Working on

Street Lighting

Edinburgh

 

Recollections

1.

George Ritchie

North Gyle, Edinburgh

Thank you to George Ritchie who  wrote:

Electrical Apprentice

"I remember being an apprentice in the electrical contracting industry, based in Nelson Street in  Edinburgh's New Town in 1956."

Replacing the Gas Lamps

"At that time the council were replacing the old gas lamp standards with modern concrete ones for neon lights.

About 100 yards down from my workplace, on the corner of Great King Street and Drummond Place, the Council had dug a hole for the new lamp post but a man had placed a chair there and was sitting reading a book.  He sat there all day.

The next day there was a photo in the press.  It was Compton Mackenzie who had been protesting that the new concrete electric standards were inappropriate for the New Town."

 Gas Lamps

"I notice that some of the gas lamps were converted to electric incandescent lamps, but they would not have been as efficient as the neon lights.

I remember the gas lamps in Caledonian Place, but they were automatic.  Not even I am old enough to have been around when they were manually lit.

Edinburgh

"When I was in the electrical industry, I had colleagues who worked for the old Lighting Dept in King's Stables Road, and it was common knowledge that Edinburgh had the best street lighting in the UK.

It just goes to show that you can't please everybody all the timeeven Compton MacKenzie!

Leith

"For those who are interested in old street lampposts, still to be found in the streets, there was an excellent example in Parliament Street, Leith, last time I looked.

You might like to add it to your Street Furniture page on the EdinPhoto web site."

George Ritchie, North Gyle, Edinburgh

 

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