7

In 1838, the North of Scotland Bank purchased the New Inn and other properties at the corner of Castle Street and King Street. The architect Archibald Simpson was invited to submit plans for the Bank's Head Office on the cleared site. This is a photograph of one of his designs which was not accepted. It shows a building with a curved corner topped with a dome and Corinthian columns running through the first and second floors supporting a pediment over an elaborate cornice. The plan which was adopted also had three storeys but the entrance was a Corinthian portico at the corner topped with an open platform with a terracotta sculpture group by James Giles, representing Ceres, goddess of plenty.

19

Busy scene in Broad Street in 1833, showing buildings on the left hand side which were demolished for the extension and frontage of Marischal College. The archway at the left led through to the original buildings of Marischal College and the original Greyfriars Church. The Water House, surmounted with a pediment and clock, was erected in 1766 as a reservoir for the town's water supply. The clock and its bell were transferred to the City Hospital in 1899. Byron lived with his mother in the tenement block next to the turreted building. On the west side of the street, the tall building in the distance was the first office of the North of Scotland Bank.

33

4-5 Mackie Place, Aberdeen, c.1870. The street was named after Robert Mackie, a skinner who was Convener of the Incorporated Trades. At No.6 there was a haunted house known as the 'The Castle'. The Denburn flows past the back of the building. When first built, the address was 'The Galleries'.

37

Rubislaw Quarry, c.1882. Granite was first taken from a 60ft hill on the site in 1875. Rubislaw Quarry was reputed to be the largest man-made hole in Europe. It came to the end of its active life in 1970 and is now filled with water.

43

Shop frontage of T. C. Smith and Co., Electrical Engineers T.C. Smith & Co. first appear in the Aberdeen Directory for 1913/14 when they are listed as electrical, automobile and power engineers. They had garage space for over 200 cars and eight private lockups, and were open day and night, including Saturday. The garage, showrooms and office were at 21-25 Bon-Accord Street; their repair and body building shops were at 20-32 Gordon Street. In 1921-22, they had other premises at 18 Bon-Accord Street, and these are shown in the photograph. The windows have a display of all sorts of electrical equipment including lamps, heaters, radios and Hoovers. The company would appear to have gone out of business around 1943, because in 1946, Scottish Motor Tractor Co. Ltd had taken over their Bon-Accord premises.

46

This George Washington Wilson photograph shows the memorial stones inserted in the west wall of Collison's Aisle. Originally called Aisle of the Holy Blood, it formed part of the north transept between the East and West Churches of St. Nicholas and was renamed after 1594, although it probably dates from the 14th century. Members of the Collison family held important civic offices at various times, including Provost in 1521 and 1594, and their place of burial was in this aisle. The memorial stones commemerate Andrew Cullen, Thomas Menzies and his wife Mariene Reid, and Sir John Rutherford. Andrew Cullen was a merchant and Provost of Aberdeen in 1506 and 1535, and the stone shows a sculptered coat of arms above the words "Andrew Cullen Prepositus Abd". Thomas Menzies was Provost in 1525 and (for 40 of the next 50 years), only leaving office in favour of other members of his family. He married Mariane Reid of Pitfodels. The stone has two panels above a shield bearing the Menzies coat of arms, flanked by the initials T.M. The second panel has the initials M.R. and a shield with the Menzies and Reid coats of arms. Beneath is the motto 'Spero in Deo et ipse faciet' - Trust in God and he will perform'. The third stone commemorates Sir John Rutherford of Tarland, first elected Provost of Aberdeen in 1483 and every alternate year until 1492, and again between 1496-1500. He probably died about 1520.

53

Granite quarrying at Tillyfourie Quarry. In action is one of the first steam boring machines in the country. Near the top of the picture are hand drillers and borers at work.

55

The Brig o' Balgownie over the River Don. Built by Richard Cementarius, the first Provost of Aberdeen 1314-1318. It was largely rebuilt at the beginning of the 17th century, repaired in the 19th century and the approaches widened and buttressed in 1912. Until 1827, the ancient bridge was the only route into Aberdeen from the North.

