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A School of Dolphins: Ocean at The Scottish Dolphin in Moray
2159 Ocean was designed to be colourful and creative. Thinking about the life of a dolphin and the sea, each child had a patch of the dolphin to design using ideas such as protection of the sea, dolphins in danger and sea creatures, Ocean was created. Treasure 35: Notes and Jottings of G.M. Fraser
2323 George Milne Fraser had a lifelong interest and expertise in local history; delivering talks (as seen in the December 2015 Treasure), publishing books and numerous letters and articles in the local press. His 'Notes and Jottings' collection comprise over 70 volumes, mostly hand written (including a form of shorthand), which are a treasure trove of information about the local area.
Within these notebooks are newspaper articles and advertisements, photographs, personal correspondence, sketches and many other interesting bits and pieces. Library staff have compiled an index to this invaluable resource and consult it on a regular basis when researching enquiries. It is quite a challenge deciphering his handwriting sometimes!
As a journalist by profession, G. M. Fraser retained his talent for writing and contributed articles to the Aberdeen Free Press, Bon Accord and Northern Pictorial, Evening Gazette, and journals such as the Deeside Field.
His contributions to local literature began in 1904 with the publication of The Green. Historical Aberdeen appeared the following year and after Aberdeen Street Names in 1911 the Town Clerk Depute wrote to Fraser with the words "We must now regard you as our Principal Historian".
The Life and Work of G. M. Fraser
G. M. Fraser was appointed city librarian in 1899 and was the second public librarian in Aberdeen. He can be seen on the far right of this image from the library archive.
His name was known all over the north east and he was mentioned in the chorus of one of Harry Gordon's popular songs, The Auldest Aiberdonian: "I ken lots o' stories G. M. Fraser disna ken". On 30 October 1923 he gave a 15 minute talk on the radio about Castlegate, becoming the first librarian in Aberdeen to make a radio broadcast.
During his term of office there were many developments in the Library service:
- The Central Library was extended in 1905 to include a new reading room
- Branch reading rooms and delivery stations were established throughout the city
- The Juvenile Library in Skene Street opened in 1911
- Open access was introduced in the Lending Library 1925 (find out more about Open Access libraries in the October treasures!)
- Fraser's strongest legacy is the Local Studies collection, which still contains many of our treasures.
G. M. Fraser was remembered very fondly after his death on 7 June 1938. There were many tributes including one from the Library Committee. Perhaps one of the warmest tributes was paid by his successor as City Librarian, Marcus Milne:
"Somehow the Library and G.M. were one. You could not think of the Library without thinking of that kindly figure who was head of it; and one could not meet him without thinking of the building he graced for so long. Mr Fraser had 2 hobbies and work was both of them. He lived for nothing else. The library was ever uppermost in his thoughts and closely allied to his love for the Library was his great love for things Aberdeen".
Mr Fraser's funeral service was attended by many prominent city officials and floral wreaths included one from Lady Aberdeen with the inscription "In affectionate and grateful remembrance of a much valued friend". He is buried in Springbank Cemetery.
In 1955, Aberdeen's first post-war permanent branch library was opened at Northfield and named the G. M. Fraser Branch Library in his honour.
In further recognition of his contribution to the development of the Library service, a commemorative plaque can be found on the front of the Central Library building. 446 and 448 Union Street
2615 This photograph of Union Street was taken in 1936 and shows the premises of John Raffan, shoe fitting specialists, at 446 and Dugan & Mitchell, clothiers, at 448 Union Street.
James Dugan and Duncan Mitchell entered into partnership around 1919. Mitchell had previously been in the former's employment as a cutter.
Dugan had worked as a tailor on his own account since about 1907 in premises in Bon Accord Street, Rose Street and 443 Union Street. Prior to this he was a commercial traveller representing two local tailoring firms; Messers Milne and Low and Messers Kenneth McLean and Sons.
He became a well respected figure in the tailoring and clothing trade in Aberdeen and the North East. He was the son of a china merchant in George Street called Hugh Dugan. James was married and had a daughter. He died suddenly at his residence at Glen-Shiel, Bieldside on 10th May 1927.
Duncan Mitchell was a native of Largs, Ayrshire and served his apprenticeship in Glasgow. He was a keen golfer and was a member of the Deeside Golf Club. He died aged 73 after a short illness in January 1955.
John Raffan died on Sunday 10th June 1906 after suffering an apoplectic seizure in his Union Steet shop the preceding Friday. He was 52 years old at the time of his death. He was born in the parish of Ordiquhill and his father was a shoemaker named James Raffan.
