Category Archives: Youth Groups and Organisations

This Sporting Life…

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With the Olympic flame having recently passed through Scotland and the games themselves set to begin shortly, it is perhaps an appropriate time to reflect a little on Edinburgh’s sporting history.  Among the many kinds of sport that the capital’s citizenry have enjoyed during bygone eras, athletics has played a significant role.

All eyes will undoubtedly be on Usain Bolt in London next month as he sets out to retain his Olympic 100 metre title but many of us will recall with pride and great pleasure the similar success of Edinburgh’s own Allan Wells who took the gold medal for this event in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, becoming the first Briton to win the event for over half a century.

Perhaps less well known is the fact that Allan began his amateur sporting career as a member of the Edinburgh Southern Harriers, one of three ‘Harriers’ clubs established in the later 19th century which opened up athletics, formerly a pastime of those educated in fee-paying schools and universities, to the wider working class of the city.  The Southern Harriers were formed in 1897.

Edinburgh Southern Harriers, 1906-07

Edinburgh Southern Harriers, 1906-07

The surviving records of the Southern Harriers were gifted to ECA in 1999 just a few years after their amalgamation with the Edinburgh Athletic Club and they contain some interesting reading and fascinating images.  The one reproduced to the left here is a photograph taken just the year before the club, together with its friendly, City rivals – the Edinburgh Northern Harriers – staged an inter athletic club competition as part of the Edinburgh International Exhibition of 1908. With a break of only seven years between 1914-1921 as a result of WW1, this sporting competition continued and grew to involve other athletic clubs within the capital until beyond the middle of the 20th century.

Edinburgh Southern Harriers results book, 1970-72

As noted above, the Southern Harriers amalgamated with the Edinburgh Athletic Club in 1996 but had flourished and helped develop the prowess of many of its aspiring members over the preceding decades. To return briefly to Allan Wells, the club records show that he was consistently recording times of around 11.0 seconds for the 100 metres in the early 1970s as the image here, taken from the results of 1972, illustrates.   Within 8 years, as the Olympic record books show, Allan had not only taken the gold medal in the event winning the final in 10.25 seconds but had previously run a personal best of 10.11 in the qualifying heats .

If other Edinburgh sporting clubs hold historical records which they would like to see preserved for future generations please feel free to contact us in Edinburgh City Archives.

The Fairport Magazine

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Fairport Magazine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of our projects in Midlothian Local Studies is to catalogue a large collection of pamphlets that once belonged to William Hutton Marwick (1894-1982). Marwick was, amongst other many other accomplishments, professor of Economic History at the University of Edinburgh, a Quaker and committed pacifist. His collection includes many rare pamphlets about politics, economics, social issues, peace and religion.

Amongst the collection are several small manuscript magazines compiled by William Marwick’s father, who was also called William. William Marwick senior was born inEdinburgh in October 1863. He spent his early years in Arbroath and attended Arbroath High School. Later, he went to Edinburgh University and became a Church of Scotland missionary.

 

The Fairport Magazine contents

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a teenager, Marwick produced his own in-house magazine called The Fairport Journal, which was named after his home in Arbroath. Eight copies of the journal have survived in the Marwick collection. The magazine is hand-written in best copperplate-style and contains short articles by Marwick and his friends.

These magazines provide an extraordinary insight into the intellectual life of a group of Victorian teenagers living in a small Scottish town. This must have been quite a serious-minded group of young people, judging by the articles they wrote and contributed. Amongst these are essays on science, history and literature as well as numerous short stories and poems.

Physics by William Marwick

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Fairport Magazine first appeared in October 1876 and consisted of 16 pages. It contained the first chapter of a story by the editor (William Marwick) entitled ‘The Two Young Crusoes’ and another called ‘The Far West’ by Henry Angus, as well as short articles and poems by other contributors. The magazine continued fortnightly until the end of the year when it was announced that a printed version would be available.

In January 1878, the magazine returned to manuscript form. Two of the main contributors were young ladies, Miss E H Smith of Glasgow and Miss M E Angus of Arbroath. The magazine seems to have been distributed only amongst its contributors who were allowed to keep it for three days before passing it on. Probably less than a dozen people ever read it.

It is not clear how much of magazine was original work or simply copied from other sources, but in any case it is hard to imagine anybody, young or old, undertaking a similar venture today. 

 

 

Home by William Marwick

Craigshill Mural

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One of the fulfilling aspects of working in an Archive is helping with and promoting programmes within the community that it serves. A recent enquiry highlighted this; from Julia Priestley, the Arts Development Officer at West Lothian Council, and Thomas Connelly, Library Manager asking for photographs of Craigshill as source material for a mural.

Craigshill is one of the oldest districts in Livingston, being one of the first areas built when the New Town was created. The mural project involving Arts Services/Community Regeneration entailed young people attending a local arts-based youth project Offbeat and working with an experienced public artist to create designs based on life in Craigshill over a period of time. These designs would then be applied to large mural pieces by artist Tom Ewing to the exterior of Almondbank Library in Craigshill.

Being a native of Craigshill, I was deputised to look out photographs from our extensive Livingston Development Corporation collection of images for buildings and landmarks that are memorable to those who’ve lived there.

Hopefully the images supplied, like this photograph of Craigshill fire station training tower would provide inspiring enough visual sources to help create a mural worthy of Almondbank Library and the community.

The mural was unveiled on the 30th September. Not long after I strolled up to have a look see and took some pictures.

