At least four different Christie patterns are represented (121 - Burns' Cutty, 10(?) - Workman, 92 and 167). There are also two Mackenzie 'Workman' pipes, and a pipe made by Christie of Glasgow. There is one French pipe made by L. Fiolet of St. Omer. Finally there are unattributable pipes - an Artisan's Pipe, two T.W.s, three 'The Workman's, and two relief decorated bowl fragments - one with a thistle and one with a stem and leaflets.
The assemblage appears to be mainly from Edinburgh pipe makers, with Workman being the most common type. Most of the other pipes represented are cheaper, but often less sturdy. The prices for the Edinburgh Price List operative from 15th September 1900 are Burn's Cutty 8 D, T.W. 8¼ D, Artizan Cutty 8½ D, Workman 8½ D.
From the Minutes of Meetings of the City of Edinburgh Parochial Board, it appears that John Wilson is consistently the sole supplier of tobacco to the Poorhouse. There is, understandably, no record of clay tobacco pipes being bought. John Wilson may well have supplied some free with the tobacco. Members of staff would presumably have purchased their own, introducing more variability into the picture. It is believed that inmates of the Poorhouse got extra tobacco rations in exchange for doing work such as pulling the Stick Cart (Book of the Old Edinburgh Club Vol 32 1996 p213).
It may surprise some people, in view of the fact that the Poorhouse was thought to be a deterrent rather than a soft option, that toys were permitted. A minute of the House Committee meeting on 22nd Dec. 1886 records that two women had presented a quantity of toys, & c., to the inmates, after which they received the thanks of the Committee. During the demolition and refurbishment process following Millar Homes Ltd's purchase of the former Poorhouse buildings, Sandy Smith noted that a large quantity of children's toys and workmen's tools were found (in the ground). On the surface of the midden the body of a porcelain dolls house doll was found. Its head was missing, there were two holes for moveable arms and its legs were together. It is of such a plain and cheap nature that no similar dolls are to be found at the Museum of Childhood or in books on dolls. From the excavation, the only find that is certainly part of a toy is the pouring lip of a jug or ewer from a dolls tea set. It is completely plain white, and rather thin and fragile. The shells found on the midden are in such relatively small quantities that it is hard to imagine that they are the result of food refuse. It is possible that shell-fish were eaten and the shells used as toys in smaller numbers, the majority of the shells being disposed of elsewhere. Another possible explanation is that shell fish were only eaten by members of staff. A couple of small rounded flint pebbles may also have been toys.
Wester Craiglockhart Hill, with its spectacular views of the surrounding land, has been used by the military in the past, as is testified by the circular bunkers on the summit of the hill. The finding of a bullet and three bullet cartridge cases during excavation can be reasonably supposed to relate to this military activity, and therefor to be unconnected with the Poorhouse.
The metal part of a clothing label, and rings such as those used on laundry bags which fit onto trolleys, part of a Singer sewing machine and a bone(?) crochet hook were found during excavation. The Clothing Committee minutes record purchases from Singer, for example new shuttles in 1893, so it is quite likely that inmates would have used sewing machines. The crochet hook is more of a puzzle, as it was almost certainly not used when making up uniforms for inmates. It may have been used to make small items which were than sold to help finance the Poorhouse, or it could have belonged to a member of staff.
A number of buttons were found on the surface and during excavation. One of these was cloth-covered, of the type used in the past for bed-linen. Another was made of shell, and a third of some type of plastic. The majority, however, were metal. They had a flat rim with a concave centre and four holes. A couple said BEST·RING·EDGE along the edge, and one said EXCELSIOR, while the rest had plain rims. I am reliably informed that these are dungaree or overall buttons. Metal buttons were sometimes used as filters in clay pipes.
Very little can be said conclusively about the contents of food bottles found. Two relatively complete examples contained Bovril, and Essence of Coffee and Chickory. Sherds from a bottle containing something manufactured by Goodall Backhouse & Co were also found - this was probably Yorkshire Relish. In all other cases the writing was too fragmentary, where it was present at all. In terms of food storage, a relatively large quantity of sherds came from stoneware storage jars about the size of tall tankards. There were presumably purchased with food already in them, as they are on the small side. Zinc sheet metal with punched holes of the type used for meat safes was also found.
A complete list of those foods which were obtained under contract, changing every year, can be seen in June for the required year in the Minutes.
By 1893, most of the files surrounding the Poorhouse were let as grazings. A small number of livestock were kept by the Poorhouse, though, including some cows. The presence of sherds of glazed redware milk-skimming dishes on the midden ties in with this. There was also a kitchen garden, and broken unglazed redware flower pots may have come from there.
A very large quantity of plain, clear window glass was found during excavation, and most of it remains in the soil. Etched glass was also found, with two or three sherds being etched and decorated, and some pieces of bevelled(?) window glass were also found. Bricks, as well as parts of ceramic drainage pipes, slates, wood with nails, and a large glazed brick/stone were also on the midden. A couple of glazed tile sherds were found on the surface.
