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Aberdeen Sea Beach
51 The Promenade at Aberdeen Sea Beach, c. 1950 with the Beach Shelter and Beach Bathing Station in the background. Royal visit by Princess Beatrice
315 A photograph showing Princess Beatrice at Aberdeen Music Hall to open a bazaar in aid of the Sick Children's Hospital.
The bazaar took place in the Music Hall on Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th October 1898. Princess Beatrice, then known as Princess Henry of Battenberg, opened the bazaar the day before on Friday 28th October.
The opening ceremony was covered in the Aberdeen Journal of 29th October 1898, page 5. The article states that Beatrice arrived by train at the Joint Station before travelling to the Music Hall from Guild Street by the horse drawn carriage that we can see here.
The route travelled and much of the surrounding area were specially decorated for the occasion. The various businesses and buildings along the route decorated their own premises and many of these decorations are described in the newspaper report.
The city gardeners Peter Harper of Duthie Park and Robert Walker of Victoria Park were tasked with creating floral displays. Harper decorated the interior of the Joint Station and the Music Hall, while Walker decorated the route between the two.
The special royal train arrived at the joint station a couple of minutes before its scheduled time of 12:15pm. Beatrice was greeted at the station by a large civic and military reception and crowds of onlookers.
The newspaper report indicates that travelling in the horse drawn carriage with Beatrice was Miss Minnie Cochrane and Lord William Cecil, both were royal courtiers. The man sat in the carriage is therefore most likely the latter.
Following the opening ceremony, Beatrice was entertained at a luncheon at the Palace Hotel by the directors of the Royal Aberdeen Hospital for Sick Children.
Beatrice and her party returned to Balmoral on a train leaving the station at 2:45pm.
The newspaper also tells us that Messrs. Walker & Company, cinematographers, Bridge Street, filmed the procession as it passed along the railway bridge on Guild Street. Assistant photographers with still cameras captured the rest of proceedings. This photograph was likely taken by one of these assistants.
A sign for Walker & Company can be seen hanging above the Music Hall entrance. This dates the image as belonging to this later royal visit by Princess Beatrice. She previously visited the city on 27th September 1883 to open an earlier bazaar for the Children's Hospital and to open the newly created Duthie Park Old channel of the River Dee
505 The old channel of the River Dee. After years of discussion about the development of the harbour, the Aberdeen Harbour Act of 1868 allowed the Harbour Commissioners to divert the river to the south. The first turf was cut by Lord Provost Leslie on 22nd December 1869. 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. Aberdeen Joint Station exterior view of the main entrance
541 Aberdeen Joint Station exterior view of the main entrance. The Station Hotel (1897 by Ellis and Wilson) is in the background .The station was built between 1913-1916. The engineer in charge was a Mr J. A. Parker. Waterloo Station
641 This photograph shows the corner at the end of Regent Quay in the late 19th century. The building in the centre of the image, with pediment, is the offices of the Great North of Scotland Railway Company and to its left is the entrance to the Waterloo Railway Station.
The railway station was opened by the company on 1st April 1856. It was built to supersede an existing station at Kittybrewster. Waterloo was once the station for all railway passengers and goods going between the city and the north.
Trains coming and going from the south stopped at a nearby, but unconnected station on Guild Street. It had opened two years earlier in 1854 and was operated by rival railway company, the Scottish North-Eastern. Passengers with connecting trains would need to dash along Trinity and Regent Quay or wait for a bus. Connections were not guaranteed.
It took Parliament to settle the differences between the companies. This saw the construction of the Joint Station, opened in November 1867, and the creation of the Denburn Valley Railway. Both Waterloo and Guild Street subsequently became stations for the transport of goods only.
The buildings shown in this photograph were altered and eventually demolished in the 20th century. Remnants of the station can still be seen today in a small yard and the railway line following the old canal path and joining the main tracks heading north at Kittybrewster.
On the right of this image can also be seen an building, likely a goods shed, of the Aberdeen, Newcastle & Hull Steam Company. This passenger ship service was founded in 1865 and had offices at 43 Marischal Street.
The building to the left of Waterloo Station, far left here, was the site of an establishment called Berry's Hotel and served as various pubs until the late 1960s. It looks like it was closed or being refurbished at the time of this photograph.
