. Until the early 20^th century, residents in the poorhouse also gave up their right to vote.

A ground floor plan of the Craiglockhart Poorhouse shows that inmates were defined and divided up not only by age and gender, but by their presumed character and behaviour. The specific wards and airing grounds constructed for different groups of inmates reflect this. ‘Dissolute Women’ would exercise in an area separate from ‘Doubtful Old Women’ while ‘Male Lunatics’ would get their fresh air away from the resident ‘Male Probationers’.

You can look at photographs of Craiglockhart and its residents in the gallery below.