The previous post concluded with Thomas Hogg and his wife taking over the running of the hotel in 1924. Just two years later, their lives were hit by tragedy when their son, Cecil James Hogg, who worked as an assistant barman in the hotel, was killed in a motor accident, aged just 17 years old. The accident happened on a new stretch of road between Aberhill and Leven Bridge in wet conditions. The car, with five occupants returning from a dance, collided with an electric standard, adjacent to the Wemyss and District tramway track. Hogg received the full force of the impact. Part of the Fife Free Press report of 24 July 1924 is below. The family continued to run the hotel for a further three years before Thomas Hogg retired from hotel keeping to focus on his motor hire business. He lived at 'Montpelier' on Victoria Road (named after the house of the same name in which he previously lived in Edinburgh). 

In 1929, the hotel changed ownership to Mrs Eileen Helen Lindsay and Miss Margaret (Meg) Hutchison Morton (who were sisters). The advert below from the Arbroath Herald dates to their era. Their proposals for a "lifting screen and counter" were approved by the St Andrews District Licensing Court in April 1930 (click here to see the original architect drawing for this work (will open in a new window as a PDF document)). However, their tenure would be short-lived. The hotel was advertised for sale in September 1931 (see advert further below from The Scotsman). The sale was likely due to ill health, as Meg Morton died in February 1932. 

The sale of the hotel was concluded early in 1932. The new proprietors - Freddie and Jean Muriset - would go on to become the longest-serving owners of the Lundin Links Hotel. Alfred Henri Olivier Chapman Muriset (pictured below) was born in 1893 in Edinburgh, to parents who were both teachers of French. He had worked in the whisky and wine trade prior to purchasing the hotel. The Murisets time in charge was something of a golden era for the hotel but in fact it got off to a tricky start. Almost immediately after taking over the reins, the hotel suffered a fire, in June 1932. As with the fire of 1920, it was Captain Burnett and the Buckhaven Fire Brigade that attended the call. The outbreak affected a ground floor bedroom but was triggered by an adjacent fireplace in a lounge room. Thanks to the speedy work of the fire brigade, the damage was 'trifling' and limited to a fireplace, carpet and some furniture.
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The Murisets recovered from this early set back and embarked upon improvements to the hotel. With the input of L.A. Rolland, architect, they drew up extensive plans for a new public bar and cocktail lounge to replace the original bar. The original full architect drawings for these can be viewed by clicking here (will open in a new window as a PDF document) and extracts are shown below. Note that the red lines indicate existing work removed. Also notice the various different cellars and stores. Mr Muriset's experience in the world of wines and spirits, and the pride he took in his cellar, gave him the vision to create an exciting modern bar experience for customers.
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Below are the reports in the local press on the progress of the works. The 26 February 1935 Leven Advertiser reported that the alterations were well-advanced - the new bar due to open within days. The 11 June edition of the same paper tells us that the cocktail bar had now been completed and was already proving to be popular. The bar counter and rear gantry moved from the original bar to the new public one.  The cocktail bar featured oak panelling, a brick fireplace and electric lighting.  
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It is likely that it was also around this time that the additional 'Lundin Links Hotel' lettering was added to the west-facing chimney stack. This lettering can be seen in the photograph above, which shows a bustling scene of pedestrians and a mix of vehicles at the hotel corner. The Murisets also undertook an extensive advertising campaign for the upgraded hotel, including adverts in publications such as The Sphere and The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News. Two examples of such adverts from the late 1930s are shown below. However, on 1 September 1939, World War Two began. The story of the hotel will pick up from there in the next post.

The previous post detailed the construction and 1900 opening of the Lundin Links Hotel. The arrival of such a palatial building in the district caused quite a stir. There was a ready-made audience for the hotel in the shape of golf-playing city dwellers of Edinburgh and Glasgow, many of whom were already familiar with the charms of Lundin Links. The year after its launch, the hotel was once again "decked with flags". This time the occasion was the return from the Boer War of Captain Jack Gilmour, of Fife and Forfar Imperial Yeomanry, son of owner of the Lundin estate, Sir John Gilmour. According to the 6 August Scotsman newspaper, "long streamers of the Gilmour colours - green and white - floated between the hotel and other buildings on the opposite side of the street". 