To the left of this image would be Commerce Street and Regent Quay. Waterloo Quay would begin to its right. Culter
876 This image was taken around 1909 from a hill at the west end of Culter - 7 miles west from Aberdeen looking down on the North Deeside Road towards Banchory. The image shows the cottages known as Clayhills with the houses of Malcolm Road beyond. Hidden in the trees at the right hand side is the statue of Rob Roy overlooking the Leuchar Burn which runs through the wooded valley. Cults Inn, coach house and stables
1020 The cottages on the west side of the Cults Hotel. These were once the coach house and stables for the Cults Inn. They were later occupied as shops, shoemaker, tailor and sweetshop.
The buildings were later taken over by Aberdeen Corporation Water Department and were occupied by their workers at the nearby Cults Pumping Station. In 1960, these buildings were demolished and a new public bar was built for the hotel.
When repairs were being carried out on the ground floor house in 1936, then occupied by a Mr James Donald, the hooks and harness pegs from its time as a stable could still be seen behind the linings. These were all removed at the time. Settmaker at Persley Quarry
1071 The Aberdeen area had many granite quarries, and there was a need for men who had the skill to reduce huge blocks of granite into manageable pieces by chipping it with a variety of hammers, and chisels to produce the required shape and size. In this 1920's photograph we see a settmaker at Persley Quarry on the north side of the River Don in Aberdeen, at his wooden shelter or 'skaithie'. These shelters provided some sort of wind break for these men who had to sit on blocks of granite patiently working on the hard stone. Settmakers made cassies for roads and Aberdeen setts were used to pave streets in London. On his left is a tripod structure which acted like a small crane to lift the bigger stones into position. Note the lack of protective safety equipment apart from some extra padding on his knees. Central School (Aberdeen Academy)
1458 In 1901, Aberdeen School Board planned to build a new central higher grade school and plans were drawn up by John A. O. Allan for a building on the corner of Schoolhill and Belmont Street. The new school was opened in November 1905. It planned to cater for pupils aged 12 - 15 years coming from all the town's elementary schools, with over 1,000 on the roll initially. In 1954, the school changed name to become Aberdeen Academy, and its intake comprised those pupils who successfully passed their 11+ exams in Primary 7. The school closed in 1969 and the pupils moved to the newly built Hazlehead Academy. The building became a Resources centre for the Department of Education and then in the late 1990s became a shopping centre named "The Academy". Five men sit in an early motor bus
1663 This image shows an early motor bus, seated for about 7. Note the handrails for boarding at the back, and the two bench seats. The bus is a Renault. This kind of vehicle would have been used to convey guests between a hotel and a railway station, or to Aberdeen Sea Beach from Market Street.
(Many thanks to Dr Mike Mitchell for this information.) Premises of George Roberts, Upholsterers
1719 Local historian A. G. Duthie has been in touch to identify this shop as being located at 474 Union Street. It features at this address in the 1910-11 Post Office directory for Aberdeen.
The basement access, raised steps, and metal railings are all long gone from the building. This is the case of most of the buildings around this area. There are some that remain further east along Union Street.
The edge of a building that can be seen on the extreme left of the photo is that of the distinctive Waterhouse. It is a four storey tenemental building designed by John Smith and built in 1830. It contained machinery and a large tank to extract and distribute water from the River Dee. It later served as a fire station, carriage and horse hire premises and various banks. Stop 8: Mrs Legge, President Aberdeen Female Radical Association at 41 Queen Street, (meetings held 1839-1841)
2307 Mrs Isabella Wilson Legge, was the wife of James Legge, stonemason, who was the first chairman of Aberdeen Charter Union, the organisation of the Aberdeen Chartists. Mrs Legge set up the Aberdeen Female Radical Association as she wanted votes for all adults - not just men but women too. She presided over 18 young women. They held their meetings at the Temperance Hotel at 41 Queen Street and said in a statement issued by the Female Chartists of Aberdeen (12th November 1841) "while we are compelled to share the misery of our fathers, our husbands, our brothers, and our lovers, we are determined to have a share in their struggles to be free, and to cheer them in their onward march for liberty." Guest treasure: Aberdeen Journals' Photographic Collections
2435 The photographic collections of Aberdeen Journal Ltd span over a century. The photographs were taken to support stories and features in The Press & Journal and Evening Express newspapers - a picture speaks a thousand words after all. However, the accumulated photography has created a historical resource documenting life in the north east and Highlands during a century of change and development. The collection covers everything from the changing landscapes of our towns and cities through to global news events. But it's personal, too. People and their images are at the heart of our stories, be it the children on their first day in a new school through to community events and individual achievements. Your image is probably in the archive somewhere if you look hard enough.
