New Prominent People
Prominent People in Bobby's Life and Story
William Chambers...1800-1883
William Chambers was born in Peebles, Scotland in 1800. He and his bother Robert founded W. & R. Chambers the printing and publishing company. During his period as Lord Provost of Edinburgh he concentrated on modernising the city by demolishing the Old Town's slums and building new streets and houses.
A director in the S.S.P.C.A., Lord Provost Chambers purchased a licence and dog collar for Bobby in 1867 when the terrier was in danger of being put down as he had no owner.
The brown leather collar can be seen in the Museum of Edinburgh. He was also involved in restoring St. Giles in the High Street. When William Chambers died in 1883 he was buried at the Kirk of St Andrew's, Peebles.
Robert Lee...1804-1868
Robert Lee was born at Tweedmouth, Berwickshire, England in 1804. He was appointed minister of Old Greyfriars Kirk in 1843. Ahead of his time, in addition to introducing changes to the order of service he was the first clergyman to install a harmonium in a Presbyterian Church. While returning from a visit to Colinton, Dr Lee suffered a stroke as he rode his horse along Princes Street which left him paralysed down one side. He died at Torquay, Cornwall in 1868 and was buried in the Grange Cemetery, Newington, Edinburgh. He was succeeded by the Rev. Robert Wallace. A sculptured head of the minister who was Dean of the Chapel Royal of Holyrood and Chaplain in ordinary to the Queen can be seen on he north wall of Greyfriars Kirk.
James Brown...1807-1868
Gardener and Keeper of the Greyfriars Burial Grounds
James Brown was born in Aberdeenshire in 1807 and came to Edinburgh in the mid 1800s. With his wife, Mary and their three children, Margaret, Jean and Archibald.
As keeper of the Greyfriars Kirkyard his duties included keeping the Kirkyard tidy, locking up the gates at night and re-opening them in the morning. He was also instructed to keep out children and dogs! He had a sign made saying
DOGS NOT PERMITTED.
He also dealt with burial enquiries and had to inform the Mortality Recorder, who lived at 28 Candlemaker Row of all burials. However, for some reason, James Brown was neglectful to inform the Recorder about John Gray's burial!
He also claimed to have been the first to recognise Bobby, having tried to put Bobby out of the Kirkyard several times. In the end he relented and fed and sheltered Bobby.
James Brown died at the age of 61 on 24th March 1868, in a dwelling house at Cowgatehead, next to the burial ground entrance gate. He was one of the last people to be buried in the over-crowded Kirkyard, the plot being allocated by his employers Edinburgh Council.
James Brown was a well educated man, a skilled gardener and the author of two books, Epitaphs and Inscriptions in Greyfriars Burial Ground and Guide to Deeside.
A memorial stone to James Brown was erected in Greyfriars Kirkyard by the producers of the film 'The Adventures of Greyfriars Bobby' in 2006.
Baroness Burdett-Coutts...1814-1906
Angela Burdett-Coutts was born in London, England in 1814. In 1837 Angela inherited nearly two million pounds left to her by her grandfather a wealthy banker.
Socially aware, she used the money to improve the conditions of the sick and the poor. A close friend of Queen Victoria, she was President of the Ladies Committee of the R.S.P.C.A. In 1869 she and her friend Hannah Brown came to Edinburgh to see Greyfriars Bobby.
In addition to providing money for Bobby's memorial drinking fountain she helped the S.S.P.C.A. in it's fight to ensure that the city's working horses were treated humanely. She received the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh in 1874 three years after being made a baroness. When she died in 1906 she was buried in Westminster Abbey.
William Brodie...1815-1881
William Brodie born in Banff, Scotland on 22nd January 1815. He was the second son of a Banff Shipmaster John Brodie, his mother was Mary Walker.
He was first employed as an apprentice plumber, in his spare time he amused himself by casting lead figures of well-known people. His talent for sculptor was recognised and he was sent to Edinburgh to continue his education, where he gained a scholarship.
He later went to Rome, where he studied under Laurence Macdonald. Returning to Edinburgh in 1875 he made the group of "A Peer and His Lady Doing Homage", for the Prince Consort Memorial.
William Brodie was commissioned by Angela Burdett Coutts to sculpt the famous statue of Greyfriars Bobby, which stands outside the entrance to Greyfriars Kirkyard, on the corner of Candlemakers Row and George IV Bridge.
Some of other work includes part of the Scot Monument and the statue of Sir James Young Simpson standing in Princess Street Gardens.
He died 30th October 1881 at his home in Cambridge Street, Edinburgh and is buried in Deans Cemetery.
Colour Sergeant Donald Mcnab Scott...1817-1893
Donald Mcnab Scott was born in Perth, Scotland in 1817. He served his time as a blacksmith before enlisting in the Royal Engineers. Following his basic training he was posted to an R.E. company mapping Scotland and the north of England for the Ordnance Survey Department. While lodging at Candlemaker Row he became friendly with Bobby. The terrier would accompany the sergeant along George IV Bridge and go for a meal with him. Colour Sergeant Scott decided to remain in Edinburgh after his discharge from the Army. He worked at Edinburgh Castle in a civilian capacity. When the old soldier died at the Royal Infirmary in 1893 he was buried in Piershill Cemetery, Edinburgh.
Gourlay Steell...1819-1894
Gourlay Steell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1819.