He served his apprenticeship in Portsoy with a draper called James Guthrie before coming to Aberdeen. He worked with Messers J. & A. Gibb and Mr James Saint, warehousemen and silk mercers, prior to starting his own business as a boot and shoe merchant in Market Street and then Union Street.
Beyond his business, Raffan was deeply involved in religious and philanthropic work. He was a force in the establishment of Union Grove Baptist Church and was connected to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, as a life member, the Aberdeen Association for Improving the Condition of the Poor, the Seabank Home, and Stronach's Close Mission. He was married and had a daughter and two sons.
Above the shop fronts is a sign for Imperial Typewriters. The buildings in this photograph were across the road, just west, from the Capitol Cinema. They are still visible today. In more recent times they have been occupied by general food shops such as the Co-operative and Costcutters. Samuel "Sammy" Martin
2627 A photograph of Samuel Martin taken from East Neuk Chronicles by William Skene (1905). Martin was the self proclaimed "Hatter to the People" and a well known figure in his day. His hat shop was located at 34 Union Street. He died on Saturday 7th January 1888 and is buried in Nellfield Cemetery. A book about his life by Edward Ranson was published in 1996 called The Mad Hatter of Aberdeen: The Life and Times of Samuel Martin. Nuart 2018: Rustico, Union Row
2733 An artwork created by Portuguese artist Bordalo II for the Nuart 2018 Festival that ran from 12th to 15th April of that year.
The artwork, depicting a colourful unicorn made from end-of-life materials, is on the eastern side of the Italian restaurant Rustico. The restaurant sits at the junction of Summer Street and Union Row. The words next to the Unicorn read "Endangered dream".
This photograph was taken on 10th June 2018. Dee Village Electricity Works
2883 A photograph showing the newly constructed interior of the Dee Village Electricity Works taken on 20th March 1901.
An electric conveyor belt with carts, and later a railway, brought vast quantities of cheap-quality coal from storage bunkers to heat the station's boilers. John S. Reid in Mechanical Aberdeen (1990) states that up to 20 tons of coal an hour was supplied to the furnaces.
Each boiler is marked "Aberdeen Electricity Works", is numbered, and has the date of installation - 1901. The figure to the left of the image looks like James Alexander Bell, the City Electrical Engineer.
This image is from an album of photographs held by Aberdeen City Libraries detailing the construction of the Dee Village Electricity Works. Walford Bodie
2996 In the late-Victorian and Edwardian periods, at the height of music hall variety, Dr Walford Bodie M.D. was one of the most famous and highly paid entertainers in Britain.
He remains an enigmatic and charismatic figure in the history of the North East. Born Samuel Murphy Bodie at 33 George Street, Aberdeen on 11 June 1869, he was the son of a journeyman baker called William Bodie and his wife Margaret and received his education at Robert Gordon's College.
He went on to become a leading showman, hypnotist, ventriloquist, controversial 'bloodless surgeon' and was billed variously as The Electric Wizard, The Modern Miracle Worker of the North, and The Most Remarkable Man on the Earth.
At Aberdeen City Libraries we hold a family photograph album that offers an insight into the life and times of Bodie and his amazing family.
The inscription on this image reads "To Dear Nan with Fondest Love Sam". Street entertainer
3346 We believe this photograph shows a man historically known as Fool Friday entertaining a group of children and adults outside a house in Aberdeen. Fool Friday was a street vendor who sold ice cream in summer and hot chestnuts in winter. He may have also played a barrel piano as shown here.
Fool Friday was an often seen, distinctive character on the streets of Aberdeen. References to him in recorded oral history and newspapers suggest he sold his goods around the town centre, including at the Castlegate. He appears to have been around in the earlier years of the 20th century, between the two world wars. Little seems to be known, or recorded, about the life of this intriguing figure.
He is mentioned in an article of reminiscences by Arthur Bruce from the Leopard magazine of December 1986/January 1987. Bruce writes "I am reminded of another worthy who lived round the corner in Harriet Street, an Ice Cream Mannie, with a home and family. Of Italian origins he was known as 'Fool Friday' - nothing to do with being stupid, I may add, simply the local dialect for foul or dirty. Legend had it that the nickname was well deserved, but as a child I was never aware of his less than hygienic approach to the business of selling ice cream from a 'cairtie'. I have never solved the mystery of the 'Friday' part, although I should be delighted to hear from anyone who knows the answer."