68

The Brig o' Balgownie over the River Don. Engraving by P. Hazell, sculptor. Built by Richard Cementarius, the first Provost of Aberdeen 1314-1318. It was largely rebuilt at the beginning of the 17th century, repaired in the 19th century and the approaches widened and buttressed in 1912. Until 1827, the ancient bridge was the only route into Aberdeen from the North.

73

A photograph showing the statue of Queen Victoria at the junction of Union Street and St. Nicholas Street. The building in the background is the Clydesdale Bank that stands next to M&S today. This fine Italian renaissance style building was originally constructed for the Town and County Bank and opened for business in May 1863. The statue of Queen Victoria was made from marble and was sculpted by Banff born Alexander Brodie (c.1829 - 1867). The origin of this statue is closely related to another Aberdeen monument, the 1863 memorial statue of Prince Albert by Baron Marochetti, now standing, or rather sitting, in the area in front of the Central Library. Marochetti's statue was augurated by Queen Victoria herself on 13th October 1863 and this was said to the first time the Queen had appeared at a public demonstration following the death of Albert in 1861. The Marochetti statue was the subject of great local controversy and there were various plans for an alternative, superior, memorial to the late Prince Consort. It was at a related meeting that a chap called Alexander Donald, from the Royal Tradesman of Aberdeen, moved "That a colossal statue in marble, of Her Majesty, be erected at the corner of St. Nicholas Street." The endeavour was taken on by a variety of prominent citizens and funding was raised by public subscription. Brodie, the selected sculptor, worked on an 11-ton block of Sicilian marble for two years to complete the statue. The finished piece is 8 foot 6 inches in height and, at the request of Queen herself, depicts Victoria in Scottish regal attire. The statue stands on a substantial plinth of pink Peterhead granite. The statue was unveiled and inaugurated on 20th September 1866 by Albert-Edward Prince of Wales, later to be King Edward VII and the subject of another of Aberdeen's notable statues. During his speech at the ceremony, the Prince said "Gentlemen, it has afforded me the greatest satisfaction to attend here today, by the wish of Her Majesty, and at your invitation, for the purpose of inaugurating a statue of the Queen, my dear mother. Her Majesty has desired me to express to you how much she appreciates the motives which have led the people of Aberdeenshire to give this lasting evidence of their attachment and loyalty to her person, of which she has so many proofs, and whose sympathy in her great sorrow has touched her so deeply." During his visit, the Prince of Wales also received the Freedom of the City and attended the Royal Horticultural Society's Autumn Show, which was then going on in the Music Hall. An extensive account of the unveiling, the Royal visit and the town's celebrations is given in the Aberdeen Journal of 26th September 1866. After some time at this location, the statue's marble began to show weathering due to the frost and so it was moved to the vestibule of the Town House in 1888, where it remains to this day. It stands at the foot of the building's splendid main stairway. The plaster model of Brodie's statue has also been on display in the Music Hall for many years. A new bronze statue of an older Victoria, by sculptor Charles Bell Birch, was erected at the St. Nicholas Street location on 9th November 1893 and "the Queen" became a regular meeting place for generations of Aberdonians. To make way for the extension of Marks & Spencer, the 1893 statue moved to its current site at Queen's Cross on 22nd January 1964. Victoria now stands looking east towards Balmoral.

91

Lochhead was a mansion situated near Westburn Park. It was said to be the first hydropathic establishment in Scotland and featured Turkish and Medicated Baths. By the 1890s the building was occupied by the George Washington Wilson optical lantern slide export department. The building was demolished in 1932, and the grounds became part of Westburn Park.

96

Honeybrae House. This house stood in the middle of a market garden near Morningfield Hospital about one-and-a-half miles west of Aberdeen City Centre. The lands were part of the old royal hunting forest of Stocket, given to the town of Aberdeen by Robert the Bruce. In the 17th century, it came into the ownership of the Skenes of Rubislaw and, in 1875, it was owned by Aberdeen Land Association. This two-storeyed house is most famous for its connection with the poet Lord Byron. In 1798, as a boy of about 10, he was taken there to spend a summer holiday while he was a pupil at Aberdeen Grammar School. At that time, it was probably a fairly new house, standing in its own grounds in a rural situation. He stayed there with his mother and their maid, Isabella Mitchell, before going to visit his old nurse, Agnes Gray. His room was on the first floor. By the 1830s, it was the home of a Captain John Boyd and later of market gardeners. Above the main door, there was a window whose thirteen small designed panes led it to be called 'the thirteen' window. By the 1920s, it had fallen into disrepair and the house was demolished in November 1928. The site was redeveloped for modern housing.