In 1867 the artist who specialised in painting horses, dogs and cattle was commissioned to paint a portrait of Bobby lying in Greyfriars graveyard. The painting was exhibited at the Royal Scottish Academy exhibition the following year. Although the location of the painting is unknown, a pencil sketch can be seen in the Greyfriars Bobby display case at the Museum of Edinburgh.
When the artist who was appointed Animal Painter to Her Majesty for Scotland died in 1894 he was buried at Morningside Cemetery, Edinburgh.
Chief Master Gunner James Findlay...1822-1862
James Findlay was born at Riccarton, near Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland in 1822. He enlisted in the Royal Artillery at the age of nineteen. Transferring to the Land Transport Corps, he served in the Crimean War as a transport officer. Rejoining the Royal Artillery he worked with Professor Charles Piazzi Smyth and Frederick James Ritchie to set up the One o'clock Gun time service.
When the officer died in 1862 at the military hospital in Edinburgh Castle he was buried in St. Cuthbert's Church graveyard at the west end of Edinburgh.
Photo: 1 O'clock Gun Association
Henry Duncan Littlejohn...1826-1914
Henry Duncan Littlejohn son of a baker was born in Leith Street, Edinburgh, Scotland in 1826. Educated at Perth Academy, Edinburgh High School and the University of Edinburgh he became a lecturer at the extra-mural School of Medicine at Surgeons Hall in 1854.
Due to overcrowding and lack of sanitation, cholera, typhoid, diptheria and smallpox continued to cause a high proportion of deaths among the lower classes in Scotland's town and cities during the Victorian period. Dr. Littlejohn's report on the city's sanitary conditions published in 1865 provided the authorities with a plan to tackle the problem.
Taking his advice Edinburgh Town Council began demolishing the city's slum properties which were a breeding ground for disease. The hard working surgeon died at Benreoch, Arrochar in 1914. His ashes were brought back to his birthplace and interred in the Dean Cemetery.
John Inglis Traill...1835-1897
John Inglis Traill was born in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland in 1835. He served his apprenticeship as a tailor.
When he took over the small restaurant at 6 Greyfriars Place in 1862, Bobbie was already a regular visitor to the establishment. Although John Traill continued to feed Bobby he refused to pay for the terrier's licence as he reckoned that as the dog refused to attach himself to any one person it was impossible to establish ownership.
When the restaurant owner died at his home at 18 Keir Street in 1897 he was buried in Newington Cemetery on the south side of Edinburgh.
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James Cadenhead...1858-1927
James Cadenhead was born in Aberdeen 12 January 1858, son of George Cadenhead, Procurator Fiscal. Cadenhead was educated in Aberdeen. He was admitted to the Trustees' Academy at the Mound in Edinburgh in 1878. He later went to Paris where he studied in Carolus-Duran's atelier, returning from Paris, he painted portraits and landscapes; later his etchings also gained recognition. His work is now in the City Art Centre in Edinburgh, Aberdeen Art Gallery, other galleries and private collections. He was a founding member of the New English Art Club, member of Scottish Society of Artists, Scottish Modern Arts Association, Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Water Colours, and the Society of Eight in Edinburgh. After he returned to Edinburgh, he worked closely with Patrick Geddes on projects in Old Town, served on the Outlook Tower Committee several years, and moved to Ramsay Garden in 1893. He exhibited regularly at the Royal Scottish Academy and Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts, achieving academician status in the Royal Scottish Academy in 1921. Cadenhead was also a scholarly writer, musician and poet. He was married to Wilhelmina Wilson from South Bantaskine, Falkirk, and they had three children: George, Mary Katherine, and William. Cadenhead died at his residence, 15 Inverleith Terrace, Edinburgh, 22 January 1927 and was interred in Warriston Cemetery.
As a young art student, James was staying in lodgings at 59 Forrest Road, not far from Greyfriars Kirk, he drew a sketch of one of the city's coppers laying down the law to a late night reveller making his way home past Greyfriars drinking fountain.
Eleanor Stackhouse Atkinson...1863-1942
Eleanor Stackhouse was born in 1863 during the U.S. Civil War. She made her living as a teacher before getting a job as a journalist on the Chicago 'Tribune'. She married journalist Francis Blake Atkinson in 1891. The couple had two daughters. Used to writing to deadlines, she took her time gathering information for her classic novel 'Greyfriars Bobby'. Published in 1912, the book dedicated to her husband was an instant success especially in the U.S.A. The Disney film 'Greyfriars Bobby'released in 1961 was based on her novel.
When the couple were divorced in the 1920's the novelist went to live with her eldest daughter in New York. Eleanor Stackhouse Atkinson died at Rockland State Hospital, Orangetown, New York State in 1942. Her memorial stone stands in Milroy Park, Renssalaer, Jasper County, Indiana, U.S.A. the birthplace of the famous author.
Donald Crisp...1882-1974
George William Crisp was born in the district of Bow, London, England in 1882.
Following military service in the South African War, he decided to emigrate to the U.S.A. Changing his name to Donald George Crisp he worked as a stage manager before joining the Biograph Company as a movie actor. The motion picture industry based in New York was growing fast and needed room to expand. When Biograph sent a crew out to California to film at a small village called Hollywood, Donald Crisp accompanied the actors and technicians as the director's assistant.
In addition to playing Jock Gray in M.G.M.'s 'Challenge to Lassie' he also played James Brown the gardener of Greyfriars Kirk in Disney's 'Greyfriars Bobby'.
When Donald Crisp died in 1974 he was buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, Los Angeles County, California.