It is possible that this photograph shows not Fool Friday, but someone else entirely. A letter in the Evening Express of 30th October 1979, looking back to this earlier time, describes a man known as Can-Tam who played a barrel organ in the streets. The letter writer suggests that Can-Tam's organ was smashed by a tram and subsequently replaced by the council.
A suggestion received through social media and subsequent further research indicates that this image may show Guiseppe, or Joseph, Bordone (1872-1957). He was an eating house keeper and an ice-cream and chestnuts vendor. A brief mention in the Evening Express newspaper of 15th March 1994, page 8, suggests that Bordone may have been known as Fool Friday, but this is uncertain.
This photograph was printed as a postcard and these were perhaps sold to the families visited by the entertainer. This postcard was lent to Aberdeen City Libraries by Bill Cheyne so that we could create and preserve a digital copy for public use. Aberdeen Cinemas: Coliseum / New Kinema / Belmont
3433 An Aberdeen Journals Archive image of the Belmont Cinema in 1952.
The building that now houses the Belmont Filmhouse was originally built in 1896 as a Trades Hall to a design by architects Alexander Ellis and Robert Gordon Wilson.
The grey granite ashlar entrance at 49-51 Belmont Street leads to the main building, best seen from Union Terrace and Rosemount Viaduct. With multiple floors, the building makes full use of the different levels of the Denburn valley. Historic Environmental Scotland's statement of special interest for the building notes its tall and narrow design and bartizan towers at its far end, describing it as "a distinctive piece of architecture."
Michael Thomson explains that the Trades Hall provided much needed accommodation for meetings, social events and lectures. The main hall originally featured ceiling paintings by Robert Douglas Strachan (1875-1950), who went on to become an acclaimed stained-glass artist.
The construction of the hall was an ambitious and costly undertaking for Aberdeen's labour movement. This led to the hall being increasingly rented out for commercial performances, including cinematographic showings.
William Walker, a local cinematographic pioneer who was also a successful bookseller, leased out the building's main hall as a picture house. The Coliseum was opened on 22 August 1910 by Messrs Walker and Company and so began the building's long life as a cinema.
In July 1911 Glasgow's J. J. Bennell took over control of the Coliseum. Popular features of the venue during Walker and Bennell's time included short "topicals" that documented local life and live variety acts. Thomson explains that Bennell was also a pioneer of Saturday morning matinees for children.
In August 1913 Dove Paterson, another local pioneer who had opened Aberdeen's first permanent cinema on Shiprow, took over at the Coliseum. Paterson died unexpectedly in May 1916 and this brought a temporary halt to the Coliseum cinema. It briefly reopened in December of that year under the management of the Trades Hall, but this only lasted a couple of months before the cinema closed again.
The cinema was then managed by veteran singer D. Brown McGill, who made use of his established contacts in variety circles. His tenure saw the venue complementing its programme of film showings with a range of other entertainments including roller skating, boxing and dancing.
On 11th April 1921 the cinema reopened as the New Kinema, under the management of Henry Philips, who had previously run the Picturedrome on Skene Terrace. One interesting performer at the venue in 1929 noted by Michael Thomson was an illusionist called Carletta who conjured up rabbits to give away to patrons as pets.
In 1935 the then proprietors of the New Kinema, James Brebner and George Walker, were involved in the formation of the Caledonian Theatre public company. It was formed to purchase the site of the La Scala cinema and nearby buildings on Union Street with the intention of building a new super-cinema. In time this would become the Majestic.
June 1935 saw the renovation of the New Kinema and renewal of its heating plant, lighting and sound equipment. It reopened as The Belmont on the 24th of that month.
[Information primarily sourced from Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) by Michael Thomson]
Image © Aberdeen Journals Ltd. George Walker
4371 A photographic portrait by George Washington Wilson of Baillie George Walker (1821-1910). It comes from an album of photographs by Wilson of the Aberdeen Town Council of 1883. This is held in the collection of Aberdeen Local Studies at Aberdeen Central Library.
Walker, a good friend of Wilson, was a well-known bookseller, councillor and local cultural figure. He hailed from Huntly before moving to the Granite City.
At a meeting at the Music Hall on on 25th March 1884 Walker seconded the motion of Professor Alexander Bain (1818-1903), a philosopher, early psychologist and independent thinker, for the adoption of the Public Libraries Act by the Town Council. The motion passed with 891 voters in favour and 264 against.
Walker was one of a number of speakers at the opening of Aberdeen's first free public lending library in March 1886, then located in the Mechanics' Institute on Market Street. Praising the preparatory work done by the town's first librarian, Andrew W. Robertson, Walker stated that Robertson had "turned night into day in his efforts and that it was absolutely necessary that he takes a well-deserved holiday during the summer."