​The Dundee Courier from 6 August (extract below) tells of how a company of around seventy people enjoyed lunch in the hotel, presided over by hotel architect and then Captain of Lundin Golf Club, Peter Lyle Henderson. Captain Gilmour had recently become Captain-elect of Lundin Golf Club. His brother, Lieutenant Harry Gilmour, was also present at the lunch. He had also taken part in the Boer War and had returned home in March 1901, having been wounded in the head in October 1900.
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The hotel with its function rooms and public spaces hosted many special events and dinners. Early examples included retirement celebrations, Largo Curling Club dinners and Largo Silver Band events. As the 1900s went on, Lundin Links continued its growth and development. Not only were new villas being built but new facilities were appearing as well, many of which would benefit hotel guests. In 1903 new shops were erected opposite the hotel on Emsdorf Street in the site of a row of old cottages. The pharmacy and newsagent in particular would have enjoyed the custom of the hotel guests, purchasing postcards, summer requisites, fancy goods and photographic supplies. Below is an example of a postcard purchased in Young's newsagent on Emsdorf Street by a hotel guest. Sent in the 1910s, and featuring the hotel on the other side, the message states "It is a very nice building and I am inside at a game of billiards".

In 1905 the bowling green opened and the tennis courts were completed in Lundin Links, offering additional attractions for hotel guests. And in 1910 the Montrave Hall was opened, following calls from locals and summer visitors for a larger hall capable of hosting a wide range of events and entertainment. The existence of the hotel and the influence of its regular visitors likely contributed to the creation of these facilities. Lundin Links was firmly established as a holiday destination.

As early as 1911, the hotel also acted as a venue for wedding receptions. Although most marriages were celebrated at home in this era, the existence of a smart hotel in the village offered an alternative to those who could afford it. One early example was the wedding reception for the youngest daughter of Andrew Peebles of Highclere. Dora Gwendolene Peebles married George Clark at Largo Parish Church and, after the ceremony, the guests proceeded to the hotel where Mrs Peebles hosted a reception. This modern couple also had 'going-away costumes' and left the hotel directly to go on their honeymoon.

Later in Sam Duncan's years as proprietor of the hotel, it appears that he spent increasing amounts of time in Edinburgh, while live-in managers conducted the day-to-day running of the hotel (including during the years of the First World War). Mangers included Miss Law, Tom Harris and Mrs Jean Sharp. When Harris was managing the hotel in 1920 a fire broke out in the kitchen and spread to the roof. According reports in the Leven Advertiser (14 October) "Mr Tom Harris and his staff...performed wonders in holding the outbreak until the arrival of Firemaster Burnett and his men". These men from Buckhaven Fire Brigade started to cut away the roof in order to check the further progress of the flames, saving the building. Below is the previous evening's Dundee Evening Telegraph report on the incident.

With the sad loss of the Lundin Links Hotel building this week, due to a major fire, it feels appropriate to revisit the history of this iconic landmark. The next few blog posts will remember the hotel as it was intended to be - a place that people gathered for enjoyment and relaxation.  The above sketch of the brand new hotel appeared in 31 May 1900 Leven Advertiser and reminds us that when the hotel first opened its doors, travel was still primarily horse-drawn. The late Victorian era was a time of rapid development in Lundin Links. The late 1890s saw a row of shops built opposite the hotel site on Leven Road. Many new villas and boarding houses were springing up to meet demand for accommodation.

The old inn, which pre-dated the hotel, had been bought in 1897 by James McTavish, who had the vision of demolishing it and building a modern, up-market hotel to cater for the golfers and summer visitors that flocked to Lundin Links.  Construction of the new hotel was hindered when McTavish was declared bankrupt in March 1899.  Three individuals stepped in to save the project (with McTavish retained as manager).  The new investors (shown from left to right in the image below) were Samuel Duncan (McTavish’s father-in-law, a tailor from Edinburgh), Peter Henderson (the architect of the hotel), local man businessman William Bethune . All men were keen golfers and the hotel was conveniently close to Lundin Golf Club, of which Henderson was Captain at the time.

The 1899 photograph above shows the hotel part-built. At this point the roof was yet to be completed and the west side of the hotel was not yet up to its full height. The second floor arched window spaces were present but incomplete. Construction of the west-wing of the third floor was yet to be started. ​The hotel was eventually completed for the summer season of 1900, with specially-invited guests attending a preview of the premises in May. The East of Fife Record on 11 May surmised that the hotel "should secure a large clientele among the golfing fraternity". Indeed the guest list for the 24 May opening preview event included a fashionable crowd of golf enthusiasts including Edinburgh furrier John Gerrard, founder of luxury jewellers Hamilton and Inches, Robert Inches, and musician John Kenyon Lees, who had a 'Piano and Music Saloon' on Edinburgh's Frederick Street and was composer of 'The Golf Song Book'. 

The smartly-turned out party of locals and visitors can be seen in the photograph above, taken by William Drummond Young of Edinburgh (and featured in June 1900 Golf Illustrated magazine). All of this commotion and change must have been quite bewildering for the older residents of Lundin Mill. The Leven Advertiser piece recognised that one "cannot pass Lundin Links without being struck with the thorough way in which modern buildings have entirely obliterated the village, even to the name, Lundin Links, coming trippingly off the tongue of all save the older natives."

