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George Jamesone's House
93 George Jamesone's House in Schoolhill. This house was generally believed to be the residence as well as the property of George Jamesone, the painter, known as the Scottish Van Dyck. By the 1880s it had become a lodging house, and was demolished in 1886. The site is now marked by a plaque on the buildings which replaced it. George Jamesone's House
94 George Jamesone's House in Schoolhill, c. 1885. This house was generally believed to be the residence as well as the property of George Jamesone, the painter, known as the Scottish Van Dyck. By the 1880s it had become a lodging house, and was demolished in 1886. Its site is now marked by a plaque on the buildings which replaced it. George Jamesone's House, Schoolhill
114 George Jamesone's House in Schoolhill. This house was generally believed to be the residence as well as the property of George Jamesone, the painter, known as the Scottish Van Dyck. The building was demolished in 1886 and its site is now marked by a plaque on the buildings which replaced it. Powis Gateway, Old Aberdeen
165 Powis Gateway, Old Aberdeen. These curious towers stand at the gate leading to Powis Lodge, almost opposite King's College, Old Aberdeen. They were constructed by John Leslie of Powis, who succeeded his father, Hugh Leslie of Powis, the builder of Powis House (1802).
John Leslie succeeded his father in 1812, and the towers were finished in 1834. The crescent on the top of one of the towers is the crest of the Frasers, the predecessors of the Leslies in the property of Powis.
As indicated in the bottom right, this etching of the gateway is by Aberdeen artist Henry Jackson Simpson (1893-1963), known professionally as Jackson Simpson. He was a prolific and successful local artist who specialised in etchings and watercolours of architecture, land and seascapes and wildlife.
Simpson died at his home at 58 Craigton Road, aged 70, on 28th March 1963. His obituary, which gives an account of his life, featured in the next day's Press & Journal.
He was a native of Aberdeen, the son of William Jackson, an art dealer in Diamond Street. He trained as a lithographer and joined his father in business. He served in WWI with the Northumberland Fusiliers and was awarded the Military Cross for bravery.
In 1935 he took over the family business following the death of his father. He was well travelled around Aberdeenshire and Kincardineshire and this is reflected in his art. University related subjects such as Marischal College, King's College and, here, the Powis Gateway, were among his most well known works.
A keen sportsperson, and prominent freemason, he also set-up the Craigton Club and was highly involved with the Northern Arts Club.
An article titled 'The charming story of Jackson Simpson: Scotland's celebrated etcher' featured on the Press & Journal website, in partnership with the McEwan Gallery near Ballater, on 8th June 2022. The feature was produced to highlight an exhibition of Simpson's work at the aforementioned gallery. Torry Brickworks chimney
309 A photograph showing the largest of the three substantial chimneys stalks that were located at the brick and tile works in Torry, located between Sinclair Road and Victoria Road.
This is one of three photographs on the Silver City Vault taken during the demolition of this Torry landmark on Saturday 12th September 1903. A full account of the demolition can be read in the Aberdeen Daily Journal from 14/09/1903, page 6.
The report tells us that the hexagonal stalk was 175 feet in height, consisted of 155,00 bricks and weighed 500 tons. The demolition was overseen by Mr Peter Tawse, a well known contractor.
Two years previously in 1901, the Seaton Brick and Tile Company had relocated their works from the site in Torry to Balgownie.
Seaton Brick and Tile Company was formed in 1884 after taking over the Northern Patent Brick and Tile Co., which operated a works at Seaton Links. They moved to the Torry works shortly afterwards.
The company continued operation at Balgownie until going into voluntary liquidation on Friday 1st August 1924. This was reported, with a short history of the company, in the next day's Press & Journal (page 6). The Puffing Briggie
532 A scene of change and renovation in the Denburn Valley. The image looks south from Union Bridge over the suburban platforms of the old Aberdeen Joint Railway Station. The old station's large, curved roof can be seen in the background.
The area we are looking at has seen much change since this time. It is now largely covered by the 1960s retail development on the south side of the bridge, the later Trinity Centre, the development of Wapping Street and Denburn Road, and the building of Atholl House. Though many of the buildings of note we can see in this image are still visible today.
The tall buildings on the far right are the rear of those on Bridge Street. The small street in front of them, going up to Guild Street, is the start of College Street. It is now a partially pedestrianised lane that goes under Wapping Street. The building at the top of this street is the classical style suburban ticket office, built 1909 and now home to Tiffany Hair & Beauty.