Walker remained a champion of the library service for the rest of his life. He donated his extensive 21 volume journal to the library and these remain in the Local Studies collection. These idiosyncratic volumes are a unique cornucopia of local history and culture. Treasure 12: How to Stamp Out Typhoid booklet
182 This booklet is a reminder of a troubled period in city's past. In 1964 Aberdeen suffered one of the largest outbreaks of Typhoid in recent British history. Over 500 people were admitted to city hospitals for treatment of the infectious disease. The majority of patients were quarantined for at least four weeks before being discharged. The outbreak was traced back to a contaminated tin of corned beef which was imported from Argentina, then chopped up and sold in the William Low grocer on Union Street.
Thankfully the outbreak was successfully contained and there were no fatalities. The all clear was given on 17th June 1964, 28 days after the first notification. Public health announcements played a significant part in the city's approach to tackling the outbreak. Dr Ian A. G. MacQueen, Aberdeen's Medical Officer of Health, became a well-known figure with regular appearances in print and on television and radio on the importance of good hygiene.
The How to Stamp out Typhoid booklet was the initiative of Aberdeen businessman R. A. Williamson. He was director of a wholesale firm that supplied small grocers in the north east and received many enquiries from his clients on how best to combat the outbreak. Williamson asked Macqueen who was unable to provide guidelines so, in collaboration with the health and welfare department, they created this 11 page health information booklet. It had a print run of 45,000 copies, was supported by Aberdeen Chamber of Commerce and illustrated by the Evening Express. The illustrations feature the paper's character Wee Alickie, a die-hard supporter of Aberdeen Football Club.
In the introduction MacQueen wrote:
"The Stopping of the typhoid outbreak is principally a matter of good personal hygiene by everyone, and particularly of good personal hygiene by all food handlers.
"In an effort to assist every section of the community in our area a short question and answer brochure has been hurriedly compiled, together with a Hygiene Check List, which should prove most useful to all establishments.
"Members of the Aberdeen Chamber of Commerce, food wholesalers, bacteriologists, health education officers and journalists have collaborated to rush this through. This brochure is therefore backed by their combined knowledge and experience. Please read it, study it and try to follow the advice that it gives."
The outbreak adversely affected Aberdeen's reputation in the UK and around the world. This in turn had an economic impact for the city, particularly on tourism. After the all clear was given the Queen came to the city to demonstrate that Aberdeen was a safe place to visit and that life had returned to normal.
Treasure 26: Sweet Red Riding Hood, His Majesty's Theatre, 1906
199 Monday 3 December 1906, 7.30pm. His Majesty's Theatre opens its doors to a brilliant audience and a grand production of the pantomime "Red Riding Hood". Our month's treasure features the pantomime's "Book of Words" printed to promote the event. Few things have been more intimately associated with Christmas than the popular family entertainment known by the name of pantomime.
The word, borrowing of Latin pantomimus (mime, dancer) and coming from the Greek pantóminos ("imitator of all") took the meaning of a drama or play performed without words at the beginning of the 18th Century. Later traditionally performed at Christmas, it incorporates colourful costumes, slapstick comedy, songs and audience participation...
Plots of pantomimes include a number of stock character types: the "principal boy" (the central young male figure, who is sometimes played by a female actor), the "pantomime dame" (always played by a male actor in drag), the villain and other comic characters. In "Sweet Red Riding Hood" at His Majesty's Theatre in 1906, loud calls were directed at the players; Miss Lyuba Lova, a reportedly fascinating Red Riding Hood, Miss Winifried Harbord as Boy Blue and Mr Willie Garvey who made a most amusing Mother Hubbard.
By selecting "Red Riding Hood" for the opening pantomime, the director of His Majesty Theatre, Mr Robert Arthur, made a happy hit as the traditional children's story attracted many people, young and old. Because it was a pantomime, the legend got almost lost in the musical and operatic melange but the performance was well applauded by both the public and the press. The pantomime, written by Frank Dix and composed by Jullien H. Wilson, was divided into two acts - the first in four scenes and the second in five scenes. The "Book of Words" contains the script, photographs of the actors and some local adverts.
For the first two nights of the pantomime, bookings were reserved for Debenture and Preference shareholders only, of which there were a considerable number, as nearly all the money for the new building has been raised locally. The pantomime, which ran till the end of the year, was greeted with whole-hearted applause from start to finish.