The collection is actively used by our journalists. It provides content for favourites like The Aberdonian and Past Lives features in the Evening Express and historical context and background to stories in The Press & Journal. The collection is also used by external researchers looking for copies of images in which they or their family featured, supporting charities and associations celebrating anniversaries and even to supplement content as featured in The Silver City Vault!
archives@ajl.co.uk
View all the Christmas images from the archive in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on the library touchscreens. The main concourse of the rebuilt station looking north
2640 In the century since the new station opened has
there have been many changes. 1923 saw the
Grouping of the Railways with the GNSR and NBR
becoming part of the London and North Eastern
Railway (LNER) and the Caledonian part of the
London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). In
1948 both were absorbed into the nationalised
British Railways.
The 1930s saw mixed fortunes; new and
improved rolling stock was introduced including
more powerful locomotives. Conversely bus
competition was decimating traffic on branch
lines including Deeside and Buchan; suburban
trains ceased in 1937. During World War 2 all
the glass was removed from the station roof
and replaced by plywood to avoid the effects of
blast and comply with blackout regulations. The
sections were carefully stored under a disused
platform at Fyvie station until the end of the
war. Aberdeen from Torry
2671 A George Washington Wilson photograph of Aberdeen taken from across the River Dee in Torry.
Fishing boats are seen on the south side of the river. The spires of many Aberdeen landmarks are visible in the distance. The building on the far right of the image is the Castlehill Barracks. Fishwives, the Green, Aberdeen
2703 A Valentine's Series postcard showing the view looking westwards from the Green, towards the train station and Bridge Street. This roughly corresponds to the part of the Green, beyond Rennie's Wynd, that now runs underneath the Trinity Centre to the Denburn Road.
This early 20th century image shows a significantly different scene. On the left, a row of fishwives, along the northern wall of Hadden's textile factory, display maritime stock for sale. They are attended by an assembled crowd of shoppers and children.
Beyond can be seen the bridge, known as the Puffing Briggie, that linked the Green and the foot of Windmill Brae across the train tracks. A sheltered railway platform can be seen to its left and a corner of the Palace Hotel is visible on the right. Fidler's Well
2737 A photograph showing a horse drinking from Fidler's Well in Guild Street. The image is taken from the Evening Express of 13th September 1929. It was accompanied by an article detailing the visit to Aberdeen of the grandson of the well's benefactor, Alexander Fidler. The grandson, who lived in Chicago, had visited the public library and learnt much about his ancestor and the well from G. M. Fraser and then visited the Evening Express office.
The article contains information on Dr William Guild, to whom the well is dedicated, Alexander Fidler and his brother John, who ran a well known pie-shop on Shiprow.
The wording on the well's granite basin reads "Dedicated to Dr William Guild. Died 1657. Lammas, A. F."
The inscription on the cast iron fountain is as follows:
"Fountainhall, 1st August 1857.
Water springs for man and beast,
At your service I am here;
Although six thousand years of age,
I am caller, clean, and clear.
Erected for the inhabitants of The World
by
Alexander Fidler."
In this image the well is shown at its 2nd location, outside the Goods Station and opposite what was the Balmoral Temperance Hotel & Restaurant. Aberdeen Cinemas: News Cinema / Curzon / Cosmo 2
3426 An Aberdeen Journals Archive photograph of the Cosmo 2 cinema at 15 Diamond Street in January 1976.
This site was first used as a picture hall by the News Cinema which opened on Saturday 5th September 1936. This was only the second cinema of its type to open in Scotland. Michael Thomson explains that news cinemas aimed to entertain those with only limited time, with programmes lasting approximately an hour made up of comedy and local interest shorts, newsreels and cartoons. They were ideal for travellers waiting for connections or those passing time before appointments.
The News Cinema in Aberdeen was owned by Ernest Bromberg and was located next door to the Palais on Diamond Street. The cinema was converted from a former stable building that Bromberg had owned since 1931. Thomson states that "the acoustics and the RCA talkie system were excellent, and all in all the little cinema more than made up in comfort and quality for what it lacked in size."
The News Cinema made its own local newsreels that documented happenings in the town. In October 1941 one of these captured footage of the tragic fire that destroyed the upper section of the Palace Hotel and killed 6 people. Major national events such as coronations and the second world war were also heavily represented in the News Cinema's programme.
On 4th April 1955 the cinema was rebranded by Bromberg as the Newcine Continental and specialised in showing films from Europe, which were then growing in popularity. During the next year the cinema shifted back to news programmes and reverted to its original name on 3rd December 1956.
The current events function of news cinemas was increasingly superseded by the growth and availability of TV news reporting. In May 1959 the cinema changed its name to the Curzon and returned to showing continental films, including the more risqué variety which were popular at the time.
