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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. Johnston Gardens
1776 Secluded in the West End of the city off Viewfield Road, Johnston Gardens are a hidden gem. The Aberdeen Journal captioned a photograph of the gardens in their paper from 23 August 1939; "The Beauty of Johnston Gardens, a public pleasance, property of the City of Aberdeen, of the situation of which one town councillor at this week's Council meeting confessed complete ignorance." (page 12) This photograph taken from the narrow walk-bridge shows the large duck pond to the east of the gardens. This wooden bridge visible was later replaced by one made primarily of metal. St. Fittick's Well
1853 A photograph from 1906 of St. Fittick's Well, located in the Bay of Nigg.
An account of the well is given by Thomas W. Ogilvie (1861-1908) in The Book of Saint Fittick, a history of Torry, written and presented as a Bazaar Book to Saint Fittick's Church, Torry, in December 1901.
Ogilvie worked as a doctor in Torry for seven years and was prominent in the public life of the district. An account of his life is given in the introduction to a posthumously published collection of his verse, Poems (1911).
Ogilvie suggests use the well dates to pagan times and gives an account of its storied healing powers and the tradition of offering gifts in the hope of good health and fortune. He suggests St Fittick, the patron saint of Torry, became the object of these benefactions after the arrival of Christianity.
He details the tradition of visiting the area and leaving gifts on the first Sunday of May. Ogilvie writes:
"Town Council and Kirk Session struggled by laws and punishments to stop those Sunday wanderings and to efface those vestiges of old superstitions, but the customs of centuries die hard, and to-day young and old, to whom the name St. Fittick is a meaningless term and the repute of his well quite unknown, ramble on Sundays and week-days to the bay once called by his name, and they find the old power still lingers, for the beauty of the Bay, the fresh sea-breeze, and the pure draught from the old spring still bless and heal."
The well is understood to have been washed away by coastal erosion in the early 20th century. Its location, latterly its site, is recorded in old large scale Ordnance Survey maps. Whitehall Bowling Club.
2199 'A Little argument between bowlers'. The opening game of the season at Whitehall Bowling Club. Treasure 32: George Washington Wilson South Africa Photography Collection
2320 George Washington Wilson is one of the great names in 19th century photography, famous for capturing images of people, buildings and landscapes across Scotland. His photography drew attention to the beauty of his country, but his travels further afield are not as well known.
As an innovative pioneer in photography, George Washington Wilson's work reflected the reality and attitudes of society during his lifetime (1823-1893). In our collections we hold a vast selection of photographs and portraits taken by the G. W. Wilson Company in South Africa. These images were taken by his son, Charles Wilson, and Fred Hardie, a company photographer of George Washington Wilson & Co.
The company's photographs of South Africa captured scenes of the country which would have been perceived as unusual and exotic to British people at the time.
South Africa and its Treasures
The majority of British colonization was concentrated in South Africa during the 19th century. In the past, the country was colonized in order to control one of the main trade routes to India. Due to the abundance of resources such as spices and tea, European interest in Africa increased dramatically in the late 19th century, especially with the discovery of gold and diamonds in the 1860s-1880s.
On their return to Britain, George Washington Wilson & Co presented many photographs showing these natural resources, from the Robinson Gold mine in Johannesburg to De Beers Diamond Mines in Kimberley.
Tea was also a very valuable resource, and people in Britain were keen to learn more about its production and its use in South Africa.
Photography and Tourism
The collection held by Aberdeen City Libraries shows local places of interest in South Africa. These photographs capture Cape Town and Johannesburg, two of the biggest cities in the country. Many Europeans emigrated to these cities in the 19th century, due to the discovery of valuable resources in the surrounding area.
With the rapid rise of tourism in this period, George Washington Wilson & Co. looked for new ways to promote and sell their work. Around 1880-1890, they started to commercialize their photography via picture postcards, a relatively new concept in Britain. This new form of media met with huge success as it was easy to write and cheap to send. It soon became the standard way to communicate with friends and family when abroad, a holiday tradition which remains today.
The postcards, in colour and having a standard size, featured many different scenes from South Africa and were viewed as an innovative way to publicize the country - and the works of photographic firms such as George Washington Wilson & Co. Marischal Street
2762 A photograph taken on 14th July 2018 showing a number of local businesses on Aberdeen's Marischal Street.
At number 16 is Gloria Valentine, Professional Dressmaker, Gundra Beauty is at number 20 and the Grampian Accomodation Agency sits at numbers 24-26. The latter was established in 1986. March Stone 19
3201 This stone is located adjacent to a dyke in the fields to the south east of Westfield Farm. It is marked "19 ABD".
The marker was described in 1780 as "a low flat earthfast Stone, with a saucer situated partly under the march dyke dividing the lands of Binghill and Westfield..." West of number 18, the stone is at the north west head of the Den of Murtle.
The Blue Book states "An argument 10th March, 1602, between the Town Council and Alexander Cumming of Culter defines the marches from stones of 18 to 26."
A slide of this image was kindly lent to Aberdeen City Libraries by Colin Johnston so that we could create a digital copy for public use.