Treasure 38: The J. T. McIntosh Collection
207 J. T. McIntosh was a pen name of James Murdoch Macgregor (1925-2007). Born in Paisley, MacGregor moved to Aberdeen with his family at the age of 7 and stayed in the city for the rest of his life. He studied at Aberdeen Grammar School and graduated from the University of Aberdeen with an honours degree in English and literature.
After leaving education he taught music and English at Aberdeen Grammar School and became a journalist for the Bon Accord Magazine and sub-editor of the Press and Journal newspaper. MacGregor was a prolific writer from a young age and developed his skills producing many early short stories.
After finding success submitting stories to science fiction magazines on both sides of the Atlantic, MacGregor became a full time writer in 1952. He borrowed the pseudonym J. T. McIntosh from an old school friend and from September 1951 this became his most common pen name.
Aberdeen Local Studies has collected copies of many of his better known works, including editions from around the world. His science fictions novels from the 1950s are his best remembered: World Out of Mind (1953), Born Leader (1954), One in Three Hundred (1954) and The Fittest (1955). He published regularly until the late 1970s.
To accompany our wide selection of J. T. McIntosh works we have a collection of material on the author assembled by pupils and teachers from Torry Academy. The above biography has drawn heavily on their excellent work. We also hold a copy of a fascinating interview from 1986 in which MacGregor discusses his life and work. The National Library of Scotland has a significant collection of his written works too and in 2010 acquired his literary papers and correspondence.
MacGregor remains a neglected figure, awaiting the recognition deserving of this prolific Aberdeen author. Treasure 48: Tuberculosis Exhibition Poster
219 In March 1912 an exhibition on the infectious disease tuberculosis was held in the Music Hall on Union Street. This striking poster, with the headline 'War on consumption', advertised the six day event and the accompanying series of lectures.
The exhibition was organised by the Town Council of Aberdeen and the National Association for the Prevention of Consumption. The majority of the exhibition was brought to the city by the latter party with local additions from the Aberdeen Public Health Department, the pathological and public health laboratories of the University of Aberdeen and the Aberdeen Mothers' and Babies' Club.
The exhibition arrived in Aberdeen on the 16 March from Dundee where it had been visited by 30,000 people. It had also toured Glasgow, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Hull.
The exhibits were arranged in the Music Hall's Ball Room and Square Room by Mr Haughton, the organising secretary, with assistance by officials of the Public Health Department. The exhibition included two full sized model rooms. Living conditions such as good ventilation, fresh air and sunlight were considered vital in combating the disease. A "bad room" was modelled on a real property in the East End of London.
Tuberculosis was a grave health concern at the time. The poster states that "During the past Ten Years in Aberdeen 1997 persons died from Consumption, and 1039 from other forms of Tuberculosis." In a preview of the exhibition from 19 March, the Aberdeen Journal wrote "The object of the exhibition is to draw attention to the enormous wastage of life and work caused by tuberculosis in its various forms; to show how the disease is caused and spread; and to illustrate the methods of cure and the precautions for its prevention."
The importance of the exhibition was further stressed in a later article which stated: "There is no single disease that causes among civilian communities so many deaths and manifests itself in such various forms, and nothing can be more desirable than to bring home to the masses of people how the deadly scourge can best be prevented or checked. In Aberdeen alone the number of deaths yearly from all forms of tuberculosis is about 270, and of these about two-thirds, or 180, are due to pulmonary tuberculosis. The disease usually lasts long, and the number of definite diseases attributable to it at any one time in the city is probably not less than four or even five times as large as the deaths."
The exhibition was opened by the Principal of the University of Aberdeen, George Adam Smith, and was accompanied by a series of daily public lectures by experts on the disease. Each day's lecture was followed by cinematograph presentations illustrating the precautions taken in connection to tuberculosis. The lectures were held next-door to the Music Hall in the Aberdeen Y.M.C.A. Hall.
At the close of the "six day crusade against tuberculosis", Lord Provost Maitland described the exhibition and lecture series as "Magnificent" and the Journal stated that the success of the event, "judged by popularity, is beyond all doubt." In total 39,960 attended over the six days, placing Aberdeen behind only Hull which was open for an extra day. Approximately 20,000 health pamphlets were disseminated around the city, including 15,000 catalogues freely distributed by the Public Health Committee. A copy of this catalogue, which includes an instructive article from Hay, is kept in the collection of Aberdeen Local Studies. Treasure 79: Cosmo Mitchell Collection
290 Adam "Cosmo" Mitchell was born at Kennethmont in 1860. Raised on a croft, little is known of his early childhood but by the age of 21, he had become a dancing master teaching in several areas near his home.