In fact the old inn had not been entirely demolished at the time of the opening of the new hotel and stood in stark contrast to the "new hotel resplendent in its fresh paint, flags and draperies." However, it was noted that the old "deserving institution" had to "give place to a building more suited to the wants of this growing and popular watering place". The modern design of the new hotel was an example of a fashion for red brick work coupled with half-timbering. The Leven Advertiser provided a detailed description of the interior, which included a flexible space on the first floor featuring a sliding partition. 
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The varied facilities had clearly been carefully planned with the target clientele in mind and took advantage of the latest innovations. Other features included electric light powered by an oil engine, modern bathrooms (no longer was there a need to bring your own bath on holiday) and an extensive laundry at the rear. All work was carried out in the "most lavish manner" by the contractors, whose details are provided below. 

As well as a tour of the building and a dinner, the 24 May event involved musical recitals and many speeches, paying tribute to the many people involved in achieving completion of the venture. Among the speech-givers was local baker Andrew Thomson who gave reminiscences of the village and golf course as he knew the place 37 years ago. He was one of the six founders of the Lundin Golf Club back in 1868. In another speech, Sir John Gilmour speculated on the type of guests that might visit the new hotel. Aside from the golfing fraternity, he spoke of city-dwelling 'week-enders', seeking some sea air to put colour in their cheeks (see newspaper extract below). 
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On 14 July 1971, under the headline "Face-lift at Granary", the East Fife Mail reported on the restoration of the former salt girnel/granary/net store building at Cellar Brae. The photograph above shows the work underway, at the stage when the roof was being replaced but the sea wall had yet to be heightened. Below are a few images taken in the mid-1970s, just a few years after completion. The conversion into a "seaside cottage" was carried out for "Mr John Gilmour, elder son of the Conservative M.P. for East Fife, Sir John Gilmour, Bt". Then aged 26, Mr Gilmour and his wife first decided to restore the granary in 1969 when they "noticed that it was literally falling to pieces and decided that we had to preserve it".  

In explaining the former uses of the building, Mr Gilmour said "in the past the Cellar Brae granary has been put to a variety of uses. At first it was of course a place where local grain was stored before being shipped across the Forth to Leith but that trade died out over a hundred years ago." He continued "for many years it was used by local fishermen as a storehouse for their nets and lobster pots but at one time it even housed a joiner's business." It's interesting that the real original use of the building as a salt girnel had at this point apparently been forgotten.

The building in fact had mixed use for long periods of time. Note that local joiner Alec Tait had workshop space within the granary building from around 1920 into the 1960s, his father David Tait having had the workshop there before him from the early 1890s. This overlapped with use as a granary and then a net store. It was the building's affinity with the village's fishing industry that Mr Gilmour was keen to maintain. At the time of the newspaper piece he was contemplating a suitable name for the finished dwelling. "Perhaps we will call it the 'Net House'. I think that would be an appropriate name for the cottage".  And so it came to pass that the house was given that name, when the restoration work was completed in 1972 - the name which it still goes by today. 

In 1984 the building was given a category B listing, in recognition of its architectural and historical interest. A great example of a mid-eighteenth century structure in a local style and with a varied past use, its listing description is given as:
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2 storey, boulder rubble with large sandstone lintels to ground floor, and low buttresses to long sides. South elevation has arched door near centre with stugged ashlar dressings and deep flanking buttresses, 2 windows left and 3 right; 3 small, first floor windows, window over door, raised through eaves with catslide roof, large modern studio window with gabled head. Glazed doors in east gable. North elevation irregular fenestration, 6 ground and 4 1st floor window. Pantiled roof with slate easing course, skews and 2 stacks. Curved boulder rubble wall to south remains of west pier, probably 18th century, with steps down to water, and low bastion enclosing circle of setts at site of horsemill.

The image below shows the setts at the site of a horse mill between the building and the sea wall. The date of this feature is unclear but likely aligns to the years when the site was used as a granary.
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The photographs above show the west-facing gable end pre- and post-conversion. The high window suggests the earlier presence of a forestair to an entrance at the upper level. The extent of the heightening of the sea wall can also be seen in the post-restoration image.  The conversion to a private dwelling was carried out by Leven architect firm L.A. Rolland and Partners and the project won a Civic Trust heritage award. The design by David Pirie sought to maintain the original character and tradition of this imposing structure. 