Going west along Guild Street's two span road bridge we come to the Great North of Scotland Railway Company's headquarters. This was designed by architects Ellis & Wilson and built in 1894. It is now part of the Station Hotel, along with number 78 next door. The building retains many of its original features. The Guild Street entrance to the Trinity Centre now runs along the western side of this building.
The image also shows features that are no longer present. The covered walkway that can be seen on the near right of the image enabled direct access from the station's central platform to the Palace Hotel on Union Street. The hotel was owned by the Great North of Scotland Railway Co. (GNSR). The walkway was vaulted to pass over the tracks at sufficient height.
Consulting The Joint Station: Aberdeen Station, 1867-1992 (c1992), this image probably dates from 1912 when, in additional to commencing the reconstruction of the Joint Station, the GNSR also laid new loading docks and carriage storage siding in the Hadden Mills site (left of image). This was to ensure that the main station buildings were used purely for passenger traffic.
The walkway that linked Windmill Brae and the Green, known affectionately as the Puffing Briggie, can be seen in the centre of the image. It looks like a section on the left has been temporarily demolished as part of the ongoing work.
The sidings on the extreme left were used for cleaning carriages in the later 20th century. One of our correspondents recounts using the often-unattended carriages, accessible when entering the station from the Green, as an unusually exciting and plush playground during their youth in the late-1940s. Fountainhall Well
635 This small cistern house was erected in connection with Aberdeen's first city water supply. Water had previously been obtained from the Loch but by 1706 it had become polluted and lead pipes were laid to bring water from Carden's Haugh Well. Six cisterns or fountain-houses were built along the old Fountainhall Road and water was conveyed from these sources to the Water House in Broad Street until 1866. A new scheme was eventually introduced and in 1903 the Fountainhall Well was taken from its original site and rebuilt in Duthie Park. Trinity Lane
1208 Trinity Lane, Aberdeen, c.1975, from Exchange Street.
The Trinity place-name comes from the area once being the site of a Trinitarian Friary.
The building to the right in this photograph was once known as Trinity Chapel, or Trinity Parish Church. It was opened for public worship on Sunday 27th April, 1794.
For a number of years, the chapel was an important centre of religious life and activity. The Disruption of 1843 significantly diminished the congregation. The building was subsequently sold by the Presbytery and became the Alhambra Music Hall.
See Gammie's Churches of Aberdeen (1909) for more information on the history of this congregation and building.
A large part of the exterior still stands and the building currently houses Wagley's public house. In this photograph Alex. McKay, electrical appliance showroom, is in occupation. Newspaper notices indicate that the business moved here, from 41 The Green, in 1966.
The building in the centre of the image is best known, as shown here, as a banana warehouse for Knowles & Sons, fruiterers and later as a restaurant and art gallery. It was originally built as a church for Aberdeen's Catholic Apostolic congregation.
MUSA was a restaurant and art space, with a focus on music, throughout the first two decades of the 21st century. It closed down in October 2018.
8th March 2019 saw the opening of a new bar in the building called The Hop & Anchor, specialising in craft beer. It is owned by a company called the Draft House and this is their first pub outside London. The Draft House is owned by Brewdog, the North East beer company. Hazlehead Park
1557 The estate of Hazlehead was purchased by the Aberdeen Town Council at a cost of 40,000 pounds. Over 200 acres were originally woodland but part of this now forms a public golf course. The grounds in the vicinity of the mansion house are attractively laid out and, in the season, a wealth of bloom combines with the grassy lawns, well-trimmed walks and stately trees to make a charming picture. Cullen House from the south-east.
1724 Cullen House is situated in the small town of Cullen on the Moray coast. It occupies a site where, at one time, stood a monastery and later a fortress. The present building dates from 1602 and is an enormously complicated structure which has had various extensions added over the centuries. It was the ancestral home of the Earls of Seafield but they have not resided there since 1975, when it was decided to put the house and its contents up for auction. During the period 1982-85, the house was converted into separate dwelling houses by architect Kit Martin but, in 1987, the building suffered a serious fire and has subsequently been restored. This view was taken from the south-east by local photographer Seivwright when the house was still occupied by the Earls of Seafield. King's College Chapel and Manse
1743 Aberdeen University, King's College Chapel and Manse. c.1900.
King's College was founded by Bishop William Elphinstone in 1495, Marischal College was founded as an independent university in 1593. The two formed the University of Aberdeen in the fusion of 1860.