By the end of 1881, Mitchell had brought his dance classes to Aberdeen. Using rooms in the Music Hall for instruction, he taught children and adults in increasingly popular classes.
His professional associations with local schools, as well as local, regional and international societies, also helped strengthen his professional reputation and furthered his integrity as an authority on dancing and, by 1895-6, he was creating his own dances.
Mitchell joined the newly-formed Imperial Society of Dance Teachers in 1904. By the following year, he had been elected as vice-president and continued to be re-elected in that post for many years.
In 1915, Mitchell published A Guide to Ballroom Dancing. In 1919, Mitchell's wife died. A key part of his business life, the loss of his wife led to the immediate cessation of his teaching in schools. By 1924, he had retired from teaching altogether. Mitchell died in 1932 and bequeathed his entire professional library of dance textbooks, notebooks and ephemera to Aberdeen City Libraries.
Our Treasure showcases some of the items from this collection. Patricia Ballantyne produced a thesis on the development of Scottish dance, utilising much of the Cosmo Mitchell collection. Her thesis Regulation and Reaction is available to view in the Information Centre. It is largely due to her research that we are able to explore the life of this little-known local celebrity.
Find out about the marketing ploys adopted by Mitchell, and the origins of his middle name, in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on the touchscreens in Central, Airyhall, Tillydrone and Mastrick libraries. Treasure 120: Walford Bodie
343 In the late-Victorian and Edwardian periods, at the height of music hall variety, Dr Walford Bodie M.D. was one of the most famous and highly paid entertainers in Britain. He remains an enigmatic and charismatic figure in the history of the North East. Born Samuel Murphy Bodie at 33 George Street, Aberdeen on 11 June 1869, he went on to become a leading showman, hypnotist, ventriloquist, controversial 'bloodless surgeon', and was billed variously as The Electric Wizard, The Modern Miracle Worker of the North, and The Most Remarkable Man on Earth.
Our treasure is a photograph album held by Aberdeen City Libraries that offers an insight into the life and times of Bodie and his amazing family. Walford Bodie was for much of his career the headline performer of an extended and shifting company of artists. Members of his family, and in particular those of his wife, often played important roles in the Bodie Show. In 1890 Bodie married Jeannie Henry (1869-1931), who performed with Walford as an illusionist and mind-reader called Princess Rubie, until her retirement in 1930. Jeannie and 3 of her sisters went on to play important parts in the Bodie show. One of her sisters was Annie "Nan" Henry (1880-1970) and it is her album that we now hold in the library.
The album is a large volume, bound in dark green leather. Within floral endpapers there are around 101 pages each containing approximately 3 photographs. The images are a mixture of postcards and photographic prints. Most appear to have been sent to Nan Henry while she was living in the Bodie family home in Macduff. Many have signed endearments on the front and carry short messages on the reverse.
To learn more about this unique character, have a browse in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition. Treasure 123: George Washington Wilson in the Highlands and Islands
346 In July 1860, Wilson, accompanied by his friend George Walker, set off on a photographic tour of the west coast of Scotland. They travelled to Inverness, then through the Caledonian Canal. Walker expressed his delight at these new experiences "as we proceeded the scenery got always grander, the mountains loftier and more magnificent". The lack of suitable transport and accommodation had ensured that this wild and mountainous terrain was still largely unexplored by the mid-1800s and had not yet been exploited as a tourist destination. When Wilson began to visit these more remote areas they were still well off the main tourist track but his photographs which captured the grandeur of the landscape brought them to more general attention and increased their popularity for visitors. Although Wilson's views of the spectacular Highland scenery are impressive, his skilful portraits of the people and their way of life provide a valuable record of these remote areas in the late 1800s.
See more of these fascinating photographs in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on the touchscreen. Justice Street
397 Correspondent Ed Fowler has been in touch to inform us that this drawing is by Andrew Gibb Jr. and shows John Black's house, shop and museum on Justice Street (or the Justice Port as this part of the street was known).
John Black worked as a boot and shoe maker and dealer. He was born in 1799 in Manchester and died in 1859 in Aberdeen. A substantial account of his life, work and character is given by his friend William Skene in East Neuk Chronicles (1905, page 35).
Black was a well-known, and somewhat eccentric, Aberdeen figure. Skene writes "Not to give some detailed account of John Black would be as unpardonable as to enact the play of Hamlet with the prince left out." |