More Bees in Edinburgh

I haven't posted anything on the Bee family of Edinburgh for quite awhile, because there was nothing additional to post. In May we visited Edinburgh and looked at the interesting building where they lived. Then, as I was going through another box of old photographs from my father-in-law, I spied some more Bee family cards and photos.

Until then I had only seen postcards; now there are photos to go with them. Unfortunately, there's no way to know for certain who is who. If you have read the previous Bee posts, you'll know that there were at least three sisters, Chrissie, Nettie and Edith, almost always referred to as wee Edith. They lived with their mother. There may have been other siblings or a father, but they aren't mentioned.  This appears to be a family photo. I would guess that the smallest one is wee Edith and the woman on the right was the mother.  But are these all her daughters or have they included a couple of friends or cousins in the photograph?

 

The bigger question is how these photos came to be grouped with the many hundreds of cards and photos that are almost exclusively from upstate New York. I can only think that one of these Bee girls moved to the United States at some point after World War I.  The date on the back of this photo card is 17/2/19.

This photo may be of one of the sisters.  It is stamped by the Thomson Brothers  of West Maitland Street in Edinburgh. The writing on the back says: To Nettie 30 August 1920.

This card is from the same studio, with handwriting on the back that says, With my Best love Mary 22/10/20.

 And then there's the postcard photograph of the young man in military attire. The photograph was taken by Drummond Shiels of Lauriston Place in Edinburgh, with writing on the back that appears to say:
64410 M. Bee 6DB RO.

 Here we have these two gentlemen wearing Masonic aprons and sashes.

Both cards are from photographer J. Spence of Musslburgh, and both have the same date 17/5/20.

This young man, who bears a family resemblance to the previous two, wears a Mason's tie pin and was photographed in August 1920.

Tram Tuesday - Glasgow, Scotland

I wish the cards I have showed close-ups of the trams in Glasgow. They don't, but they still provide an interesting view. After you look at these, be sure to visit Roger Dupuis' blog, Tram Stops Here, where he has put together an extensive post on Glasgow trams and restored cars.

I tried to get some close-up of details, but the cards are obviously not high resolution.  It's enough detail to show that the tram at Gearge Square is horse drawn though and the one on Jamaica Bridge is electric

Edinburgh, Scotland

Our recent visit to Edinburgh was initially inspired by the old Valentine prints I posted on this blog some time ago. We were so enchanted with the views that we decided to go and see for ourselves what it looks like today. Edinburgh did not disappoint. We were also fortunate to arrive for a week of warm sunny weather. Edinburgh residents, particularly the students, were obviously elated and in a very festive mood. While we were there, we met up with Susi and Thomas, friends from Germany. Susi took a few pictures from a similar perspective to the old Valentine views.

Both views are from the Balmoral Hotel towards the Scott Monument, named after Sir Walter Scott. Sadly, the incredible plaza and gardens over the train station no longer have the same elegant design. The old view shows an existing tram system, which was decommissioned in 1956. Decades later, it was decided that maybe Edinburgh needed a new tram system. The recent photo shows the new tramline construction on the right, a project that has been underway since 2008 and angered citizens for a number of years with cost over runs and traffic delays.

Here's a view from the Scott monument toward the Balmoral Hotel.

And the approximate view today.

Edinburgh is such a beautiful city, with amazing green space so close to the city center. It's definitely a place I would like to visit again. Here's a link to the previous post on theses Edinburgh views and the tram system. And here's a link to information on history and progress of the tram system.

Here's a street sign in Edinburgh.

The Bees of Edinburgh

You probably think I've been sitting in a lawn chair for the last month, but actually I have been hard at work conducting intensive postcard research (cough, cough). Well, it's almost true. Between stops for fish and chips, beer samplings, scenic outlooks, and visits to blog friends, I did make one side trip to track down the former residence of one of my favorite postcard recipients, Nettie Bee. You may remember some of the previous postcards to the Bee family, such as this one, sent to Edith Bee.

Nettie Bee lived in the Rosemount Buildings in Edinburgh, Scotland, with at least two sisters (Chrissie and Edith). Her mother also lived there, but her father is never mentioned, so I'm not sure if he lived there or not. The apartment would have been very small, with one bedroom, one bathroom, and dining in the kitchen.

Rosemount buildings is a three-story brick building built in Edinburgh's West End. The building, which was constructed for working class families in the 1860s, is now part of the West End Conservation Area.

Here's what it looks like today.

 And here's the inner courtyard.

The door to # 9 is on the second floor (first, if you're from the UK), the blue door with the potted plants in front.

As with a  number of the cards to Nettie and family, this one was sent from a young soldier in World War I. I can't help but wonder if he made it home safely.

On the front of the card of John o'Groats in northern Scotland, he wrote: I would like to take you here for a day.

