The History of West Bow and Victoria Street.
West Bow has long been one of the most famed streets in Edinburgh. First recorded in 1160, it was originally named for one of the earliest gates of the medieval city, “bow” meaning “arch”. When the stone King’s Wall round the city was built in the fifteenth century, the West Bow was the only approach from the West through, winding up the hill towards the Lawnmarket.
It wasn’t an easy route; in its final stretch the Z-shaped road was extremely steep, and you can see the original path of the road in old maps, including the one framed above the fireplace in the flat. If you look out to the living room window and to the right, you can see the 19th Century staircase up to Victoria Terrace and Upper Bow which marks the turn in the road as it used to be until the construction of Victoria Street in the early 1830s.
The architect Thomas Hamilton's Improvement Act of 1827, allowing for the construction of Victoria Street, Victoria Terrace, and the George IV Bridge, meant that a number of medieval closes were swept away, and with them most of the ancient buildings of the old West Bow. The oldest houses that remain are at the foot of the Bow where it joins the Grassmarket, and some of them can be seen from the apartment windows if you look to your left. Number 87a, Trust House, has some rare intact interiors, pictures of which can be found online. The red building with the curved gable at Nos 91-93 is known as Crocket’s Land, and was built in 1705.
Throughout the 19th Century West Bow was a thriving centre for shops and trade, just as it is today, but was particularly known for its pewterers and metalworkers. In 1843, the author and traveller James Ballantine described it in his book “The Gaberlunzie’s Wallet”:
It wasn’t an easy route; in its final stretch the Z-shaped road was extremely steep, and you can see the original path of the road in old maps, including the one framed above the fireplace in the flat. If you look out to the living room window and to the right, you can see the 19th Century staircase up to Victoria Terrace and Upper Bow which marks the turn in the road as it used to be until the construction of Victoria Street in the early 1830s.
The architect Thomas Hamilton's Improvement Act of 1827, allowing for the construction of Victoria Street, Victoria Terrace, and the George IV Bridge, meant that a number of medieval closes were swept away, and with them most of the ancient buildings of the old West Bow. The oldest houses that remain are at the foot of the Bow where it joins the Grassmarket, and some of them can be seen from the apartment windows if you look to your left. Number 87a, Trust House, has some rare intact interiors, pictures of which can be found online. The red building with the curved gable at Nos 91-93 is known as Crocket’s Land, and was built in 1705.
Throughout the 19th Century West Bow was a thriving centre for shops and trade, just as it is today, but was particularly known for its pewterers and metalworkers. In 1843, the author and traveller James Ballantine described it in his book “The Gaberlunzie’s Wallet”:
History of the Building
The traditional tenement buildings at 80 - 92 West Bow, with dwellings on the upper floors and shops below, were built in the early 1860s. This advertisement in the Edinburgh Evening Courant from 30th Jan 1867, advertises the entire building for sale:
The traditional tenement buildings at 80 - 92 West Bow, with dwellings on the upper floors and shops below, were built in the early 1860s. This advertisement in the Edinburgh Evening Courant from 30th Jan 1867, advertises the entire building for sale:
The reference to Charles Calver suggests that 80 West Bow, now the Bow Bar, has always been a pub or spirit merchants - Edinburgh Post Office Directories show that that address is listed as such from 1865.
The directories also indicate that the building was occupied by an ever-changing variety of businesses and tenants. The spirit-house had a number of landlords, and the other shop directly below the flat, currently Sahara, was first an auctioneers, then a stationer and a silverplaters.
The well-known shop across the road at Number 40 Victoria Street was until 2004 Robert Cresser’s Brush shop, which had been trading under that name on the site since at least 1886. The Edinburgh Post Office Directory directory shows that Cresser himself lived at 86 West Bow in 1896, although in later life he lived above the shop. You can see what the premises looked like just before it closed on the print of the elevation of the Victoria Street in the hallway.
The Wizard of West Bow
One of the most infamous inhabitants of the street was Major Thomas Weir, who with his sister was executed for witchcraft. His house, famous for being unoccupied for decades as it was thought haunted, had been supposed lost, but is recently thought to have been rediscovered. You can read about the site in the Fortean Times on the bookshelf, and Weir's exploits are recounted in many of the contemporary books on Edinburgh history.
Weir's legend talks of his fearsome countenance and the Blackthorn staff he brandished - blackthorn isn't that practical for large staffs as you can see from the blackthorn thumb-stick leaning in the corner of the living room.
One of the most infamous inhabitants of the street was Major Thomas Weir, who with his sister was executed for witchcraft. His house, famous for being unoccupied for decades as it was thought haunted, had been supposed lost, but is recently thought to have been rediscovered. You can read about the site in the Fortean Times on the bookshelf, and Weir's exploits are recounted in many of the contemporary books on Edinburgh history.
Weir's legend talks of his fearsome countenance and the Blackthorn staff he brandished - blackthorn isn't that practical for large staffs as you can see from the blackthorn thumb-stick leaning in the corner of the living room.