This image shows part of the King's College Campus. King's College Chapel in the background was completed in 1506. Its distinctive crown tower is a well loved site among the university community. The original crown was blown down in a storm in 1633 but was quickly replaced.
On the lawn in the foreground can be seen a large manse. Until the mid-20th century, a house that went with the job was still a substantial attraction for some professors. The manse stood here until just before the First World War. The lawn is now a popular venue for students relaxing in fine weather. Aberdeen Cinemas: Picture House / Gaumont
3406 An Aberdeen Journals Archive photograph showing the exterior of the Gaumont Cinema at 181 Union Street in October 1972. Promotion for Doomwatch, the British science-fiction film, Cabaret, starring Liza Minelli and The Concert for Bangladesh can all be seen.
This image dates from when the Rank Organisation, the cinema's owners, applied to Aberdeen City Council for permission to demolish the venue and redevelop the site for shops and office space.
As detailed in Michael Thomson's book Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) the Rank Organisation had a special department that considered cinema sites they owned that could be profitably redeveloped by the company. Aberdeen was experiencing a pre-oil property boom and the early 1970s saw the closure and redevelopment of a number of cinemas.
The final night of the Gaumont was Saturday 6th October 1973. The last film to be shown as The Lovers with Paula Wilcox and Richard Beckinsale. This photograph was used in the preview of the cinema's final night in the Evening Express of the day before.
The majority of the cinema was demolished not long after. The façade of the upper floors was retained as it was listed as of architectural and historic interest. The site laid empty for some time due to the financial recession of 1974-75 and subsequent uncertainty over its occupancy. In 1976 the site was redeveloped as a Job Centre and shops.
[Information primarily sourced from Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) by Michael Thomson]
Image © Aberdeen Journals Ltd. Aberdeen Cinemas: Picturedrome / Cinema House
3413 This photograph shows the Picturedrome/Cinema House building in the mid-to-late 1970s, after it had ceased being a cinema. As with many cinemas at the time, it was converted into a bingo hall. In 1981 it was rechristened Casino Bingo.
In the Evening Express of 22nd December 1986 it was announced that Coral Social Clubs of Nottingham had purchased the Kingsways on King Street and Casino Bingo on Skene Terrace. Both were former cinemas owned by James F. Donald (Aberdeen Cinemas) that were then operational as bingo halls.
The chairman of James F. Donald (Aberdeen Cinemas), Richard Donald, confirm the sale of the venues and expressed sadness to see them go, particularly the old Cinema House hall that had been in the family firm for over 50 years and that he had managed as a 14-year-old. Both venues were retained as bingo halls by Coral Social Clubs, which later became known as Gala Bingo.
In 1995 the Cinema House building was redeveloped and opened as a 350-capacity live entertainment centre. It was named the Playhouse after the old Donald owned cinema located at the west end of Union Street.
The new Playhouse offered live music, cabaret and dancing. At the time of opening a spokesperson for the owners, Balgownie Development Company Ltd., said "We're offering a full night's entertainment where they can come in have a meal and enjoy a night of cabaret and dancing all under the one roof". Interior changes were kept to a minimum in the redevelopment to retain the atmosphere (Evening Express, 21/10/1995, p. 4).
1995 also saw the opening of the Stage Door Restaurant in the North Silver Street side of the building. The eatery was from the same team that operated Aberdeen's Courtyard Restaurant and retained a number of design features from its time as a cinema. The restaurant had an impressive large bowed ceiling and theatre related wall illustrations. This space was later occupied by a computer gaming and esports hub called Engage Gaming. In 2020 this company changed their name to Reset Gaming and moved to premises on John Street.
After the Playhouse, the main part of the building was occupied by the Forum from 1998 and operated as a well-known concert and events venue. Most recently it was a venue called The Assembly, which sadly closed down in 2019. Aberdeen Cinemas: Regent / Odeon
3417 The Regent was opened as the second, companion cinema of Jack Poole, after his transformation of the Palace on Bridge Place that had opened in 1931. The Justice Mills location was selected and the cinema was constructed on the eastern end of the historic Upper Mill. A cinema was able to utilise the sloping nature of the site in the way few other projects could.
