The Old Family
and how we got here
Marion Binnie was a ploughman's daughter and she married a ploughman. She herself was a dairymaid and she moved around a lot in her short life, dying of a blood disorder before she was 50. She had seven children, the youngest of whom was my Granny and she died when young Marion was only seven. Had she lived on she would have seen two of her sons killed in World War 1.
Her life wasn't all tragedy though. She was born in Roddinglaw Farm which is visble from the M8 extension near Hermiston Gait but she was near East Calder by the time she was three or four and spent time in Gorgie, Gogar, Kirkliston, Threemiletown, Uphall and Abercorn after that.
The Gorgie one was interesting. She was a dairymaid and there was another girl of the same age and birthplace so I think it can be assumed they were friends who went along together. The place was Stenhouse Mills which was at that time just outside Edinburgh but is now well within the boundaries. Stenhouse Mill itself is a grand old building from the early 1600s and some parts from even earlier. It has recently been restored and sits incongruously amongst warehouse buildings. The photo below isn't of Marion as she would have been there in the 1870s and I would guess that this photo is from a bit later. However, it shows the contrast between fine design and neglect.
Contrast this with today's view in amongst the warehouses.