Castle o' Clouts

104 St Leonard's Street

View from 30 Lutton Place  -  Around 1967-68

Castle o'Clouts, 104 St Leonard's Street, Edinburgh

© Copyright: Ron Dingwall, Edinburgh:  February, 2010

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Castle o' Clouts

104 St Leonard's Street

The Photo

Thank you to Ron Dingwall for allowing me to reproduce this photograph of Castle o' Clouts, 104 St Leonard's Street, Edinburgh.

The photo was taken around 1967-68 from Ron's top flat at 30 Lutton Place.

The Buildings

Castle o' Clouts is the 4-storey light coloured stone building in the centre of this picture.  It was one of the oldest pubs in Edinburgh, built around 1724 and demolished in 1970.

The buildings behind, on the right-hand side of this photo are Usher's Brewery, now also demolished.

 

Question

The Name

Castle o' Clouts

John Gray wrote:

"That's an interesting photo of the Castle o' Clouts and Usher's brewery.  I think that is where Homebase is now located.

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I wonder if anybody knows where the Castle o' Clouts name came from."

John Gray, Portobello, Edinburgh:  March 13, 2010

 

Answer

The Name

Castle o' Clouts

In his very informative book, 'The Place Names of Edinburgh', Stuart Harris writes:

"Castle o' Clouts was a four-storeyed tenement built about 1724 by William Hunter, tailor burgess of Edinburgh.

He named it 'Huntershall' but as early as 1838, this was being ousted by the nickname 'Castle o' Clouts', Castle of Rags."

Peter Stubbs:  March 13, 2010

 

 

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