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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
World
Jacob Farr

Historic Edinburgh photos show farming past of the capital's western communities

The West of Edinburgh is known for its green residential areas that are filled with local businesses.

But what a lot of residents forget is that the area was once made up of mostly farmland and their connected businesses.

Corstorphine as a rural village only officially joined Edinburgh in the 1920’s as part of the capital’s expansion plans.

At that time the small village, along with the areas of Broomhouse Farm, East Craigs and South Gyle, were predominantly farmland.

New pictures from the Corstorphine Trust Archives, that they have allowed Edinburgh Live to share, show the area as it once was.

The images, which range from the 1930’s through to the 1960’s, illustrate the rural history of the now residential communities.

In the first image shared, a farmer can be seen leading his sheep up Sycamore Terrace going north towards Bowling Green in 1930.

The houses on the right of the picture are said to still be there.

The shepherd's head is just above the corner of the Bowling Green wall with a cottage spotted in the rear centre.

The second image appears to show the piggeries and dairies in Gylemuir Road.

It is believed by the Trust the image was taken from the roof or a high level window of the Back of Lamonts(Securex) building that was once the site of PC world.

The photo, understood to have been taken in the early 1960’s, is looking south and the houses at the bottom are on street level of Gylemuir Road around about where the electric car charge points are placed in Tesco carpark.

These piggeries and diaries were strips of long and narrow land.

The strips reached from Gylemuir Road over what is now Tesco car park and stopped around where the Tesco petrol station is now situated.

In the middle of the picture you can make out the Weterbroom Houses and school.

The next up is from the ‘Pig sale.’

After the Second World War, Mr Willie Gray of South Gyle Farm established a noteworthy herd of 'large white' pigs - "The Gyle Herd".

These pigs won championships all over the UK.

The Annual Draft Sales were in May each year, and the photo is of the Draft Sale on Thursday, May 24 1951, at South Gyle Farm.

The man in the dark suit is Willie Gray and the man next to him in a white coat and dark hat, holding a book, is the auctioneer.

The sale on that day had 65 Tuberculin-Tested Large White IN-Pig Gilts and eight Tuberculin-Tested Large White boars.

Then we have an image from 1953 that shows the gathering of potatoes on fields that are now filled with Broomhall houses.

The grey slated roofs behind the horse are the cottages on Ladywell Avenue that are found beside the lane that goes through from Dovecot Road.

The final image shows the farmers field at East Craigs where a farmer is collecting a harvest.

The picture resembles the emblem of the Mid Yoken pub that can be found on Craigmount Brae today.

Many of the farms, dairies, piggeries and market gardens were in existence until the 1970’s.

Let us know if you remember any of the businesses or sites from your childhood.

You can visit the Corstorphine Trust website here.

The museum is open every morning 10am-12pm and the Coffee shop is open every day except Monday.

The museum is also open on Tuesday and Friday afternoons from 1-3pm

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