Craigleith, Edinburgh

Craigleith (Scottish Gaelic: Creag Lìte) is an area of west Edinburgh, Scotland. Its name comes from various forms of Craig of Inverleith, or rock or hill of Inverleith. The area lies between Ravelston Dykes, to Crewe Toll and the Ferry Road, and Comely Bank on the east. Queensferry Road and Craigleith Road both pass through here. There are also a number of private schools in the area such as Stewart's Melville College and The Mary Erskine School. The Royal Victoria Hospital is off Craigleith Road while the Western General Hospital on Crewe Road was opened in 1868 as the Craigleith Hospital and Poorhouse.

1. Quarrying

Craigleith Quarry was active for more than 300 years from 1615 to 1942. The 350-million-year-old Carboniferous Craigleith sandstone was used extensively in construction because it was a hard-wearing composite. Architects used it extensively in buildings in both Edinburgh's Old and New Town. Many famous buildings including Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace were built from Craigleith sandstone. Because of its hardness, Craigleith Sandstone was also favoured for cutting stones used to make cut glass during the Victorian era. At its peak, the quarry was the largest and most productive in Edinburgh. In 1995, the Craigleith Retail Park was built upon the infilled Craigleith Quarry; it is situated at the junction of Queensferry Road and Craigleith Road.

1. References


1. External links

A History of the Craigleith Hill District Craigleith and Blackhall Community Council

Nearby Places View Menu

Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre

The Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre (ECRC), also known as the University of Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre, is a center for basic, translational and clinical cancer research located in Edinburgh, Scotland. ECRC constitutes a part of the Institute of Genetics & Molecular Medicine (IGMM) and is positioned in direct proximity of the Western General Hospital, where most of its clinical activities take place.

Hospital University

227 m

MRC Human Genetics Unit

The Medical Research Council (UK) Human Genetics Unit is situated at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh. It is one of the largest MRC research establishments, housing over two hundred scientists, support staff, research fellows, PhD students, and visiting workers.

Hospital

Fettes College

Fettes College () is a co-educational private boarding and day school in Craigleith, Edinburgh, Scotland, with over two-thirds of its pupils in residence on campus. The school was originally a boarding school for boys only and became co-ed in 1983. In 1978 the College had a nine-hole golf course, an ice-skating rink used in winter for ice hockey and in summer as an outdoor swimming pool, a cross-country running track, and a rifle shooting range within the forested 300-acre (120-hectare) grounds. Fettes is sometimes referred to as a public school, although that term was traditionally used in Scotland for state schools. The school was founded with a bequest of Sir William Fettes in 1870 and started admitting girls in 1970. It follows the English rather than the Scottish education system and has nine houses. The main building, called the Bryce Building, was designed by David Bryce. The school is included in The Schools Index as one of the 150 best private schools in the world and among top 30 senior schools in the UK.

Golf School

368 m

City of Edinburgh Music School

The City of Edinburgh Music School (TCoEMS) is a state-maintained music school in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded as the Lothian Specialist Music School in 1980, it changed its name in 1996 when Lothian Regional Council was dissolved into four separate unitary councils. It is a non-residential school, and because it is funded by the City of Edinburgh Council, it charges no fees. It is split between two schools; Flora Stevenson Primary School and Broughton High School. This allows for students to start in their first year of primary school and leave in their final year of high school. It acquired new premises in 2009 when a new section was added to Flora Stevenson Primary School and a new building was constructed for Broughton High School. Unlike some standalone music schools, pupils attend comprehensive schools for the majority of their academic classes. The school became an 'All-Steinway School' in 2009, meaning that every piano within the school is of the Steinway brand. It was awarded a plaque in commemoration of this from Steinway & Sons on 21 July 2009. In 2018, the council attempted to shut the school down in order to use the funding elsewhere, however, due to uproar in the community from the parents and politicians, the school succeeded in remaining open. The school was the subject of BBC Scotland's EX:S documentary, The Music School, on 29 March 2005.

Music School