White Horse Inn - White Horse Close - Edinburgh
by Yvonne Johnstone
Title
White Horse Inn - White Horse Close - Edinburgh
Artist
Yvonne Johnstone
Medium
Photograph - Digitally Enhanced Photograph
Description
White Horse Close is located near the foot of the Canongate and is one of Edinburgh’s hidden architectural treasures. Enter through an archway to find a square of houses and in front of you the distinctive facade of the former White Horse Inn. A plaque on the wall states the Inn was probably built circa 1623 by Laurence Ord.
It had stabling for horses in an undercroft entered from Calton Road. The stables were used by residents of nearby Holyrood Palace and it’s thought the close is named after a favourite horse of Mary Queen of Scots.
Gentlemen dressed in riding boots and gambadoes (leggings), who were setting out for London, would come to the Inn to hire a suitable horse to take them there.
In 1889 the Close was purchased by Dr John Barbour and his sister and the courtyard buildings including the Inn were updated and converted into working class accommodation.
The 1901 census shows the industries and occupations of men and women living at White Horse Close. They included maltman, coal carter, core maker in a glass foundry, glass packer, laundress, lemonade bottler, paper folder and clay pipe maker.
Like many other areas in the old town, the properties in the Close had become run down again by the mid 1900s. The city council began a programme of Slum Clearance and redevelopment in the 1950s, and White Horse Close was selected for restoration rather than demolition.
Now restored, it is a picturesque and desirable place to live.
Uploaded
April 18th, 2021
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