Opening in 1867, Miller’s London Road foundry was a major employer in the Meadowbank district and the heavy din of iron working rang out for well over a century.
A thriving hub of industry at a time when Edinburgh more than earned its ‘Auld Reekie’ sobriquet, the iron foundry’s furnaces burned 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
In the 19th century, the Moray Park maltings, Holyrood and Abbeyhill breweries and the railway were located near the foundry. The area’s population exploded, with many of the workers inhabiting the Abbeyhill Colonies.
At its height, the foundry, which was located on the site now occupied by Meadowbank retail park, employed more than 250 workers.
Over the years, the foundry workers were responsible for manufacturing everything from the 25-tonne cast-iron rolls used in Edinburgh’s paper-making and printing industry to railway wagon wheels, gear wheels and essential components for the capital’s municipal tramcars.
In later years they specialised in producing rolls for linoleum and plastic flooring firms and also supplied large firms such as Kellogg’s with rolls to make Corn Flakes and other famous brands.
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Reminiscing on the Lost Edinburgh Facebook group, locals recalled how the foundry was the beating heart of the Meadowbank area.
Harold Sturlison wrote: “I recall the factory hooter going off at lunch time and the queue outside the chippy along with the smell from the Hope Park brewery.
“I think they even had a gauge of rail track named after the foundry.”
Former foundry worker, Peter Thorburn, said: “I worked there as a welder in the late 1950s. It was very busy back then turning out rollers for the printing industry.
“I met some good guys there and enjoyed a pint in the Marionville pub on a Friday.”
Rab Smith added: “My granddad Sandy Roberts was a dresser at the foundry and I used to run down Milton Street to meet him coming home. I’d listen out for his tackety boots coming down the hill from the foundry.”
The London Road ironworks survived until 1991, with the majority of buildings on the site cleared within five years.
The Meadowbank Shopping Centre opened on the site in 1997 and is still going strong today.
The turreted tenements facing London Road, which housed the company’s offices, have survived along with a portion of the main workshop frontage.
The name of Miller’s ironworks lives on with London Road Foundry Bowling Club situated on Farrer Terrace, Portobello.
