Melville Street Edinbrough c1839

[Abygail]

Hi,
I'm hoping someone with a more intimate knowledge of Edinburgh can provide me with some information about Melville Street at the time of the death of an ancestor in 1839.
I am undecided as to the number of the establishment, it looks like a 9 but given the swirl at the base of the digit it may be a 2.
I think he was living on his own, only guessing as he was unattached and had returned to Scotland after spending all his adult life living in the West Indies.  His age at the time of death was 64 years.
Abygail

[Forfarian]

Hi,
I'm hoping someone with a more intimate knowledge of Edinburgh can provide me with some information about Melville Street at the time of the death of an ancestor in 1839.
I am undecided as to the number of the establishment, it looks like a 9 but given the swirl at the base of the digit it may be a 2.
I think he was living on his own, only guessing as he was unattached and had returned to Scotland after spending all his adult life living in the West Indies. 

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/358456
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1953960
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2044870
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/897260

BUT See also http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1809149

I think you need to take a look at a street directory for 1839 and see who was listed as living at No 2 and No 9.
See http://www.nls.uk/family-history/directories/post-office/index.cfm?place=Edinburgh

[Abygail]

Thanks for your information, will need to spend more time working through the postal indexes.  So far I haven't found entries for either Melville Street or Gilbert Robertson.   Will keep looking, the bit about Bellfield Street changing it's name to Melville Street is interesting.
Aby

[MonicaL]

Hi Abygail

Freecen  www.freecen.org.uk/cgi/search.pl has a great tool for their census transcriptions which lets you go previous/next households on searches which is really useful if you want to check what was nearby a property/family that you are interested it.

If you search for 1841/Midlothian and then search for a 45 year old John TAIT, Advocate & Sheriff Of Clackmn, this will take you to the start of the Melville Street. You can then click on further. No.2 looks to have a number of households, most of the others don't as the area of Melville Street was generally wealthy. I did notice a Lodging House Keeper at No.2, a Helen Stewart, with perhaps a couple of guests and a servant as a possibility?

Monica 

[MonicaL]

...So far I haven't found entries for either Melville Street or Gilbert Robertson...

Melville Street shows here, from the link already provided by Forfarian - www.archive.org/stream/postofficeannual183839edin#page/212/mode/2up This is the directory of 1838-39. Gilbert Robertson died end of 1839? He may not show on any of these types of listings if he was lodging etc.

Monica

[MonicaL]

Sorry, meant to post this earlier:

From www.edinburgh.org.uk/STREETS/part2/b.htm

Bellfield Street formerly Melville Street, renamed with effect from 1.4.68 because of duplication with Melville Street, Edinburgh. Named from the adjacent Bellfield House.

Guess you may have Gilbert Robertson's OPR death or burial entry given you have a date and street name at the time of his death? The Melville Street which later in 1868 was renamed Bellfield Street was in the Portobello area of Edinburgh. The Melville Street that we have talked about mostly was in the St Cuthberts parish area of Edinburgh.

Great collection of old maps of Edinburgh are included here http://maps.nls.uk/towns/index.html#edinburgh-city and also here www.edinphoto.org.uk/0_maps/0_maps_thumbnails.htm

Monica

[Abygail]

Thanks Monica,
according to the OPR Gilbert Robertson died 10 Sept 1839, so it is a good possibility he may have missed the records for postal addresses.  I really have no idea as to exactly how long he was 'in country' prior to his death.   Also given his cause of death was given as 'Decline' (I have an earlier post re my mis reading of this to being 'Weebine').  Being sentimental I'd like to think he had to 'come home' to die.   He is buried in St Cuthberts' Kirk and he was a son of the Rev Harry Robertson DD of Kiltearn (died 12 Jul 1815) and grandson of the Rev Gilbert Robertson DD who died at the Criech Manse, Fifeshire Scot on 17 Mar 1774.   I'm inclined to think he spent the end of his life in Edinburgh with family or friends - well be nice if he did.
Aby

[Unė kthimi i papenduar]

You will have noticed in the OPR he has the suffix "Esq.".   The use of which at that time was to pay an informal compliment by way of implying gentle birth.

[Keith0]

I noticed that in the 1841 census a relation of mine was living in No 2 Melville Street.  Her name was Eliza Robinson and she was living there with her two daughters Maria Louisa and Eliza Skinner.  The two girls were born in India where most of my family lived at that time.

Originally this was a family called Robertson but my branch changed its name.  I believe you are looking for a Gilbert Robertson.  I wonder, given the last name is the same as our original name if they might be related.  Do you have any idea?