106

A view of the southern aspect of the Castlehill in about 1850, with the Barracks featuring prominently. The Barracks replaced the Chapel of St. Ninian and an observatory erected in 1781. The foundation stone was laid on 24th June 1794 by the Marquis of Huntly and it was completed early in 1796, with accommodation for 600 men. The picture is interesting, as it shows the line of Hangman's Brae, which descended from the south west corner of the hill to Castle Lane and into Virginia Street. It was partly absorbed into the construction of Castle Terrace in 1864. The houses on the left of the illustration with the outside steps were incorporated into the first Hospital for Sick Children in 1877.

110

This photograph shows the Denburn entrance to the second Trinity Hall, home of the Seven Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen. The first Trinity Hall was located on Shiprow and was originally a monastery. The second Trinity Hall was opened on Union Street on 6th March 1847, while the third was opened on Holburn Street in October 1967. Many thanks to correspondent Ed Fowler for correcting the location of this image and supplying the following information on the door: "This portal was constructed using the salvaged Memorial Inscription and Arms panels from the old Bequestor's Gateway to the 1st Tarnty Ha' which stood on Trinity Corner/Putachieside. The Trades had built this fine ornamental gateway with the following inscription: "To ye glorie of God and comfort of the poore this hows was given to the Crafts by Mr. William Guild, Doctour of Divinitie, Minister of Abd: 1633". The buildings were removed when the area was redeveloped in the 1840s but the gateway was built into the Lower Denburn wall of the 2nd Trinity Hall which was opened in Union Street in 1847."

137

The inaugural procession on 23rd December 1899 for the electrification of the Woodside tram route, the first in Aberdeen to be modernised. Lord Provost John Fleming is at the helm, with Tramways Convener Alexander Wilkie standing next to him, and Councillor Alexander Glass has his foot on the platform. Next to Fleming and Wilkie, and above Glass, appears to be Alexander Lyon, provost between 1905-1908. Baillie James Taggart, also later to be provost, is the right-most figure in the back row on the roof of the car. Two to the left of Taggart may be James Walker, provost between 1903-1905. James Alexander Bell, City Electrical Engineer for Aberdeen in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is the bowler hatted figure on the stairs above Lord Provost Fleming. This inauguration is detailed in an article titled 'Electric tramways in Aberdeen: Opening of Woodside section' in the Aberdeen Journal of 25th December 1899, page 7. It details the celebratory tram trip shown here and a luncheon in the Town and County Hall that followed.

140

View of Park Street with an Aberdeen Corporation Bus and the Eastern Star pub visible. The pub occupied the corner of Park Street and East North Street. The Aberdeen Pub Companion (1975) states that it was built in 1890 and that James Hill was the first licensee. It was familiarly known as Jimmy Hill's and was a popular local pub. It was demolished around 1960 to make way for the large roundabout at the foot of the Beach Boulevard. (Many thanks to local historian A. G. Duthie for getting in touch and identifying the pub.)

146

Local historian A. G. Duthie has been in touch to suggest that this photograph most likely shows a granite yard. Slabs of the rock can be seen by the wooden fence and the men are standing near small sheerleg cranes. Brian Kennedy has also contact us to identify the location of the image. It is looking north west along the thoroughfare that is identified as Duthie's Brae on early Ordnance Survey maps. The tenements in the background are those on Nellfield Place. The smaller house on the left in the background was known as Home Cottage and was one of the first built on the street that was then called Holburn Place. Maps indicate the buildings shown on the left were used as malt barns and later as storehouses. Duthie's Brae was just south of where Hardgate met Fonthill Terrace. This photograph was likely taken by James Ritchie in 1917. There is another image on this website by Ritchie that looks south from a nearby position.

