Albany Street Edinburgh
in the 19th century
‘He strolled westward by Albany Street, facing the sunset embers,
pleased, he knew not why, to move in that cold air and indigo twilight, starred with street-lamps.’
The Misadventures of John Nicholson by Robert Louis Stevenson
Earliest photograph of Albany Street taken by James Good Tunny c.1860
Welcome to the Albany Street website recording the street's fascinating history.
This website contains lists of, and information on, almost all the nineteenth century residents who lived in Albany Street's houses (excluding almost all of the street's many thousand servants who worked in the houses during the century).
Those who lived in the street include Sir Walter Scott’s three closest friends - William Erskine (Lord Kinneder), Sir Adam Ferguson and Scott’s publisher, James Ballantyne; two of Scotland’s most significant female novelists of the period, Mary Brunton and Susan Ferrier; Catherine Hogarth, later Mrs Charles Dickens; a stay by Felix Mendelssohn, during which he began composing his Scottish Symphony; the scientist and mathematician, Professor John Playfair; James Monro, the Head of the London Metropolitan Police; two of the New Town's most famous architects, James Gillespie Graham and William Henry Playfair; Scotland’s leading portrait painter, John Watson Gordon; and two of New Zealand’s most noteworthy early settlers, John Campbell and William Cargill.
Among the significant events that took place in the street were the first ever use of chloroform for easing childbirth by James Young Simpson; the Yelverton Case, one of the most infamous Victorian bigamy trials; help for a shipwrecked young man that resulted in the interior design of the Palace of Westminster; evidence that the earth is flat; heroic feats on the battlefield and on the golf course; forgeries and evidence of other nefarious deeds; and unrequited love and romantic elopement. I hope you will enjoy exploring the website and discovering the many noteworthy residents of Albany Street.
To provide a flavour of Albany Street's rich history, I have created this page listing a selection of significant individuals and intriguing events. Click here.
The section - Development of Albany Street Edinburgh - provides background to the creation of the New Town and the building of Albany Street. My thanks to Dr Joe Rock for use of material from his comprehensive site, Annotated Catalogue of the Edinburgh Dean of Guild Court, Architectural Plans
Each house has its own page listing who lived there in the nineteenth century. Go to house list and then click on the house number. Note that this is a list of the residents, rather than the house owners, although in many cases the two were the same.
House pages have, at the bottom of the page, a link to its sub-page giving more information on each resident and another link to that property's twentieth century residents through to 1980 or later. Or you can access the website listing 20th century residents here https://sites.google.com/site/albanystreetedinburgh2/
The Diverse Topics section provides themed material related to residents. There also is a section on the research process.
As this is a public site and not created for commercial gain, I hope that if I have inadvertently used material or images that breach a copyright, the copyright holder will be understanding. However, if any copyright holder has a concern, please contact me via email and I will resolve the issue.
Also if you have any comments, questions, additional information or corrections please email me.
Barclay Price
Email : albanystreetedinburgh@gmail.com
Note : When viewing on a tablet the pages may read better in landscape format.