The mural blends familiar house types, landmarks and features into an image that represents and embodies Craigshill to those who have lived there.

As well as the glimpsing the lives and activities of it’s inhabitants; from the past, and as seen through the eyes of those youngsters who took part in the murals creation.

As a repository that holds most of Livingston’s written and photographic history, we at the West Lothian Archives were more than happy to provide pictorial references to the project. As a resident of Craigshill for more than 40 years, I was particularly pleased and proud to have at least one of the photographs I sourced from our collection used as an element in the mural.

The Craigshill mural can be seen at Almondbank Library, The Mall, Craigshill, Livingston, West Lothian, EH54 5EJ

(Written by S. Thomas)

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The Reverend Dr. James Maitland

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The Reverend Dr. James Maitland was an influential figure in the early years of Livingston New Town. In January 1966, he was inducted as the Church of Scotland minister for the Livingston Ecumenical Experiment, in a joint ceremony with the Rev. Brian Hardy of the Episcopal Church. This bold venture was an expression of unity between the churches, and helped to foster a sense of community among the first residents of the New Town in the 1960s and 1970s. The churches shared their pastoral duties, buildings and resources, and even held joint services for their growing congregation. The Episcopal Church, the Church of Scotland and the Congregational Church were the founding churches of the Experiment, with the Methodists joining in 1968. 

The Archive Service holds a collection of the Rev. Dr. James Maitland’s private records, which includes collected papers, diaries, newspaper cuttings, reports and minutes. They provide an insight into the pivotal role that the Rev. Maitland played in church and community life. He was an active figure in the development of community forums, which gave voice to the concerns of local residents and helped people to share their experiences of adapting to their new environment.

The Rev. Maitland also chaired the Leaking Flats Committee, and helped establish such projects as “Growing up in Livingston” which aimed to create a sense of community and inclusion amongst the town’s young people. His concern for education and environment is evident within the archive collection, which includes extensive notes on the subject. With the involvement of the town’s younger residents, James Maitland and others came up with innovative approaches to the social problems affecting those growing up in the New Town. Particular measures included the setting up of Neighbourhood Houses, which could act as focal points for community work.

One of the crowning achievements of the Ecumenical Experiment was the building of the Lanthorn, in Dedridge, which was officially opened in 1977. This represented a further step towards unity, because the design of the building allowed Roman Catholic services to take part in the same premises as those of the other denominations.

The Centre was built by Lothian Region Council, West Lothian District Council and Livingston Development Corporation along with the churches of the Ecumenical Experiment. In his pamphlet, Living Stones, James Maitland wrote of the spirit of cooperation that created the Lanthorn, which he described as ‘a place where people could meet easily and naturally and begin to find what life in community can really mean.’

The papers also record James Maitland’s ideas on the importance of compassion and care for those marginalised by society, and the role of church unity in the creation of community. Many of these ideas were expressed in his book “New Beginnings: Breaking Through to Unity”, published in 1998, and the Archive contains some of its early drafts. The Rev. Dr. James Maitland left a significant legacy to the Livingston community, which can be explored in his own words through this absorbing collection.

 

 

 

19th Midlothian (Loanhead) Scouts

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Midlothian Local Studies holds a run of magazines produced by local Boy Scouts in the 1930s. The Glenrath Review was issued by the 19th Midlothian (Loanhead) Troop. The first issue appeared in 1932. Two hundred copies were produced and it cost sixpence. The paper for the magazine was donated by local paper manufacturers in Midlothian. It is a well produced magazine that provides a fascinating insight into the world of the Boy Scouts.  

Glenrath Review cover 1939

The Boy Scout movement began in 1908 and quickly swept the country catching the imagination of boys everywhere. It stressed informal education, standards of behaviour and practical outdoor activities, such as camping, woodcraft and sports. A Scout troop was formed in Loanhead before the First World War and flourished in the 1920s and 1930s. John Bayne, a local man, became Scoutmaster in 1927 and he did much to encourage the movement locally, including editorship of the magazine.

The Glenrath Review took its name from Glenrath farm near Peebles where the Loanhead Scouts often held a summer camp. The magazine has a huge variety of articles and features contributed by local Scouts. These included articles about travel and local history, short stories, cartoons, puzzles, jokes and poetry.

The ‘Camp Number’ for 1937 includes the following list of ‘Books to Read’:

The Bicycle by I.M. Tyred
Electricity by O. Switchoff
The K.O. Kid by Esaw Stars
The Cliff Tragedy by Illene Dover
The Rustlers by E. Pinch
The Broken Window by Eua Brick

Special issues of the magazine were produced for King George V’s Jubilee (1935), the Coronation of Edward VII (1937) and the Empire Exhibition in Glasgow (1938). This last included an essay competition for Scouts who had visited the Exhibition, first prize 2/6d.

The issue from late 1939, when the Second World War had started, is described as ‘the First Blackout Number’.

Earlier issues of the magazine contained some advertising, which seems to have been drawn by the boys themselves.

Writers were aware of what was happening in the wider world and how it impacted on them. The 1935 issue contained a poem called To Glenrath Review by ‘Snainy’ which included the following two verses:

Herr Hitler’s a dictator.
He’s kicked out every Jew,
Don’t call him ‘Bad Potater’,
Send him Glenrath Review.

But Baldwin is our leader,
We’ll stick to him like glue,
He’s our most constant reader,
He loves Glenrath Review.

The most important articles were reports of the annual camp, including lists of participants. The boys had lots of fun but it rained a lot.

Glenrath Review survived until the late 1960s.