148

Photograph of Woolmanhill taken 1907, looking towards Schoolhill. This image is thought to show the house where Joseph Robertson (1810-1866), the journalist and historian, was born. For more information on Robertson see the entry about him in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (available online with an active library membership) and an obituary for him can be found in the Aberdeen Journal of 19th December 1866, page 6. Roberston was mostly likely born at 73 Woolmanhill. He and his family certainly appear to have lived at this address for some time. Robertson is listed at this number in the Aberdeen Directory 1833-34 (D. Chalmers & Co.), page 116. Additionally, a death notice for Robertson's mother, Christian Leslie, features in the Aberdeen Journal of 23rd March 1859, page 5, which gives her address as 73 Woolmanhill. Exactly which of the shown buildings is Robertson's birthplace, or no. 73, is somewhat unclear. A Press & Journal article on "Historic Woolmanhill" from 6th June 1925, page 5, states "it was in the line of houses that separate Blackfriars Street from Woolmanhill that there was born in 1810 Joseph Robertson, who became the most noted antiquary of his day, the most accomplished that Aberdeen has produced." This would suggest that Robertson's birthplace is one of the buildings on the left. This image featured in the Evening Express' 'Flashback' feature from 12th January 1985, page 12. The accompany information states "Joseph Robertson, an eminent historian and one time editor of the 'Aberdeen Observer' was born at 37 Woolmanhill - the tall building in the foreground of our picture - in 1810." This slightly vague description could refer to the building on the right of the image or perhaps to the first tall building on the left side of the road. The latter would accord better with other references. Additionally, the buildings on the right were known as Black's Buildings. The above reference to "37 Woolmanhill" may initially suggest a confusion of 73 Woolmanhill, but the former is not without precedent. In Historical Aberdeen (1905), within an informative chapter on Woolmanhill, G. M. Fraser writes the following on page 149: "Then hardly less remarkable, either in historical knowledge, or general scholarship, was Dr. Joseph Robertson, whose name appears so frequently in these pages, born in the unpretending house, still standing, No. 37 Woolmanhill. It is strange that in Aberdeen there is no public memorial of this distinguished man." If 37 Woolmanhill is the correct address, 1950s Ordnance Survey mapping, which includes building numbers, suggests the relevant house may be the one in the centre of this image, of those on left, in the middle distance, just after the building marked as a tea warehouse.

157

The Dee originally flowed northward from Wellington Bridge close by the railway arches eastwards to the sea. 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. This photograph shows the dam built to allow the excavation of the new channel. Most of the work was carried out by hand with men using picks and shovels. There was no official inauguration of the new channel but the river was following its new course by the beginning of 1873.

209

Deeside Hydropathic at Murtle, five miles to the west of Aberdeen City Centre, was built for the Rev Dr Alexander Stewart in 1899. He had founded a similar establishment in 1874 at Heathcot, Kincardinshire, and the growth of business there led to the selection of this new site close to Murtle Station on the Deeside Railway. It was also seen as a convenient centre for visiting the Deeside area. The extensive grounds included a croquet lawn, bowling green and tennis courts, while the Deeside Golf Club was only a mile away. The building itself had 92 bedrooms, there were Turkish, Russian, vapour, electric and spray baths. Since hydropathy was a medical treatment consisting of the external and internal application of water, the proximity of an artesian well supplying abundant pure water was also a feature. After the first World War, the building was sold and converted into Tor-Na-Dee Sanatorium in August 1918, specialising in the treatment of tuberculosis. More recently it has been used as a convalescent hospital, but it is now being re-developed for housing. Dr Stewart was born in 1835 in Coupar, Angus and studied at Glasgow University and did the medical course at Aberdeen University. At his death in 1909, he was Minister of John Street Congregational Church in Aberdeen, having been ordained there in 1864.