Michael Thomson in Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) states that work progressed on the new cinema at an excellent rate with virtually all material and labour coming from local sources. The sparkling Rubislaw granite frontage was the work of masons Edgar Gauld of Gilcomston Terrace. Wood for the joinery work came from Sweden and Finland.
The Regent was Aberdeen's first all-new cinema since the Torry Picture House a decade before. It was also the first cinema designed by Thomas Scott Sutherland, who had previously been a designer of, and dealer in, houses, notably the granite bungalows of the Broomhill estate.
The impressive new cinema opened on Saturday 27th February 1932, to an audience mostly of guests, with the main feature being a melodrama called Over the Hill. Reporting on the opening, the Evening Express wrote the following:
"Even though Aberdeen has many magnificent edifices, there is nothing quite so distinctive as the modern design of the front of the new Regent. Fine use has been made of straight lines and curves placed in sharp contrast, and the face that looks through the entrance to Justice Mill Lane on Holburn Street has an imposing dignity about it and yet an elusive gaiety in its composition. It is built of grey granite decorated with bands of red terracotta, and a polished black granite base."
The frontage was floodlit by night and outlined by Aberdeen's neon display. Above the gantry was the large, neon "Regent" sign which made the cinema a beacon at night. The Regent and the Palace were then advertised as "Aberdeen's Super Two".
The Regent's manager John K. Stafford Poole, son of Jack Poole, was aged only 21 when the Regent opened and his innovative promotion and displays became a signature of the cinema. The younger Poole regularly invited the Gordon Highlanders to screenings and in return they would afterwards march, pipes a-skirl, through the cinema and along Union Street back to their barracks.
The Regent proved hugely popular and was soon out-performing the Palace. The success of Poole's Regent prompted Aberdeen Picture Palaces to undertake the creation of their own super-cinema, the Capitol, which would open in 1933. The same year also saw the release of King Kong and the publicity stunt of a human dressed as an ape rampaging on the frontage of the Regent.
On 16th July 1936 it was announced that another southern company called County Cinemas had acquired all the Poole picture houses, those in Devonport, Derby and Plymouth, as well as the Palace and Regent in Aberdeen. In 1939 County Cinemas merged with the larger Odeon chain. In July 1940 the "Regent" sign came down to be replaced with one that read "Odeon". As part of this powerful national circuit, the cinema could rival any in Aberdeen for showing major features.
[Information primarily sourced from Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) by Michael Thomson] Aberdeen Cinemas: Palace
3429 An Aberdeen Journals Archive photograph showing the Palace cinema in 1959. This was just before the venue on Bridge Place was converted into a dance hall.
The original building was designed by John Rust and opened in 1898. It was on the site of an earlier music hall, the People's Palace, which had burned down two years before.
The theatre had shown films as part of variety performances from 1911. It was purchased by the Poole Company, a nationwide wide circuit of cinemas, and reopened as a picture house on 8th April 1929. In 1936 Poole's cinemas, including the Palace, were acquired by County Cinemas, who were later taken over by the Odeon arm of the Rank Organisation.
The Palace closed as a cinema on 14th November 1959. Its final screening was My Uncle Frank with Jacques Tati. The new Palace Ballroom launched on 24th March 1960 as Aberdeen's largest dance hall.
In 1976 the building was converted into a nightclub originally called Fusion. It has since been known as Ritzy's, The Palace, The Institute (2003), Liquid (2012) and ATIK (2018).
[Information primarily sourced from Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) by Michael Thomson]
Image © Aberdeen Journals Ltd. 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. Pitmedden Garden
4207 A photograph showing three boys admiring the fountain at Pitmedden Garden.
Pitmedden Garden is a Natural Trust for Scotland property. Their website describes it as a "re-created Scottish Renaissance walled garden with vibrant floral designs and Museum of Farming Life."
Concerning its history, the website states "the Great Garden dates back to 1675 when it was originally laid out by Sir Alexander Seton." [...] "In the 1950s Pitmedden was gifted to the Trust who re-created the garden based on 17th-century plans after it was ploughed up to grow vegetables during the Second World War and used as a kitchen garden for over 100 years."