[Information primarily sourced from Silver Screen in the Silver City (1988) by Michael Thomson]
Image © Aberdeen Journals Ltd. Steam Rally
4219 This photograph shows a steam engine rally with onlookers admiring the traction engines Wizard and Olive. This is most likely a Bon-Accord Steam Engine Club Rally and Steam Fair in Hazlehead Park.
In the centre of the photo is the traction engine Wizard. This tractor, as indicated by its signage, was owned by William McConachie of Tarland (c.1893-1981).
Programmes for Bon-Accord Steam Engine Club events, such as that for their 1986 fair, states that Wizard was Aveling no. 1139, registration number SO2182. Built by Aveling and Porter in 1926 it was an 8 horse power compound piston valve traction engine. It was built for Moray County Highways for road maintenance, before being acquired by McConachie. Following William McConachie's death in 1981, the engine, plus two others, was owned by his son William "Bill" McConachie (1929-2013), a former policeman and chairperson of the Bon-Accord Club.
The man standing in front of the engines, wearing a suit and glasses, may be William "Bill" McConachie.
Olive was Foster no. 14289, reg. no. SA5264. Manufactured in 1919 by Foster Wellington it was a 5 horse power compound tractor. It is described as "an ex-W.D. engine acquired by Godsman & Sons, New Pitsligo, for hauage of peat from the mosses in the district, then sold to a threshing contactor at Mintlaw Station and later used for sawmill work, until bought by the late William McConachie, Tarland. Now owned by his daughter Jean of Breda, Alford" (1986 programme, page 26).
An obituary for William "Willie" McConachie can be found in the Press & Journal of 28th October 1981 on page 4. It states that this well-known traction engine enthusiast was a publican before taking over the Mill of Wester Coull Farm. He had four engines which he took to rallies all over Scotland. He and his wife Olive, no doubt the naming inspiration for the above engine, were honorary members of the Bon-Accord Steam Engine Club. William was also a local Justice of the Peace.
This photo is likely dates from the 1970s or 1980s and is from a collection of slides donated to Aberdeen City Libraries by Aberdeen City Council's publicity department. Map of the "Royal Aberdeen Hotel"
146 This map shows the change that occurred between 1870s and the end of the 19th Century.
The Athenaeum is now a hotel-restaurant and the whole of Castle Street saw important improvements. Tramways lines can be seen on the streets. Bowman & Webster, Cork Manufacturers
164 A receipt from Bowman & Webster, Cork Manufacturers & Bottle Merchants. The document dating from 21st April, 1916 features illustrations of the premises at 8 & 10 South Constitution Street and lists other offices in Dundee and Sevilla, Spain. The receipt is for the purchase of beer corks by the Douglas Arms Hotel in Banchory.
The business of Bowman & Webster had a long history in the City of Aberdeen. It was initially a partnership between Thomas Bowman and Fred Webster. The partnership was dissolved in 1901, with Bowman leaving, but the company retained its original name throughout its history.
Thomas Bowman died suddenly, aged between 40 and 50, on 28th August 1905 and his obituary can be read in the next day's Aberdeen Journal. Like his father and grandfather he had joined the army and served in North India with the Gordon Highlanders.
Fred Webster and his son ran the business after the departure of Bowman. A descendant of the family has been touch and explained that both had troubled lives and died relatively young. The business was then taken over by John Webster, Fred's brother, in 1925.
The obituary of Fred Webster can be read in the Press & Journal of 25th June 1924. In addition to describing his successful business and work in Spain, the article describes him as follows:
"A man of genial disposition, Mr Webster was exceedingly popular with all who knew him. He was a keen bowler and a member of the Northern Bowling Club. For many years Mr Webster was a well-known pigeon fancier and breeder, and won prizes all over the country, including Crystal Palace, and his services were often in request as a judge."
Before taking over the business, John and his wife had spent twenty years living and working in Canada. Fred willed the company to a daughter of John's called Evelyn. John successfully ran the business as its Managing Director until his death on 8th November 1961, aged 78. He was a life-long member of the Thistle Swimming Club and lived at 122 Desswood Place.
John's son, Edwin John Webster, then ran the business until it closed down in the later 20th century. The growing influence of large brewers made business and survival more difficult for local companies involved in the licensed trade.
Edwin John Webster died, aged 78, on 30th September 1990.
