History of Leith, Edinburgh

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(c) John Arthur

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(c) John Arthur

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(c) John Arthur

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(c) John Arthur

“We’re a’ Jock Tamson’s Bairns” (Northumbrian English and Lowland Scots for we’re all John Thomson’s children) is a popular saying in Scotland and the far north of England, and is known in other parts of the world. Nowadays, the phrase is often used to mean “we’re all the same under the skin”. for more click here

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(c) John Arthur

Pages About St Cuthbert’s Church-for more click here

This is a story of old North Leith. Many years ago Thomas Drant lived there with his wife and daughter. The Daughter Jeanie was very attractive and had many suitors however she only considered marrying one of two suitors. One was John Heriot a Master Mariner and the other was Robert Williamson who was a vinter from Edinburgh.

Jeanie’s parents preferred Robert Williamson who brought them many gifts on many a winters night. John Heriot brought curiosities for Jeanie from around the world each time he returned to port.

This carried on for some until Robert proposed marriage but was turned down as she was already engaged to John Heriot and she wouldn’t break it off

From that point Thomas Drant started to think of ways of getting John Heriot out of the way. However John was a new ship which was ordered to go to Africa and to trade along the coast. The trip was to last nine months and on his return he was to marry Jeanie.

Time dragged on nine months pasted then a year and then thirteen months news arrived that John Heriot had been killed by African natives while he traded with them. The Robert wiliamson was very kind to her, saying all the right things. However Jeanie had a dream that John Heriot wasn’t dead but was a prisoner. She put of any thought of marriage and a ship captained b a friend of John Heriot was sent to find him

Now in Leith lived the Sister Todd a famous family of Witches and they confirmed that John was still alive. Eventually the “Bonny Belle” returned to Leith from Africa and Jeanie rushed down to the Shore to discover John Heriot had returned safe and well.

It turned out that Robert Williamson had placed two of his men on board John Heriot’s ship with orders to kill him. However one evening the went ashore beat him and left him for dead and it was the natives who saved him. Through the long months he pretended that he could speak to her and that is why according to the story she was dreaming of him.
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The Town of Leith has many strange and ghostly tales connected to it and the strangest is the story of the Ghostly cooper.

If you travel back in time several centuries you will find a completely different Leith. Opposite the Church of St Mary’s (or South Leith parish Church as it is now) stood the massive Preceptory of St Anthony.

Now the monks of the Preceotory were entlted to a scots quart ( a imperial English Gallon) out of every tun of wine coming into leith. They could use it as they wished or they could sell the rest to help the poor.

Considering Leith was the largest importer of wine outside of London there stock of wine was very large and kept in wine vaults.

Now one of the jobs connected to the the vaults was the employment of a cooper making and repairing casks

Now after a time the monk who kept the accounts of the preceptory found that a great deal of wine was missing and suspicion fell on the cooper Henry Douglas. But when questioned he said he knew nothing about.

That was how things stood until the hermit of St Anthony paid a visit to the preceptory. He was told about the missing wine and he decided to question the cooper. Again the cooper denied everything. But the hermit wouldn’t accept that. Henry Douglas in his anger said “I don’t know anything about it, I swear I know nothing. And if I am telling a lie, may I never head this cask. The hermit looked at him and said amen, and may it please holy St Anthony to grant your prayer. The words hardly out of his month when the cask he was working on feel apart and in a panic he ran into the furthest part of the great vault and was never seen again

However the tap,tap, taping of hammer was heard and then a groan was heard by the monks when they visited the vaults and for many, many years the Ghostly cooper could be heard. Although there has been no reports recently he could still be there.

From the “The Story of Leith” by John Russell