The image was taken in the early 1980s when Colin worked as a teacher at Bridge of Don Academy. He led several current and former pupils, and staff members in an investigation into the location, physical condition and public knowledge of Aberdeen's historic boundary markers. Aberdeen Theatres: Giggles & Girls
3369 A poster for the Tivoli's summer show of 1945. The show, produced by Horace H. Collins, was called Giggles & Girls and is described as "a riot of lasses and laughter".
Performers in the revue included Jack Anthony - "Your Favourite Star Comedian", George Clarkson Jnr. - "The Essence of Personality", Joyce Hampton - "The Young Aberdeen Discovery", Hermon & Constance - "Variety's Vocal Stars", Kaye and Diana Haywood - "Youth and Beauty Personified", Royal Victory Belles, Bertha Ricardo - "The Musical Comedy Miss", Bond Rowell - "The One Man Joy Barrage", Hal Swain and the 3 Swing Sisters - "The Popular Broadcasting Musical Stars".
The orchestra was under the direction of Clifford Jordan. Aberdeen Market 9: Hadden Street entrance
4385 A Roddy Millar photograph of the easternmost Hadden Street doors of the Aberdeen Market building. This passageway with stairs came out on to Hadden Street just to the east of the junction with Exchange Street.
The walls have been decorated with multi-coloured spots of varying sizes and the doors feature adverts for Dream Beauty Studio, Combo Café and Restaurant, and Thomson's Quality Butchers.
Photograph taken on 26/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 14 - Aberdeen Vinyl Records
4390 A photograph by Roddy Millar showing the unit occupied by Aberdeen Vinyl Records in the now demolished Aberdeen Market.
As indicated on their sign, and by the wares on display, this was and continues to be a local business buying and selling vinyl records. There is also a bookstand shown outside the unit promoting copies of FITEVER!, an Aberdeen and Doric based comedy book.
Since the closure of the Market, Aberdeen Vinyl Records has moved to premises at 101-103 Union Street. The owners of the shop also produce a podcast.
D&S Discounts, selling various types of bag and racks of puzzle books and novels, can be seen further along. In the distance beyond it, are the Dream Beauty Salon and Combo Café & Restaurant.
Also seen in the top right of the image is one of the illuminated box signs for the Market which were dotted around the building.
Photograph taken on 27/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 16 - Beauty Salon
4392 The subject of this Roddy Millar photograph is unit 10 in the Aberdeen Market building as occupied by the Beauty Salon.
This busy establishment was located in the eastern end of the building next to the main Market Street entrance (to the left of this image).
As indicated by the price list on the window, Beauty Salon offered an extensive array of nail treatments, alongside other cosmetic treatments such as eyebrow tinting and shaping. A large number of nail polishes and products can be seen within the premises.
A line of seats is available outside for those waiting for appointments.
At the edge of the photograph a small plaque with opening times for the Market building can be seen attached to the wall. This would have been for visitors as they entered from Market Street.
Photograph taken on 27/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 17 - Beauty Salon
4393 A Roddy Millar photograph looking north east and showing the corridor between NexGen Gel Nails Centre and Beauty Salon in the Aberdeen Market building.
The doors onto Market Street, and the concrete steps up to street level, can be seen in the background.
NexGen Gel Nails Centre, in Unit 8 on the left, displays a range of artificial nails in its windows. A substantial selection of bottles of nail polish can also be seen within.
Photograph taken on 26/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 18 - Dream Beauty Studio
4394 A Roddy Millar photograph of Dream Beauty Studio within the Aberdeen Market building.
This image gives a clear picture of how the units within the market were of varying sizes and layouts.
As listed on its sign, Dream Beauty Studio offered many salon treatments including threading, tinting, waxing, hair extensions, facial and make-up.
At the time of writing in 2024, Dream Beauty Studio's website indicates that it has premises within Tesco at Danestane, Asda at Garthdee and within the Trinity Centre.
This image also provides another view of Outifts, a retailer seen earlier within this collection. Further down the corridor, part of Madame Mew's can be seen.
Photograph taken on 26/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 19 - Combo Café & Restaurant
4395 A photograph by Roddy Millar showing Combo Café & Restaurant within the Aberdeen Market building.
This was a popular multicultural restaurant. Spanning across many countries, its menu offered Italian, Turkish, Greek and Scottish cuisine.
Seen on the exterior of the seating area are pizza boxes advertising prices for the different sizes of pizza on offer.
In the corridor outside the café is a coin vortex donation box for the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB).
In the background of this image, on the left, can be seen the premises of Dream Beauty Studio.
Photograph taken on 26/02/2019. Aberdeen Market 20 - view from foyer area
4396 This photograph by Roddy Millar looks west down the main corridor of the Aberdeen Market building.
It gives a good representation of the initial view a visitor would encounter having came in via the large Market Street entrance, located to the rear of this image.
On the left can be seen Ai to Ai, offering cosmetic treatments for eyelashes and eyebrows, Aberdeen Vinyl Records is further on, identifiable by the baskets of records, then D&S Discounts and Dream Beauty Studio at the very rear.