Described as a "derelict stone bothy" which had been neglected for years, one specific requirement of the restoration was that the external walls were left unharled. Commenting in the 25 June 1975 East Fife Mail, Mr Rolland noted that "five years ago people didn't do nearly so much of this type of restoration but people are now more aware of the value of such properties". He continued "there is more of this work done in Fife than other places, not only because of conservation societies, but because there are some very nice buildings in this part of Fife". The restoration was certainly a great outcome for this significant Largo building.
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Cellar Brae or Cellar Braes is the promontory to the west of Lower Largo Harbour. The map above, which is dated 1843, is one of the few to clearly name the area. Below is a comparison of that map with a recent aerial view of the site. The general layout and many of the buildings remain the same, although some buildings have been lost. The large building closest to the sea has survived and is one of Largo's oldest. Now known as The Net House, pictured further below, this building began life as a salt girnel (store-house) for the adjacent salt works at Drummochy. Dating back to the 1740s, the girnel was a secure building where salt was drained and stored - an essential component of any salt works. Salt was an extremely valuable commodity at this time and a good quality, robust building was needed for secure storage. So, it is thanks to the original function and importance of the building that it has been able to stand the test of time.

With the decline of the salt industry locally in the late 18th century, the building's function had to evolve. For a time, it was used as a granary (separate from the granary on the other side of the harbour, now part of the Crusoe Hotel). The 1932 Largo Village Book states that historically "grain was stored for shipping" at Cellar Braes. However, by the late 19th century, and for many decades, the building and surrounding ground was used to store fishing gear and to dry nets (hence the building's present name of The Net House). There are a few images below that feature nets hung out to dry all around the area.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, salmon stake nets ran out to sea in front of the Net House (see image below). Throughout that time, valuation rolls show that the Cellar building and Lundin Salmon Fishings were owned by Lundin Estate. These facilities were tenanted initially by Andrew Greig Anderson, Edinburgh fishmonger, in the late 19th century and then by  Joseph Johnston and Sons Limited of Montrose (a long-established salmon fishing business with interests the length of the east coast) in the early decades of the 20th century.
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By the mid-1930s, Cellar Braes began to change into more of a recreational space. The Largo Parish Community Council rented the area and organised for benches and a shelter to be put in place for the comfort of those enjoying the views across the harbour. The old path which used to run around the seaward side of the Net House was re-routed to the landward side of the building.  The old path route with its unguarded sea wall was not without its risks, as the ​9 April 1935 Leven Advertiser piece below demonstrates. The man who fell over the edge onto the rocks was staying at 'Westhaven' - a house opposite Cellar Brae (see map further below). In the early 1970s, the now semi-derelict net house building was restored and converted into a private dwelling. The sea wall was heightened for safety.
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As well as being the site of private homes, the Cellar Braes of today continues to offer benches, views and space to relax. The former shelter (seen on map and image above) is long gone but a patch of concrete indicates where this once was.  This multi-functional corner of the village has a rich history. Featured in artworks and offering a fine viewing space for events at the harbour, it continues to be a characterful part of the Largo landscape.

Back in 1903, with Lundin Links rapidly expanding, new street signs were required to name new roads and identify existing streets more formally. An exercise took place to list which names were required, in what quantity and the number of letters involved (which would impact upon cost). The handwritten list below shows the output of that work (including some faint corrections where spelling mistakes were made). Organised by Mr Alexander Fraser the factor of the Lundin and Montrave Estate, most streets required two signs but the shortest streets - Golf Road and Norvil Road - required only one each, while Leven Road and Crescent Road needed 3 each.

The decision was made to go with enamel signage, which was a common choice for street signage between 1880 and 1950. The brochure below was consulted and the option at the top left (item no. 62) was highlighted as a good template. D.F. Wishart & Co, iron merchants of Edinburgh, were engaged to create something similar to this. This firm, established in 1857, are still going today.

Some of the signs were placed on building walls, others on metal railings and one or two on free-standing posts. The images above show examples of each of these. More of the enamel signs are evident in the old photographs below.  
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Of the 29 signs put in place in 1903, only a handful remain today and all of those are on buildings walls. The signs that were on free-standing posts are long gone. Those that were attached to metal railings lost their anchor points during the Second World War, when iron railings were removed in a drive to gather raw materials for the war effort. Some wall-mounted signs were removed when the black and white replacement street signs came along (which are larger and clearer to read).  

The sign at the east end of Emsdorf Street is still there but has recently been painted over. Two Leven Road signs remain - attached to numbers 12 and 54 (the latter being the farthest west that the street extended in 1903, just before where the Montrave Hall is now). One of the Mill Wynd signs is still there, on the former jewellery workshop. Hillhead Street has no sign but the old pin marks can be seen where it once was. If you spot any more examples of the old enamel signs, please comment. They are now well over a century old.
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