12 Albany Street
1895 – 1907 Lodgings
These were run by Mrs Ellen Hunter Tait and her sister, Margaret Wilson. Ann Floyd, a teacher, appears to have run a boarding school in part of the house as there are three girls and two boys, all in their teens, recorded as lodging here in the 1901 census.
1909 - 1923 Seaforth Highlanders Association Club
The Seaforth Highlanders’ Association Club opened in September 1909. It was reported that the Club rooms comprised: ‘on the ground floor, dining room, library, cloakroom and lavatories (the sanitary arrangements having been entirely renewed); on the first floor, smoking and reading rooms, and billiard room; on the second floor, card rooms and bathroom….There is a fine collection of deer heads in the hall, while the walls of the staircase are hung with skins and heads from South Nigeria, and a splendid collection of prints of British Generals.’
Over 500 guests were invited to the opening, which was performed by Lord Roseberry. When he arrived in Albany Street, he was greeted by: ‘some 360 veterans of the regiment, including twenty aged survivors of the Indian Mutiny and Crimea, who occupied a position in front. Wearing their medals, and united in common memories, the time-expired soldiers made an interesting company.’ The newspaper report recounts that: ‘One of the veterans was heard to shout, “An’ he’s no a sodger”, to which Lord Roseberry replied, “He is right. I am not a soldier. I never have been one. I am the wrong man in the wrong place. (Cries of ‘No’, ‘No’) I have some grave disabilities. I am not a Highlander and my name is not Mackenzie. (Laughter) I am happy to think that, although I am a staunch Lowlander, I have this consolation, which is that the Seaforths do not belong to the Highlands alone. (Hear, hear) They are the property of Great Britain – aye, and of the Empire. (Hear, hear.)”'
In 1914 , Mrs Burn, president of the Seaforth Highlanders Work Committee, advertised for donations of socks, shirts, tobacco, cigarettes, or donations in cash, to be sent to the Club for Seaforth Highlanders in the Expeditionary Force. By 1916, the contributions sent by the women of the Club included 9,038 pairs of socks, 2,248 shirts, 2,901 gloves or mitts, 4,500 pipes, 105,000 cigarettes and 2,856 pounds of tobacco.
In 1919, the Club was crammed with 300 of the wives and children of men who had served in the Seaforth Highlanders for a Christmas party. ‘The premises were beautifully decorated, and previous to tea being served each child received a Christmas gift in accordance with his or her age. Later in the afternoon the children engaged in games, and the mothers were given a musical entertainment. On leaving the children were the recipients of a box of sweets and fruit.’
In 1923, the Seaforth Highlanders decided to move and the building was sold to the Royal Navy Association. At a meeting to discuss the raising £1,000 to furnish the premises, Rear Admiral Sir Reginald Tyrwhitt, the Commanding Officer for the Coast of Scotland, said that the capital of Scotland should have a Naval Club as, unlike the army, where men served in the same regiment, naval men moved regularly between ships, and a for all Royal Navy personnel was much needed. Fundraising efforts, included a Naval Ball in the Palais de Danse.
1924 – 1952 Royal Navy Association and Club
Each year the Club celebrated Trafalgar Day. The 1934 event involved a march of members of the Association, headed by the band of H.M.S. Claverhouse, to the Nelson Monument where the Rev. Donald Begbie spoke of patriotism and duty. A wreath in the form of an anchor was laid. Among those attending were members of the crew of the newly launched German ‘pocket’ battleship Deutschland, that was visiting the Forth. Just over ten years later the ship would be sunk by RAF bombers towards the end of the Second World War.
In 1935, the Duke of Kent visited the club. ‘To the interest of several hundred people who lined the street outside, few of whom had probably heard the shrill whistle of the boatswain’s pipe as a flag officer or some distinguished visitor comes aboard, Mr Armitt, a retired Petty Officer, “piped the side” as His Royal Highness arrived.’
The Navy Club also organised Christmas events for RN children, and at the 1925 event, 200 children were entertained. Unfortunately, a further 60 or so had been unable to attend due to an outbreak of fever, so the following month a special party was arranged for those who had missed out. The Navy lent a cinema machine for the occasion which was a great hit.
Like the other services clubs in the street, during the Second World War the Royal Navy Club offered a billet for Royal Navy men passing through the city.
1953 - at least 1979 The Granley Institute - Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes (Plan of building at this time) The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes took over the building and ran it as a club. The Order was begun in the Harp Tavern (opposite the Drury Lane Theatre) by the artist Joseph Lisle and comedian William Sinnett, along with other stage hands and theatre technicians, in August 1822. It drew its then name of The Buffaloes from a popular song of the time We’ll chase the Buffalo. As members toured the country with various shows, lodges were opened in other towns. During the 19th century the Order spread throughout the British Commonwealth. In April 1866, a Grand Lodge (later known as the Grand Lodge of England) was formed to control the Order, to set laws, to establish procedures and manage administration, although divisions within the Order led to rival societies. The Seditious and Riotous Assembly Acts of the late 19th century affected the gatherings of clubs throughout Britain. To overcome this issue and show the Buffaloes were not subversive to the interest of the state, the Order described itself as the "Loyal Order of Buffaloes"'. The word "loyal" was often mispronounced as royal, and soon stuck, and the Lord Chamberlain’s Office eventually formally agreed to its use, although the society had no formal royal patronage. The addition of "Antediluvian" (meaning before the time of the flood in the Bible) occurred in the 1850s. During the First World War the society provided six motorised ambulances to assist with the injured troops manned by 'Volunteer Buffs'. More followed and, on their return after the war, the ambulances formed the first ambulance service in England. In 1949, an international convention in Glasgow reported over 1000 attendees from around 4000 lodges, and was to celebrate 130 years of the Order.
1960s The Buffs Folk Club
The singer, Barbara Dickson recalled the Buffs Folk Club: ‘Edinburgh was the epicentre of Scottish folk music and now that I was living there and didn’t have to worry about getting home to Fife, I could immerse myself in its many and varied clubs, pubs and parties. There was a society called the Royal Antediluvian Society of Buffaloes in Albany Street, just along from my flat, which held a weekly folk club on Monday night. Not surprisingly, it was more commonly known as The Buffs.’’ This club, and The Howff, were the two main folk clubs in the city in the 1960s. Around 1970 the Buffs' folk club was closed down after a police raid discovered illegal drinking among the audience (and most probably among the performers too!).