241

In 1871 Aberdeen Town Council decided to convert nearly 14 acres of Glennie's Parks, which had been used for cattle grazing, into a public recreation ground - Aberdeen's first public park. Aberdeen's lack of a public park up to this point had become a contentious issue. For example, newspaper reports indicate that those opposed to the Municipality Extension Act of 1871 (which extended the boundary of the city, brought the functions of the Police Commissioners under the Council and incorporated the gasworks) repeatedly suggested that the expense involved in the new bill would be better used in the creation of a much wanted public park. It is not unreasonable to suppose that this debate, and criticism of the Council, hastened the creation of Victoria Park. While work likely begun in 1871, it was not until March 1873 that the Improvements Committee of the Council recommended that the new park should be called "Victoria Park". At the same time, they also outlined a series of 13 rules and regulations for agreement by the full Council. There does not appear to have been an official opening for the new amenity. Glennie's Park was not the only site considered for Aberdeen's first public park. Interest in such an undertaking was increasing at the same time as work was underway to divert the River Dee and improve the harbour. The new ground created in this latter project, encompassing the old, more northerly course of the river and the Inches, was a much proposed location for a park. Following the creation of Victoria Park this newly leveled ground was instead given over for buildings related to the expanding fishing industry. A nurseryman called Robert Walker (1848-1930), originally from Perth, was chosen out of 450 candidates to be the city's first public park keeper and appointed to Victoria Park. He was likely largely responsible for the park's initial layout and appearance. His Press & Journal obituary (21/04/1930, p.6) suggests that prior to his appointment the site was "little better than a waste space". Walker subsequently laid out Westburn Park, Stewart Park, Union Terrace Gardens and the Promenade. He also advocated and pioneered the planting of street trees. He served the Corporation for 46 years, retiring in 1919, and must be considered one of the unsung heroes of Aberdeen history. This photograph, taken around 1900, shows one of the main paths leading to a large granite fountain, which was designed by J.B. Pirie. It is built of 14 different types of granite and was presented by the granite polishers and master builders of the city. Since the park is almost in the city centre, it is an oasis of peace with its mature trees and, in spring, there are masses of flowering bulbs scattered through the grass.

280

An early surgical operation at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. The fourth figure from the left is Dr Alexander Ogston, the eminent surgeon. An assistant attends to the carbolic spray worked by hand, as used by Lister for the first time in Edinburgh in 1869. The era of sterilised gowns, caps, masks and gloves with antiseptic of dressings, instruments or even the fingers on which Lister later insisted, had not yet arrived.

303

A portrait of A. B. Hutchison (1862-1928) wearing the medal and chain of office as convener of the Incorporated Trades in 1906. Hutchison was one of the most successful bakers in Aberdeen of his time. He was born in the district of Crimond near Peterhead and he learnt his trade in Dundee. His first of many bakeries was opened at 62 Broad Street. Following considerable success, he opened the Central Bakery at 123 George Street in 1893. This served as the producing centre for a large number of retail shops. The business was successfully continued by his family well into the later 20th century. An obituary for Hutchison can be found in the Press & Journal of 18th February 1928, page 8. In addition to running his business, and involvement in the Incorporated Trades, Hutchison was a town councillor, including being made a baillie, served as a Justice of the Peace and was a member of the Wesleyan Methodist Church.

310

A photograph of the demolition of the largest of the chimney stalks at the Torry brick and tile works that took place on Saturday 12th September 1903. The photograph illustrates the method employed to fall the 175 foot structure, by the overseer Peter Tawse, as described in the Press & Journal: "The preliminary work of cutting a gap in the chimney near the base was early accomplished by three of the skilled tunnellers employed by Mr Tawse at the Girdleness outfall sewer. As the gap widened, stout wooden props were put in to support the structure. The gap was carried to more than half the circumference of the chimney, and the sight of the weighty pile supported on one side by only a half-dozen wooden props was certainty sufficient to make one nervous. The gang was under the charge of a Lancashire foreman, and they worked away, pipe in mouth, quite unconcernedly. "The gap having been completed, a charge of dynamite was inserted at the bottom of the props, and a time fuse attached to each. "Excitement reached a high pitch among the spectators when the signal was given to fire the fuses, and the crowd began to edge further away when the smoke was seen curling round the props, and as the workmen bolted to get beyond the danger zone. First one charge and then the other exploded with a sharp report, but it was not until the props at the extreme ends of the half circles were blown to splinters, that the chimney showed any sign of moving. It then came down, as a spectator remarked, - 'Jist like a rum'le o' bricks.' It slid rather than fell straight down at first, but the top portion toppled over in a south-easternly direction, exactly on the line expected by the contractor. It was all over in a couple of seconds, and certainly it was a sensational sight - so quick, so clear, so safe." P&J, 14/09/1903, page 6.