History and Architecture in Edinburgh’s Dean Village

Chart the fate of Dean Village from industrious prosperity to complete disrepute, before it became the most desirable residential district in Edinburgh. During this walking tour, I’ll take you around the ancient and picturesque milling village that still contains traces of its Baronial legacy. I’ll show you the old bridge, the tollbooth, the mill and the weir, which were all formerly controlled by the Incorporation of Baxters (bakers).

I’ll point out easy-to-miss details on buildings, and share old maps and drawings with you as we walk the lush green banks of the Water of Leith. Together, we’ll marvel at the goddess Hygeia depicted in a Neoclassical mineral water temple before taking in the 1830s stonework of Dean Bridge, designed by architect and stonemason, Thomas Telford. While hearing about model Victorian social housing, we’ll wander around Well Court, a heritage building commissioned in the 1880s by the owner of the Scotsman Newspaper.

Lastly, we’ll walk through a chic cemetery which was the place to be buried in the 1800s, to see two modern art galleries, once glamorous Georgian orphanages.

Along the way, I’ll answer questions like:

• Where are signs of Dean Village’s former industrial activity still visible?
• Which Scottish castle is the Well Court design based on?
• Why did the Lord Provost pay for the Dean Bridge out of his own pocket?
• Where does the name “St Bernard’s Well” come from?

If you’re after a peaceful walk away from the busy city streets then join me, an architecture tutor and tour guide, on this walk through Edinburgh’s picturesque Dean Village.