The message on the back reads:

8th Aug.  21 Shore St. Thurso

Home today for six days Leave, spending most of the time with Jessie and Maggie. Sorry you did not come along with them. Drop a line + let me know how you are getting on. I would like to hear from you before  going away with best love I remain yours faithfully

B. Thompson

Hope you enjoy your holidays

xxxxx

xxxxx

xxxxx

To read more posts about the Bee, family, click here.

To Nettie Bee from Fife

Nettie Bee and her family lived in the Rosemount Buildings in Edinburgh, Scotland,  and sent and received some of the loveliest postcards.

The message on the back of the card, sent  to Nettie Bee from Fife in 1919, reads:

Dear Nettie, This is just a lovely spot + no need to walk far. Only I don't see much hope of any one nice to blick all  ____?_  compri: excuse the spelling, it's only the strong air. Hoping for  a letter from home tomorrow.  Love to All,  Yours,  _____

Click here to see lots more cards to and from the Bee family.

Freswick House

Freswick House is built upon one of the most important archaeological sites at the northern tip of Scotland, a former Viking settlement. Although it may look spooky and forbidding in this photo, it apparently now operates as a haven for artists to discover and develop their gifts. I'm afraid it would scare the gift right out of me.

My favorite story about Freswick House has to do with taxes. Apparently tax was assessed based on the number of windows. But the tax collector seemed to determine a different number of windows each year. Henrietta Munro has written an amusing article about the window taxes and Freswick House.

Streetcar Sundays - Aberdeen, Scotland

I look forward to visiting Scotland some day soon. When I do, I hope to ride on the Edinburgh trams, assuming the project has been completed by then. Unfortunately, they won't have double-deck trams like the ones shown on this postcard of Aberdeen. They'll still be beautiful, but sleek and modern.

Aberdeen doesn't have any trams at all anymore, since the Aberdeen Corporation Tramways closed in 1958. I wonder if the difficult process with the new trams system in Edinburgh will serve as a deterrent to other Scottish cities who might have considered reintroducing trams.

Here's some beautiful old footage of buses and double-deck trams in Aberdeen.


Note: In case you're interested, I added several pictures to the Streetcar Sunday post for Montreal from several weeks ago.

Little Edith Bee

I wonder whatever became of Edith Bee of Edinburgh, Scotland. Edith appears to have been the youngest child in the Bee family.

Here's the back of the card, sent in 1917:

The message reads:

Dear Edith

Do you like this little dog. How many days have you been at school. I hope you have a nice teacher and that you will soon learn to read and write and count and ever so much more.

With love from A.M.

You can go online and look at the Rosemount Buildings where Edith and the her family lived. The buildings are still there and are listed with The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. The building is a three-story industrial tenement building, built in 1860 and designed by William Lambie Moffat. It was built around a quadrangle with corner towers. Click here to see a nice aerial view.

And here's what it looks like from the street.

View Larger Map

To Mrs. M.J. Bee

This card was sent to Mrs. M.J. Bee in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1917 by an active serviceman in WWI. Active servicemen didn't need to affix postage, so there is no stamp, but it does have a stamp showing it was passed by the censor.

And here's the back of the card:

The message reads:

Dear Mrs.  Bee,

Just a P.C. at present. You will have heard from Mother by this time, what kept me so long in writing. Well I am pleased to say that I have got settled down again, and also that I am getting on alright. How are you all at Home, remember me kindly to everyone, With love to all, I remain your Sincere Friend Dod

Write Soon

XXXXX

Streetcar Sunday - Edinburgh, Scotland

In many ways, Edinburgh's tram system was similar to systems in other cities. The city started out with horse-drawn cars in 1871. But then, instead of switching to electric overhead wires, they switched to a cable-drawn system. There were other cities around the world that did this, but few had them for very long. It wasn't until the 1922 that the cable system in Edinburgh was switched over to an electric traction system. Here are several pictures from the James Valentine views that I introduced last week. You can see the line between the tracks, indicating the location of the cable (and later the electric traction.)

I wish we could see the trams more clearly, but we can certainly see that they're double deck and open on the top. Another striking feature in this photo is the North British Station Hotel with the gardens in front. Yes, there's a railway station under those gardens (Waverley Station.)  It's such an elegant design approach. Here's another view looking out from the hotel.

The Hotel is now known as the Balmoral Hotel. According to Wikipedia, JK Rowling finished the last book in her Harry Potter series at the hotel. She lost her deposit and was sent a bill,  because she commemorated the occasion by writing in black marker pen on a marble bust of Hermes in her room: "JK Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in this room (552) on 11th Jan 2007".

Anyway, back to the trams. The Edinburgh electric trams continued to operate until they were replaced with buses in 1956. Fast forward to 2007, when work began on bringing trams back to Edinburgh with a system that would link Leith with Edinburgh City and the airport. The project was scheduled for completion in 2011, but has been plagued by problems including delays and cost overruns. The snarled traffic and loss of revenue to local businesses has made the project fairly unpopular even among former supporters.  For more information on current happenings surrounding the Edinburgh tram system, visit Trams Stop Here!

