Village Edinburgh - the History of Corstorphine

From Village to Suburb, Complete With a Ghost

Nov 11, 2009

Passing through the Edinburgh suburb of Corstorphine, most people don't see the village's historic core. But the village of Corstorphine is worth a second look.

Corstorphine has been part of the City of Edinburgh since 1920, but prior to that it had a distinct village identity. This is still evident - signs on the A8 Glasgow Road make it quite clear to the visitor where they are and indicate the history and heritage to be found. Corstorphine even gets a mention in the closing pages of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped.

The name Corstorphine is an unusual one. The local museum (run by the Corstorphine Trust) identifies several different possibilities, but it is most likely to be derived from either ‘Torphin’s crossing’ or ‘white hollow in a wet place’. Both suggestions are supported by the village’s location - the earliest settlement here was on a ridge between two lochs, Corstorphine Loch to the east and Gogar Loch to the west. Both have since been drained.

Corstorphine Old Parish Church

Although there has been settlement in the area for thousands of years, Collins' Encyclopaedia of Scotland notes that the name was first recorded in the twelfth century. This is supported by local historian AS Cowper, who notes the existence of a chapel here in the reign of David I (1084-1153). This was succeeded by a chapel (dedicated to St Mary) adjacent to which was built a Collegiate Church, dedicated to St John.

St Mary’s church was demolished in the seventeenth century, but the early fifteenth century Collegiate Church (with later additions) still remains. Located at what would have been the village centre (now bypassed by the main road a short distance to the north) the church contains the old and worn tombs of the Forrester family, who were lords of Corstorphine for much of its history.

Corstorphine Castle, the Dovecot and the Dower House

The significance of Corstorphine (then, as now it bestrode the main approach to Edinburgh from the west) can be measured not only by the existence of the church but of a castle. Probably built around 1390, the castle was owned by the Forrester family. Cowper records it was later a part of the defence of Edinburgh against Cromwell’s troops (although, as the city was eventually occupied from further south, these efforts proved futile).

Subsequent owners allowed the castle to fall into decay and the main building had disappeared by the late nineteenth century. Though only a street name (Castle Road) remains to indicate the site, the castle’s dovecot can still be seen just south of St Margaret’s Park. A listed building now in the care of Historic Scotland, this had spaces for over a thousand doves - an important source of meat for the household.

In St Margaret’s Park itself, a large building probably dating from the late 1590s is traditionally known as The Dower House. If this were the case, it would have belonged to the castle. Most authorities agree, however, that the house is more likely to have been associated with the church, as documents suggest that it stood on church, rather than castle, land. It is now a local heritage centre.

The Corstorphine Sycamore and Christian Nimmo

The signs for Corstorphine’s heritage trail feature a sycamore leaf, a reference to the affection felt locally for the ‘Corstorphine sycamore’. A separate subspecies (Acer pseudoplatanus Corstorphinense) the tree was 55 feet in height and 12.5 feet in girth when it fell victim to gales in December 1998. The stump can still be seen, as can several of the tree's descendants - most notably in Corstorphine churchyard.

Many tales surround the sycamore. Some say there is buried treasure nearby. One tale with its basis in fact is that of the fiery-tempered Lady Christian Nimmo, mistress (and also niece) of Lord James Forrester. One day in 1679, after a quarrel, she ran her lover through with his own sword – a crime for which she was later executed. It’s said that her ghost, the White Lady of Corstorphine, can still be seen close to the site of the sycamore.

The Corstorphine Heritage Trail, with its distinctive sycamore logo, guides visitors round Corstorphine – and beyond it, up to the Local Nature Reserve of Corstorphine Hill and its walled garden. With the exception of the garden, the sights are clustered together near the church in the old part of the place still referred to by some of its residents as ‘The Village’. With its distinctive character and history, Corstorphine is well worth a look.