On the right, starting at the back and coming forward, is Outfits, Combo Café & Restaurant, Liberty Hair and the Market Heel & Key Bar in the foreground.
The Market Heel & Key Bar offer shoe repairs, watch batteries, luggage, shopper trolleys, belts, key cutting and slippers. Due to the closure of the Market, this business moved to nearby premises at 88 Union Street.
Photograph taken on 26/02/2019. Stewart Park
308 Opened in 1894, Stewart Park was named after the then Aberdeen Lord Provost, David Stewart. The area was land acquired from the Hilton Estate and was designed to be used by all ages. Three disused quarries were filled in and landscaped as small lakes stocked with fish.
Mrs Taylor, a widow of a Woodside merchant, left £500 to the park, especially for the purpose of becoming the Taylor Playground for children, in memory of her husband. Mrs Taylor was honoured with the memorial fountain by the Aberdeen Town Council.
Although the park may not have the small lakes, and fewer flower beds than when it first opened, it is still widely used, and as stated by the Lord Provost at the opening ceremony "It would be a thing of joy and beauty forever" to the people of Woodside.
Soon after the opening of Stewart Park, cricket clubs were formed. The park was home to many clubs, and memories of the park suggest that as many as twenty games of cricket would be in play at any one time. These games obviously paid off because Woodside Cricket Club won the Aberdeenshire Cup in 1957.
Other popular pursuits were the Woodside Football Club, the Grandholm Choir and the Woodside and District Cycling Club. The Cycling Club began in the early 30's, but had to disband during the Second World War. After the war, Joe Dunn, a cycle shop owner and a previous member, tried to restart the club.
This image is a James Valentine postcard. Treasure 106: The Art of Illuminating
327 To further help celebrate the year of History, Heritage and Archaeology, we have on display this month some beautifully illustrated Victorian guides to medieval manuscript illumination:
- "The Art of Illuminating As Practiced in Europe from the Earliest Times." Selected & Chromolithographed by W. R. Tymms. With an Essay and Instructions by M. D. Wyatt Architect. (1860)
- "The Art of Illumination and Missal Painting. A Guide to Modern Illuminators". By H. Noel Humphreys. (1849)
- "Lessons in the Art of Illuminating. With Practical Instructions, And a Sketch of the History of the Art". By W. J. Loftie, B.A, F.S.A (1895)
One of the most iconic of all "Victorian" styles is that of the Gothic Revival. The idealistic and romantic ideas of chivalry, courage, modesty and beauty appealed to Victorian sensibilities. Furthermore, the rose-tinted notion of the Middle Ages as being an age of pastoral charm with knights in shining armour and damsels in distress, all cocooned in a nicely packaged and organised feudal system, served as an antidote to the rapid expansion and technological advances brought on by the Industrial Revolution. The new found interest in the study of medieval illuminated manuscripts was a consequence of this feeling, and as such we see a number of guides to and facsimiles of medieval manuscripts in the latter half of the 19th century.
To see some more beautiful examples of illuminated manuscript illustration, have a look at our online exhibition on the interactive screens. Gateway of Marischal College
432 This image was digitised from Artistic Aberdeen: A Sketch Book (1932) by W. S. Percy.
The book describes the scene as follows:
"Gateway of Marischal College, one of the noblest features in many ways of Aberdeen's most notable building, a building which in certain of its aspects and composition has no equal in the world. Built of grey almost white granite, the college is the apotheosis of the city's main constructional substance. It's bright light beauty, has inspired many poets, including the late Thomas Hardy. The great window above the gateway is a masterpiece of the stained glass art of the great Scottish worker in this medium, Douglas Strachan."
Rosemount Viaduct
444 This image was digitised from Artistic Aberdeen: A Sketch Book (1932) by W. S. Percy.
The book describes the scene as follows:
"Rosemount Viaduct as seen from the Union Terrace Gardens. The three buildings, from left to right, are the Public Library, the South Church, and his Majesty's Theatre, one of Aberdeen's many corners of strong granite architectural beauty. The three buildings are now humorously and ironically known in Aberdeen as 'education, salvation and damnation.' Just out of sight on the left is the gigantic statue of William Wallace, who stands on his great granite pedestal with hand pointing towards these three fine buildings."
Doorway of Cumberland House
452 This image was digitised from Artistic Aberdeen: A Sketch Book (1932) by W. S. Percy.
The book describes the scene as follows:
"For many years this lovely piece of work has lain hidden in a network of slums, but these have now been partially cleared, and the doorway stands plain to view. The coat of arms is that of the Lumsdens - a Buckle Or, with two Wolves' Heads couped in chief and escallop in base. The house did at one time belong to Matthew Lumsden, a famous magistrate of Aberdeen, before it was owned by Sir George Skene. Another source of the arms has been conjectured in that Dr. Andrew Skene married Margaret Lumsden, daughter of David Lumsden of Cushnie. But conjecture, though it adds interest to this doorway, cannot take away from its beauty." |