And here's another view from this series showing a tram in Edinburgh.

James Valentine - Views of Edinburgh, Scotland

I apologize. I am once again straying away from postcards. I originally thought to use these as illustrations in combination with postcards of Scotland, but they are so beautiful that I decided to feature them on their own.

James Valentine was a Scottish photographer (1815-1879.) In the early years, Valentine produced studio photographs and then started concentrating on views of Scotland. I have approximately 20 of these views, which measure about 7" by 9".

I love that you can clearly read the signs for D. McLeod's Temperance Hotel and Knox's Corner China Warehouse (now a museum.) What a beautiful shot. Here's another one of the Tolbooth and Canongate. It really gives you a sense of what it would be like to walk down a street in  Edinburgh at the end of the 19th century.

After James Valentine's death in 1879, his sons retained the business and soon started focusing on producing postcards. They were employing 1,000 people by the turn of the century and by 1907, they had 40 people employed to retouch the postcard views. This is a job I would like to have had, except for the drawback of the lead-based paints, which could shorten your career and turn your skin a funny color if you got in the habit of licking your paintbrush. Otherwise, I love the idea of adding color, brightening skies, painting little fluffy clouds, and deciding what color the ladies' dresses will be. Alas, I was born too late.

By the 1950s, the focus of Valentine's turned to greeting cards. In 1980, they sold out to Hallmark cards, and in 1994, Valentine's Dundee factory closed.  I won't post all of the cards, but I will post more of them soon.

Miss Nettie Bee Visits Inverness

There is something special and intriguing about the Bee family from Scotland and the postcards they sent. I wish I knew more about them. The tone of their messages (sent and received)  always seemed upbeat, even during World War I, and the cards themselves were always soft and romantic.

Their holiday destinations seemed to be mostly in Scotland, such as Fife or Inverness, where this postcard was received by Nettie Bee. It reads:

D/N

Glad to hear you are having a good holiday

Thanks for your P.P.C. Hope you are not running away with all the boys there. Mary is very busy now getting ready for _____?

Remember me to your father.

Yours ______

If you want to see more of the Bee Family postcards, go down to the list of tags below and click on "The Bee Family."

To Miss C. Bee

Here's another card from the Bee family, this one sent to Chrissie Bee in Edinburgh, Scotland from her friend in Kingham, England:

The message reads:

c/o Davidsons

2 Bayview Kingham

D/C.

Having a ripping time. We met Isa J. + A.S. this afternoon + are spending the evening with them. This is the nicest card I can get.

Your loving chum

Jean

I certainly would like to visit Kingham, which was voted 'England's Favourite Village' 2004 by Country Life magazine. It is described as a beautiful unspoiled Cotswold village with elegant stone and thatch cottages dating from the 17th and 18th centuries.

Nettie Bee is Vacationing in Fife

Nettie Bee is a wonderful name to have. Miss Nettie Bee was vacationing in Fife, Scotland in 1917 (?)
I have a number of postcards to and from the Bee family, all of them lovely like this one.

I will say that I liked this card a lot more before I happened to watch part of a zombie movie (Shaun of the Dead) at my gym the other day. Something about the eyes. Oh, I hope I haven't ruined it for you.

Here's the back of the card:

 

The message reads:

Thursday

Dear N.

Very many thanks for you lovely P.P.C Sorry the weather is so broken (?) With hope it will be better tomorrow for your last day. With love from L. Chalmers

No Nice Boys Yet

More from the Bee family! The Bee family lived in the Rosemount Buildings in Edinburgh, Scotland. This card was sent to Chrissie Bee from her friend Isa.

Here's the back of the card:

The message reads:

Dear Chrissie,

How do you like this. I am enjoying myself #1.

But have seen no nice boys as yet.

Yours with love

XXXXXXXXXX

Isa

The Rosemount Buildings were built in 1860 and are now part of Edinburgh's West End Conservation District. They were unusual in that they were built of red brick with yellow brick accents, instead of traditional stone. You can read more about the conservation area here at the Friends of Gardner's Crescent.

To Miss Nettie Bee

The Bee family lived in Edinburgh, Scotland and sent and received some beautiful cards.  This card was sent to Miss Nettie Bee in 1918 from Jessie, who had been vacationing in Elie, Scotland.

Here's the back of the card:

Jessie's message reads:

Just home from Elie! What a lovely spot!

Was delighted to receive all the dear letters from home. It quite cheered me up. Glad to hear Miss D's wedding was such a success, but awfully sorry to hear about Stanley's sister. Annie and I are "playing the game." Spent two days at Leven last week. Up to J.D's  for tea on Friday. Had a lovely time. With love Jessie

Wee Edith

This card, sent in 1917 to Edith in Edinburgh, Scotland, reads:

My Dear wee Edith,

This is the P.C. I promised you. Tell ma, and my two wee sisters I received their letters alright and was glad to get them. Katie arrived safe and sound. Love to all.

Nettie