Potted Biographies of the Whose Town? Lives
Whose Town? is privileged to have the following lives contributing
to Whose Town?
VICTORIAN EDINBURGH: Edinburgh in the 1870s – 1890s
LEVI PRINSKI - a homeless boy, aged between 14 and 15 in 1870
In 1870, Levi was destitute in Edinburgh. He was 15 years old. He was taken in by the
Edinburgh Industrial Brigade School for Homeless and Destitute Boys, given food, lodging,
and the chance to learn a trade. Levi had left Poland with his father aged about 12 or 13, but
his father was killed in a mining accident in the English Midlands. He eventually found
himself in Edinburgh with nothing to his name. Levi can reveal some of the harsh realities of
poverty in 1870s Edinburgh, as well as the indomitable nature of the human spirit.
FLORENCE MORHAM - a well-looked after little girl, aged 5 - 7 years old in 1886 – 1888
Florence Mary Morham was aged 6 in 1887. Her father, George Morham, was a surveyor
and civil engineer and they lived in the affluent area of the Grange. From the age of 5,
Florence attended the Edinburgh Educational Institution for Young Ladies. The family had a
summer house at West Pans. George Morham was a keen amateur photographer and
through his photographs he has given us an informal insight into middle class family life at
this period.
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON - a law student and a writer; he is in his early twenties in
the early 1870s.
We meet Robert Louis Stevenson before he is world famous, as a young man aged 20 in
1870. He had already tried and rejected the family tradition of engineering and was studying
to become an advocate; although, he probably knew by this time that he wanted to become
a writer. With his friends, Stevenson often frequented the many bars Edinburgh had to offer.
It was a pub in Advocate's Close where Robert Louis Stevenson and friends created the LJR
League (Liberty, Justice, Reverence). The club's motto was "disregard everything our
parents taught us".
BRAVE NEW WORLD: Edinburgh at the beginning of the twentieth
century, 1900 - 1914
LUCA SCAPPATICCIO – an Italian immigrant and ice cream maker in his early twenties
Luca Scappaticcio came to Edinburgh at the turn of the century. He probably came as an
economic migrant from Cassino in southern Italy, where life in the predominantly rural south
was harsh. He married his wife Anastasia, who was from the same area, in Edinburgh in
1907. He learned his “trade” working as a pastry chef in what is now called the Balmoral
Hotel. He saved enough money to rent a shop in Musselburgh in 1908 and opened an ice
cream parlour. In the beginning, Luca and Anastasia had to walk from their home in the
centre of Edinburgh to Musselburgh and back every day.
BESSIE WATSON – the youngest lady piper and suffragette at nine years old
In 1909, the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) staged a march through Edinburgh
to demonstrate “what women have done and can and will do”. Bessie Watson had played
the bagpipes from an early age and at the age of 9 she was asked to join the WSPU march
and play the pipes. The march had a big impact on Bessie and she became involved in the
suffragette movement. Playing the pipes led Bessie to do remarkable things and she
became one of the first Girl Guides in Edinburgh and was seen by the King.
ARTHUR PORDAGE – Firemaster of Edinburgh Fire Brigade
Arthur Pordage was Firemaster of Edinburgh Fire Brigade from 1896 to 1927. Like most in
the Fire Service, he was dedicated to his job; he lived with his family above the Fire Station,
and even had his own pole to descend when called out. Pordage was officer in charge at the
fire that burnt down the Empire Theatre and killed the great showman, the Great Lafayette in
1911. His Fire Brigade were known for their quick turnout and he had even trained the
horses to assemble for duty when called.
CARROT JAM & PUDDING PIE: Edinburgh during the Second World War
NANCY PUGH – a young evacuee
Nancy was evacuated aged 9 from Glasgow to Perthshire. She recounts how she was met
at the station and how all the children were allocated lodgings. She went to live with Rear
Admiral and Mrs Harrison who lived at Luncarty House. The Harrisons moved to London for
war work and Nancy had to move. Eventually she asked to return home and she went to live
in Edinburgh where her parents now lived. Nancy can compare a country childhood and a
city childhood during this difficult war time period.
JOHN LYLE – an Edinburgh child staying at home
Born in 1937, John Lyle was brought up in the Stockbridge colonies. He contributes the
memories of a child living in Edinburgh during the war and can share the impact that wartime
had on his family and the Stockbridge community from a child’s point of view. John Lyle’s
family were originally from Newhaven and were part of the close-knit fishing community for
many generations.
CHARLES BOOG WATSON – an ARP Warden
Charles Boog Watson was 81 years old when he signed up to become an ARP Warden.
During this time he kept a detailed log book and we have a snapshot of ARP duties and an
insight into Edinburgh at war. He had retired from his job as an engineer in 1908 aged 50
and worked without pay for the City Council for 30 years collating the vast amounts of
records from Edinburgh City Chambers. He donated the resulting 15 volumes of indexed
notes to the City Libraries. He was very knowledgeable about the history of the city and
gathered a wealth of material together on the subject.
CHANGE IN THE AIR: Edinburgh in the 1950s
BILL MCLEAN – a thirteen-year-old boy in 1957
Bill was a child of the 50s. He lived in Craigentinny and then moved to a new green-field
development on the south side of the city in 1958. He attended Leith Academy and was a
Boy Scout. He has a love of the cinema, especially the musicals of the time; partly because
his father was the cinema projectionist at the Dominion Cinema. Bill remembers the
beginnings of TV and the Coronation being televised and he can comment on how people
viewed TV and cinema at the time.
SELMA AHMAD – a seven/eight year old girl in 1953
With a Scottish mother and an Indian father, Selma had an early awareness of a wider
world. Whilst her memories of being a child in the 50s do not record racial tensions, there is
a realisation of how people are different and why. Her father’s family were deeply affected by
Indian Partition in 1947. Selma was brought up in Tollcross and had a happy childhood but
not an affluent one – she allows us to reflect on the different things that children need to
play.
IAIN MACLAREN – a trainee surgeon in the mid 1950s
Iain was a trainee surgeon from 1954 to 1958. He came from a medical background as his
father was a GP in Edinburgh. During his training he contracted TB and had to spend a
whole year in convalescence. Iain notes that had he had the disease three years earlier, he
probably would have died as the cure for TB was in its very early stages. As a trainee
surgeon, Iain was experiencing the early development of the NHS, as well as
groundbreaking advances in combating TB. Iain loves to play the bagpipes.
BACHAN KHARBANDA – a business man in his early twenties in the late 50s
Bachan was born in Rawalpindi and claims to have started the first Indian boutique in UK.
He came to Scotland on the recommendation of his father, and went to study in Glasgow. He
ran out of money and so started his own business. He developed the business into the
import of Indian handicrafts and opened his first shop in Glasgow. An opportunity came to
lease premises in the newly developed Canongate area of Edinburgh and Bachan’s shop
“Eastern Crafts” opened in 1959. This was immediately a success and hit the newspaper
headlines.
HUGH CAIRNS – a tram driver in the 1950s
Hugh returned to his home city of Edinburgh after the war and got a job driving the trams. He
recalls what it was like to work on the trams and has several stories about the people who
used the trams. Once the trams were stopped, Hugh got a job on the buses and can
compare the two modes of transport and the city they served. Hugh loved to travel to see
different places and in the ‘50s his only option was to cycle. He describes some of his
cycling experiences.