This fountain is detailed in an entry on Historic Environment Scotland's CANMORE website (CANMORE ID: 338622). Quoting a guide pamphlet by Dr James Richardson, designer of the garden restoration, it states "In the re-creation of the Great Garden of Pitmedden, the National Trust for Scotland not only has established once again the site of the original fountain but it has erected a further fountain as a focal point in the centre of the Great garden. The sculptured stones that compose this second fountain have an interesting history as seven of them formed, at one time, part of the Cross Fountain of Linlithgow designed and executed by Robert Milne, King's Master Mason, to commemorate King Charles II's Restoration. These detached fragments were given by the Ministry of Works. Three fragments of the original Pitmedden construction have also been worked into the composition of the fountain."
Looking west, a stairway up to Pitmedden's terrace garden and Pitmedden House can be seen in the background.
This image likely dates from the 1970s. It comes from a collection of slides donated to Aberdeen City Libraries by Aberdeen City Council's publicity department. Union Works
4399 A mid-20th century photograph of the Union Works in central Aberdeen. This images looks south east across College Street from a high vantage point and has railway tracks, Poyernook and the hills of Torry in the background.
The factory likely dates from around 1862. A notice from the Aberdeen Herald newspaper of 17th May 1862, page 4, records Alexander Pirie & Sons moving from the Adelphi to their new premises of Union Works, Poyernook.
From the 1860s onwards, the works were owned and operated by Alexander Pirie & Sons, then Pirie, Appleton & Co. and finally Wiggins Teape (Stationery), Ltd.
At the time of this photograph, the works were likely operated by Pirie, Appleton & Co. This image may been sourced from a promotional brochure for the company. In addition to the Union Works, they also had factories at Chadwell Heath in East London and in Dublin, Johannesburg and Cape Town.
As with many significant local enterprises, the operation of Pirie, Appleton & Co. is described in mid-20th century Official Handbooks created for the Corporation of the City of Aberdeen. The volume from 1954 states that the company specialised in manufacturing commercial envelopes, including their successful "River Series."
The company had also recently introduced a quality note-paper to their range called "Mitre Club," which is described as a brand of social stationery. They additionally manufactured different types of account and manuscript books, including a system of loose leaf binding known as "Swing-o-Ring." Other products include "printers' cards, paper collars, commerial heading, filing folders, and record cards." (pages 166-167).
In this image, a large sign can be seen on the north side of the factory building that reads "The mark of good stationery" with an Aberdeen terrier. This black Scottie dog, closely associated with the city, was adopted as a trade-mark of the company in the mid-20th century.
Wiggins Teape and Co. had amalgamated with Alexander Pirie & Sons in 1922 (see Aberdeen Daily Journal, 30th March 1922, page 4). Alex. Pirie & Sons and Pirie, Appleton & Co. were subsidiary companies of Wiggins Teape.
The Union Works site closed down not long after 1969 when Wiggins Teape began construction of a replacement factory at Dyce (see Evening Express, 4th September 1969, page 7).
The site was sold and the works were demolished to make way for the multi-storey office block, St. Machar House. Built by Sir Robert Alpine & Sons for Neale House Properties (Aberdeen) Limited, to a design by architects Mackie, Ramsay & Taylor, construction was well under way by Autumn 1975 (Evening Express, 2nd August 1975, 'Business Bureau' page 6).
Below the southern end of St. Machar House, the rest of the old Union Works site is occupied by the College Street Car Park, built by Arup and Partners (Scotland), with consulting architects Baxter, Clark & Paul, and opened on 4th July 1991. Treasure 54: On the Planting of Trees in Towns
229 Aberdeen was something of a pioneer when it came to the planting of street trees in Scotland. An article on the subject in the Aberdeen Journal from 1905 states: "As is constantly remarked by visitors, Aberdeen has great reason to be proud of its trees. In some respects, it can, in this direction, show the way to other Scottish cities."
Alongside St. Andrews, Aberdeen led the way in the extensive and effective planting of trees on city streets. This was largely due to the work of Aberdeen's first park superintendent, Robert Walker. The 1905 article states: "To those who know Mr Walker only as the busy man in charge of Victoria and Westburn Parks, the Union Terrace Gardens, the Links, and the grounds of Robert Gordon's College, the fact of his being an author may be new, but it is something to which Mr Walker can look back with pride, because the publication of 'On the Planting of Trees in Towns' was the means of stimulating the movement for tree-planting, not only in Aberdeen, but also in a good many more places in Scotland."
