By the 1750s the Old Town of Edinburgh was grossly overcrowded. Some 55000 people were crammed within the city walls. With no open space for building, Edinburgh climbed skywards. Daniel Defoe, who visited Edinburgh in 1725 was astonished to note tenements “which on the south side appear to be eleven or twelve stories high and inhabited to the very top.” Other visitors were less complimentary. John Taylor complained that “Every street shows the nastiness of the inhabitants; the excrement lies in heaps.” Something had to be done.

It took the drive and determination of Lord Provost George Drummond to take forward his dream of what even then was called the New Town. Rather than hand over the open land to the north to developers, to his credit Drummond organized a competition won by the young Edinburgh architect James Craig. Drummond did not live to see work start on the first house in 1767, but his vision survives as the finest example of Georgian town planning in the UK.

Our virtual walk will consider the drivers for the change that transformed the city. We will learn something of the most interesting building and the stories of some early residents.

Speaker

Eric Melvin

Eric Melvin is our speaker. Eric graduated with First Class Honours in History and Political Thought from Edinburgh University in 1967. He qualified as a secondary teacher of History and Modern Studies at the then Moray House College of Education gaining a Dip. Ed. in the process and the Staff Prize. Eric later gained an M.Ed. from the University of Edinburgh. He retired from teaching in 2005, working latterly for the City of Edinburgh Council as Headteacher at Currie Community High School. Eric has had several books published on various aspects of Edinburgh’s rich history including books for young readers.