Many thanks to Michael John Webster (from Angus), son of Edwin, for providing us with additional information about the family and business. Aberdeen Mechanics' Institute
197 "The proposed building consists of a Hall calculated to contain 1000 persons, a Lecture-room seated for 180, a Library, a Museum, nine Rooms, to be used as Class and Committee Rooms, &c., and Lodgings for the Porter. Under these, it is proposed to have two large and commodious Shops, with extensive Cellarage; and, behind the Shops, a suite of Rooms, which would be well adapted for a Coffee Room (...)" (Al. Yeats, Aberdeen, January 22, 1844. Aberdeen Journal, February 14, 1844).
The foundation stone of the building, which cost over £4000, was laid in August 1845 by the Lord Provost. Almost all public organisations in Aberdeen took part in the proceedings.
The building in Market Street soon proved to be inadequate and in 1889 an Appeal Fund for a new Central Library was launched. This building later became the Bon-Accord Hotel.
Treasure 46: The Aberdeen Herald
217 When the first weekly issue of The Aberdeen's Journal was published by James Chalmers in January 1748 who would have guessed it would still be in production today (admittedly with several changes of title and ownership) as The Press and Journal.
The monopoly of The Aberdeen Journal, as it soon became, remained almost unchallenged throughout the eighteenth century but the nineteenth century saw the publication of several competing newspapers. Most of these were short-lived but included The Aberdeen Herald, and General Advertiser for The Counties of Aberdeenshire, Banffshire, and Kincardineshire, which was published between 1832 and 1876.
We hold the first copy of this weekly newspaper in our collections. It was printed and published by George Cornwall, and was issued on Saturday 1 September 1832. It succeeded an earlier paper called The Aberdeen Chronicle which had been in production since 1806. The Aberdeen Journal was seen then as politically neutral but the Herald is described as Whig-Radical and its opening advertisement states "In fact, the chief object of The Aberdeen Herald will be to obtain a cheap, efficient, and patriotic system of Government".
Since the Herald was published on a Saturday while the Journal appeared on Wednesday, it was able to include articles which would have been old news by the following Wednesday and could also provide updates to news from earlier in the week.
The newspaper cost 7d which was far beyond what an ordinary person could pay and restricted readership to the wealthy. This high cost was a result of taxes imposed by the Stamp Act of 1712 which was not abolished until 1855. Papers could then be bought for 1d and there was freedom to produce mass-circulation newspapers with improved text layout.
The front pages of newspapers, even as recently as the early 1900s, did not contain news stories but were filled with adverts - business, theatrical events, shipping, property and public notices. The issue of The Aberdeen Herald for 21 April 1866 contained an advert explaining the change of name for the town of Inverurie. Local historian, Dr Douglas Lockhart, provides the following account of the town's name change.
The market town of Inverurie was one of the fastest growing places in Aberdeenshire during the mid-nineteenth century when its population increased from 735 in 1821 to 2524 in 1871. Many factors contributed to rapid growth at this time including good communications, initially by turnpike roads and the Aberdeenshire Canal to nearby Port Elphinstone, and from the mid-century it lay astride the railway line between Aberdeen, Elgin and Inverness.
Further advantages were the extensive agricultural surroundings, markets and successful local businesses. Surprisingly Alexander Smith in A New History of Aberdeenshire, which was published in 1875, has little to say about the transformation of the town. However, he wrote a lengthy paragraph to describe how 'INVERURIE was, in former times, written Inneraury, Ennerawrie, and Hennerawie, and latterly Inverury' and he notes that the name meant "the confluence of the river of the margin".
On 5 February 1866 the Council met to discuss what appears to have become a growing problem - mail was being sent to Inveraray in Argyllshire because Inverury was not listed by the Post Office as a Post Town. The solution was simple: "return to the ancient spelling of the Burgh as Inverurie and to memorialise the Postmaster General to have it set down on the Lists as a Post Town". The Postmaster agreed to the name change and the scene was set on 19 April for the Council to discuss advertising the new arrangements. The wording of an advertisement was approved and it was decided to place it in the Edinburgh Gazette, Aberdeen Journal, Aberdeen Free Press, Aberdeen Herald and Banffshire Journal and "to endeavour to get the Railway Company to alter the spelling of the Station in their Tables".
Inverury officially became Inverurie the following day and on 21 April The Aberdeen Herald announced the change of name in the advertising columns of its front page. The Banffshire Journal in addition to printing the advertisement also published a glowing report on building activity in the burgh and noted that "within the memory of living inhabitants [the town] has been thoroughly regenerated".
Aberdeen Local Studies holds files of many local newspapers on microfilm, including the Aberdeen Herald and the Free Press. A digitised partial file is also available on the British Newspaper Archive which can be freely consulted online in the Central Library using your library card. |