Walker's book, printed in 1890 at the University of Aberdeen, consists of two papers read before The North of Scotland Horticultural Association in 1889. The volume was issued by the two Aberdeen members of Mr Ruskin's Guild of Saint George after a strong request to publish was made by those unable to attend Walker's lectures. The book argues that trees should be planted not just in parks, but in city streets too: "The slight good effected by fine parks placed here or there towards the outskirts of a city is as nothing to what might be carried out by so planning and planting streets and roads, that the air might be comparatively pure and free, and the eye refreshed with green at almost every point."
The Aberdeen Journal states that the value of the book is "very much materially enhanced by illustrations of a number of our best-known trees from drawings from Sir George Reid, lithographed by Messrs Thomson and Duncan." George Reid (1841-1913) was a nationally renowned Aberdeen-born painter. A year after the publication of the book, in 1891, he was elected as the president of the Royal Scottish Academy and knighted by Queen Victoria. In 1905 he played a significant role in the extension of Aberdeen Art Gallery, determining the layout and contents of the building. He died at his home in Somerset in 1913 and was buried in St Peter's Cemetery, Aberdeen.
On the publication of Walker's book a copy was send to keen arboriculturist and habitual Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone. The 1905 Aberdeen Journal article reports that, in his acknowledgement of the gift, Gladstone wrote that "he would read the book with the greatest pleasure, the subject being one in which he took a special interest." At the time, the post card with acknowledgment could still be seen framed in Mr Walker's house. The Journal article also states that the book has been unobtainable for a long time but that a copy is available to view at the Reference Department of the Public Library. Over a hundred years later this is still correct and the item now sits in our Local Studies collection.
"Trees not only afford shade and shelter," states Walker's book "but adorn the landscape and purify the air. They improve the heart as well as the taste; they refresh the body and enlighten the spirit. And the more refined the taste is, the more exquisite is the gratification that may be enjoyed from every leaf-building tree." Treasure 90: Torry and Ferryhill libraries
302 Both Torry and Ferryhill Branch Reading Rooms opened on 19 December 1903 as part of the General Extension Scheme to provide a library presence in what were regarded as outlying areas of the City.
In November 1901 the Council Finance Committee sanctioned the acquisition of a piece of ground at the corner of Victoria Road and Grampian Road where Torry Library would be built. A site was secured at the corner of Fonthill Road and the Hardgate in August 1901 for Ferryhill Library.
Both libraries were supported by Andrew Carnegie who, having previously donated money for the building of the Central Library, promised £1750 for each of the Branch reading rooms.
It was the aim of the Library Committee that the Branches should be "educative and attractive in every sense" and with this in mind the walls were hung with reproductions of works by artist such as Constable, Turner, Joseph Farquharson and others.
The success of the new branches was very apparent from the statistics. In the first nine months of opening, attendance at Torry numbered 31,567 with 63,711 at Ferryhill. Once the delivery stations were set up, book issues (including those for Old Aberdeen) totalled 13,530 volumes of which over 10,000 were fiction. By 1939, Torry and Ferryhill were well on their way to becoming fully established branch libraries.
Take a look at the early history of the libraries in the Treasures exhibition on the interactive screen. Treasure 125: Tivoli Posters
348 In 2017, we celebrate 145 years since the Tivoli Theatre was built. Known at that time as Her Majesty's Theatre, this place of entertainment delighted generations of Aberdonians with its shows by artists well known on local and national scales. Many companies used to come back season after season, receiving a warm welcome every time from an enthusiastic audience. Over the years, Aberdeen City Libraries has built up a varied collection of many posters and ephemera of this extraordinary theatre.
Showcasing these posters allows us to look closer into the history of one of Aberdeen's most famous cultural venues.
To see some more posters from the Tivoli and learn about its rich history, check out our interactive exhibition on the touchscreen! St. Machar's Cathedral
353 An etching of St. Machar's Cathedral in Old Aberdeen by James G. Murray, A.R.E. (1863-1906).
Murray was the son of an Aberdeen house carpenter and was educated at the city's Free East Church School. After leaving school he attended classes at the Mechanics Institute and Gray's School of Art. He also taught at the latter for some time.
While in Aberdeen Murray undertook a large number of well received, black and white etchings. He later moved to Glasgow and worked as a lithographic print designer. He specialised in book illustration and poster work.
He was elected an associate of the Royal Painter-Etcher Society and contributed to their exhibitions. He also regularly exhibited work in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Stirling.