A few bisque porcelain sherds were found which may come from figurines. It is reasonable to suppose these belonged to the staff. Part of a white glassy lamp shade(?) was found, as was a hart shaped lock and two screws in it with a star and SECURE impressed on it. This lock may have come from a medicine cabinet or some similar piece of functional furniture.
The Poorhouse had an Infirmary wing, and some of the finds appear to have come from there: a thermometer, a glass syringe plunger, a ceramic commode pan, spit mugs with removable funnels, ceramic urinals made by Maling, Newcastle, and a safety pin.
The hospital or infirmary wing was on the east side of the complex next to The Dams. It was located fairly close to where the small midden in The Dams was found, however finds which appear to have come from the hospital are also evident on the main midden in the woods on Wester Craiglockhart Hill where the trench was dug. The main midden is considerably west of all the buildings in the complex, and so it is at the opposite end from the hospital.
Parts of three thermometers were recovered, two of which have writing on them. The first of these comes from the surface of the midden and says J.F. Macfarlan & Co Edin... on one side and (apparently) 30 Sec 95 100 on the other. The spelling of Macfarlan is very unusual, as it normally is spelt with an 'e' on the end, and so we were able to trace the company by consulting the current business telephone book for Edinburgh. The company are now known as Macfarlan Smith Pharmaceuticals, and they were able to give us the following information. They established a Druggist's shop in 1815 on the High Street in Edinburgh, and were then known as J.F. Macfarlan & Co. In 1823 they took on an apprentice, and in 1825 they opened an extra shop at 17 North Bridge, Edinburgh. They also had a factory at Abbeyhill. In 1951 they became J.F. Macfarlan & Co Ltd. In 1960 they amalgamated with TH Smith, also a long-established Druggist in Edinburgh, to become Macfarlan Smith Ltd - Fine Chemical Manufacturers. They sold complete supplies, so it is certain that they didn't make the thermometer, but that they put their name on it before selling it. The '30 Sec' would apparently refer to the length of time it should be under a patient's arm or whatever before being removed, but 30 seconds seems a very short length of time. The 95 and 100 are clearly temperature measurements in degrees Fahrenheit.
The second thermometer with writing on it comes from the excavation, from grid square 110. On one side it says ...Stores Ltd Guaranteed English Make and on the other side [9]5 r100 5 8. Like the thermometer from the surface, it has been made somewhere else, in this case in England, and the Druggist selling it has marked it with the name of their own company - ...Stores Ltd. Using the end of the name, the druggist was traced and found to be Inman's Stores Ltd., Edinburgh. Formerly W. Inman & Co. Ltd, the name changed in 1896 to become Inman's Stores Ltd. The company had five shops in Edinburgh and one in Leith, and in 1911 they amalgamated with Boots, Cash Chemists. Again, the temperature measurements on the thermometer are in degrees Fahrenheit. It is perhaps interesting that the arrow which appears on modern thermometers at 98.3°F, above which is officially hot enough to 'have a temperature', is absent on both thermometers, but the range of 95°F - 108°F remains the same. The 'r' on the thermometer from the excavation could be the equivalent of the arrow.
Part of a graduated glass for measuring fluids was also found on the surface of the midden. It appears to be divided into units of ¼ fluid oz. Measuring glasses of this sort were contained in standard domestic medicine chests (Mortimer Young 1980: 8).
Part of a clear glass syringe plunger was found in the top half of the trench during excavation. This type of syringe could have been used as an enema syringe, and would not have been used for injections (Mortimer Young 1980: 8, 10).
During excavation a large part of a white earthenware commode pan was found, Find No. 2BZ, along with many smaller parts of commode pans from the surface and the excavation. Commode pans are recorded in the Store Ledger of the 1920s.
Part of what may be a sink was found with relief moulding similar to large thumbed depressions, and hand-painted reddy-brown along the raised edges of these depressions. Many sherds from basins have been found, but whether they were for cooking, for medical use, or for use when washing, is unclear.
From the minutes it can be see n that various types of coal were purchased for the Poorhouse: Steam Coal from Forth Colliery, Best Virtuewell Coal from Carfin Collieries, Virtuewell Coal from Braehead, Carfin and Linhope Collieries. However, I'm reliably informed that it would be impossible to tell the ash from these coal sources apart. The ash was black, grey, orange, yellow and white, in a haphazard mix with apparently no layers as such. The coal was used for the furnace/boiler complex which heated the whole poorhouse. In general the very cheapest coal was purchased for this purpose. Slightly better coal was usually got for the Governor's house.
This collection is composed of the artifacts from the surface of the midden which were perceived as being the most interesting. It was put together before this dissertation was begun.
There is a high proportion of patterned crockery and serving crockery, with no two patterns being the same. This high a proportion is atypical of the midden and reflects the selection process. The collection also contains a very good selection of clay tobacco pipe bowls, but difficulty in attributing them to specific manufacturers makes them of little worth from a precise dating perspective. The marble adds to the picture which is being built up of the toys in the Poorhouse. There is little doubt as to its origin, since the public and even people from the Poorhouse were not allowed to walk on Wester Craiglockhart Hill for many years, unless they had a very good reason to do so.