He was just over 40 years old when he died. For a more detailed account of his life and work please see his obituary in the Peterhead Sentinel and Buchan Observer (18 August 1906, p5).
This framed etching was kindly donated to the library in 2016. City Election. At the numerous and highly respectable Meeting of the Burgesses, Heritors, Merchants, and Inhabitants of the City of Aberdeen
508 This broadside likely dates to June or July 1832, as it refers to a city council meeting on 26th June 1832. The meeting was attended by burgesses (a guild of inhabitants of the Burgh), monied people, merchants and general inhabitants of Aberdeen. The meeting was held at the Royal Hotel and regarded the motion of Captain Carmichael. This was likely Robert Carmichael, captain of 42nd regiment, resident of Union Terrace (City of Aberdeen, and its Vicinity, 1831-1832, p. 23).
Alexander Crombie (1762-1840), a highly successful teacher, chaired the meeting. The meeting aimed to pass motions in support of James Hadden, provost of Aberdeen, in anticipation of his election bid for the Aberdeen seat in the House of Commons. This was a new seat, formed after the 1832 Scottish Reform Act.
For the prior three decades, the Hadden family had dominated local Aberdeen politics. However, in the run up to 1832, they were coming under increasing pressure from pro-reform Whigs, notably Alexander Bannerman. Bannerman made a variety of allegations against Hadden regarding his practices in local government. The Tories supported Hadden, but in the end he withdrew from the race, and Bannerman was elected to the new seat unopposed (W. Hamish Fraser and Clive H. Lee, Aberdeen 1800-2000: A New History, pp. 178-180).
The motion of the meeting suggested supporting Hadden, celebrating his work in the local council over the decades. The motion was carried. In his speech after the motion, Hadden professes support for necessary reform of the structure of burghs (constituencies), associated with the forthcoming Scottish Reform Act. The meeting thus formed a committee for arranging Haden's election campaign.
This broadside was printed by J. Davidson & Co. of Aberdeen. Union Works
536 An illustration of the Union Works factory on College Street, Aberdeen. This drawing, which looks south across railway tracks outside the Joint Station, is sourced from a book called A Descriptive Account of Aberdeen Illustrated (published by W. T. Pike & Co. in around 1894). This book provides an account of the history and then current operation of Messrs. Alexander Pirie & Sons, owners of the Union Works at the time.
The factory likely dates from around 1862. A notice from the Aberdeen Herald newspaper of 17th May 1862, page 4, records Alexander Pirie & Sons moving from the Adelphi to their new premises of Union Works, Poyernook.
From the 1860s onwards, the works were owned and operated by Alexander Pirie & Sons, then Pirie, Appleton & Co. and finally Wiggins Teape (Stationery), Ltd.
In the late 19th century, the time of the above mentioned book, Messrs. Alex. Pirie & Sons also operated Stoneywood Works at Auchmill, their first and largest site, the Woodside Works and various offices and warehouses around the world. Both Stoneywood and Woodside Works were located on the River Don.
As indicated above the illustration, Union Works primarily produced envelopes and enamelled papers. This would be done with paper created in the firm's Donside factories. A Descriptive Account states that Messrs. Pirie were employing nearly 1000 people at the College Street site and between one third and one half of all envelopes in Britain were being made there. The book additionally asserts that the firm were the first to introduce envelope making machines into Scotland.
The avenue shown in this illustration to the left of the factory runs from Guild Street in the north all the way down and around the south side of the works to the junction of Wellington Road, South College Street and Marywell Street.
The production of envelopes, plus other paper products such as note paper, was continued well into the 20th century by Pirie, Appleton & Co.
The Union Works site closed down not long after 1969 when Wiggins Teape began construction of a replacement factory at Dyce (see Evening Express, 4th September 1969, page 7).
The site was sold and the works were demolished to make way for the multi-storey office block, St. Machar House. Built by Sir Robert Alpine & Sons for Neale House Properties (Aberdeen) Limited, to a design by architects Mackie, Ramsay & Taylor, construction was well under way by Autumn 1975 (Evening Express, 2nd August 1975, 'Business Bureau' page 6).
Below the southern end of St. Machar House, the rest of the old Union Works site is occupied by the College Street Car Park, built by Arup and Partners (Scotland), with consulting architects Baxter, Clark & Paul, and opened on 4th July 1991. |