South Feus in Upper Largo is described as "a quiet byway of diverse, early 19th century properties, which enjoy the open view south across the Forth" in Glen L. Pride's 'The Kingdom of Fife: An Illustrated Architectural Guide'. However, this is not quite an accurate statement, as the oldest house on this street dates to 1790. Many properties are indeed early 19th century but others are of a different age. The top black and white postcard image above shows the west end of South Feus around 1900. The most obvious change, when looking at the same view today, is the invasion of parked cars.

Although the street features several architectural styles, a number of the houses share the distinctive feature of drum-shaped dormer windows (also found on a few Main Street properties). These are typical of the late Georgian period. Daniel MacCannell's 'How to read Scottish Buildings' tells us that "dormers that are round or oval (if viewed from directly above), each containing one standard sash window and slated around the rest of their circumference, are very frequently seen on Edinburgh buildings from the end of the eighteenth century". These remained in fashion until around 1840 when bay fronted dormers became the norm. So the properties with those features are most likely early 19th century.

When viewed from the south, you can appreciate variety of architectural styles that make up the grouping. The 'Upper Largo Conservation Area Appraisal and Conservation Area Management Plan' drafted by Fife Council in 2012 states that:

"In the early 1800’s growth occurred in response to the ferry at Lower Largo and later the railway station and its resort status together with adjacent Lundin Links. The villas and house along South Feus are a reflection of this. The 1861 Parochial Directory for Fife & Kinross notes: ‘Both Lower and Upper Largo are favourite resorts as sea-bathing quarters, a number of the inhabitants letting out a portion of their premises to summer visitors.’"

This suggests an early phase of development triggered by the establishment of a regular steam boat ferry service in the early 19th century and a later stage of new building on the back of the 1857 arrival of the railway.  However, the first dwelling on the street predates both of those events. Back around 1790, the house now known as The Grange, but formerly known as Bayview, was built for Adam Wilson. Wilson was the factor for James Calderwood Durham (1732-1808) of Largo House. The role of factor was basically to undertake the day-to-day management of the estate, often overseeing improvements, as well as ensuring the repairs and maintenance, collection of rent, etc were carried out. It was a position of some standing and in this case the factor was given a home in-keeping with the importance of the role.

There is a memorial stone to James Calderwood Durham in Largo Kirk, stating that he had "for many years directed the improvements of this county". His factor Adam Wilson would have facilitated many of those improvements. In 1800, Wilson married farmer's daughter Christian Edie but their union was to be short lived. Adam Wilson died the next year and was buried in Largo Churchyard on 30 September 1801. Christian went on to live to the age of 93, passing away in Upper Largo in 1866.

By the time of the 1854 Ordnance Survey map of Upper Largo (above), Bayview (now The Grange), in its sizeable plot, in the centre of the street (by the '150' contour line), had been joined by other houses on each side. Those included Largo Cottage to the west (left) with ground stretching back to the Main Street; and to the east (from left to right) Southview, Seafield and Carlton. There is evidence that many of these early homes would have originally had thatched roofs. Thackstanes can still be seen below several chimneys​. ​Known as 'New Feus' for a time after this phase of development, the name had evolved into 'South Feus' by the 1870s, although sometimes the term 'The Feus' was also used (as was the case in the 1891 census).

Carlton, 8 South Feus, was so named after the birthplace of Emma Clayton - i.e. Carlton, Huddersfield, Yorkshire. She was married to Robert W. Clayton who owned this property as well as Hallwells in Lundin Mill. Their son was William Clayton, a marine engineer, who died in WW1 and was married to Jessie Clayton, who began La Scala cinema after she was widowed. La Scala was run by her sons Bill and Thomas Clayton for many years. The gable end of Carlton can be seen in the postcard image below, looking west along South Feus.
​

A later addition to the street was the building on the right of the above image - St Leonards. South Feus had long been home to the village doctor, with Dr George Lumgair settling there in the 1840s at Largo Cottage. He lived out the rest of his life there and his wife Frances died at Largo Cottage in 1900. Lumgair's assistant Dr Stuart Palm married his daughter and had St Leonard's built in 1880. Palm became the village doctor after Lumgair's death in 1884 and remained so until his own death in 1908. Palm's successor Dr William Eggeling also resided at St Leonard's. Another late 19th century building, which filled a gap to the west of Largo Cottage, is Viewfield (number 20), dated 1893. 

The newspaper piece below from 30 September 1908 tells of a day of celebration on South Feus. The newly installed doctor, Dr Eggeling, returned from his honeymoon with his wife Ellis Mitchell Wood. The couple were given "a right royal reception", their house was decorated with bunting and a crowd of well-wishers awaited their carriage. That evening the brass band marched along South Feus.

South Feus is said to "turn its back on the village to enjoy the uninterrupted views south across the Firth of Forth". Its elevated position with expansive views of Largo Bay made it a popular place for summer visitors to stay and the address often features in the newspaper archive lists of visitors coming from places like Edinburgh and Glasgow to enjoy the sea air. However, rather than turn away from the village, this street and its residents has always been an integral part of Upper Largo, being home to many people key to the local community from the estate factor, to a series of village doctors, and several local joiners. Peter Broomfield and his son Agnew Broomfield lived at the west end of South Feus, as did the Donaldson joiners in more recent times. The 1964 map of the street, below shows the properties in more detail. What the map conceals is the two centuries of village history connected to this short row of buildings.
​

Postscript: Many thanks to John Band for leaving a comment pointing out that there is a blocked up access point to Largo House opposite the west end of South Feus (shown in the annotated photograph below). This would have allowed Adam Wilson (and subsequent factors) easy access from their own home on South Feus.  Look out for it next time you are passing!

Manderlea is a substantial building on Links Road, Lundin Links, overlooking the 18th green of Lundin Golf Course. The above postcard view shows Manderlea in the inter-war years. Note the many large windows facing towards the sea. Below is a photograph showing the building today (on the far left), next to its neighbours to the east. Like several other large dwellings in the village, it began life as a boarding house, before being restyled as a 'private hotel' and ultimately undergoing conversion into flats.
​

Back in 1905, when Lundin Links was experiencing a spell of development, as a fashionable summer resort, a Mr Robb commissioned Walter Horne to build an eight-bedroomed house immediately to the west of Westhall (a villa built in 1894 which had stood alone for a decade). The small insert from 11 August 1905 East of Fife Record below pinpoints the date.

​The work on this house kept Mr Horne's men busy all through the following winter and an update appeared in the 15 February 1906 Leven Advertiser (below) as the work neared completion. This specified that the house was to be a boarding house to be run by Miss Robb. In fact, the establishment was run by sisters Janet Dall Robb and Mary Ann Robb. They were the daughters of ploughman James Robb (who was born in Kilconquhar but whose mother Janet Dall was from Largo).

​The sisters had previously worked in domestic service in Edinburgh but some change in fortune seems to have enabled them to establish their own enterprise. Manderlea was ideally situated, close to the station, the golf links as well as the beach. The Misses Robb remained at Manderlea throughout the First World War, although it was unclear how the boarding house was used during that period. Perhaps the premises were used as accommodation for soldiers, as was the case at nearby St Catherine's and Fir Park. However, soon after the war ended, the boarding house passed into new ownership.
​

Interestingly, the electoral register of Fife for Spring 1920 shows both Mary and Janet Robb and future owners of the boarding house, John and Jane Balmer, living at Manderlea. After this brief handover spell, the Robb sisters moved on. John Balmer and his wife Jane (nee Short) became long-term proprietors of Manderlea. The advert below appeared in the 1925 Post Office Directory.

The Balmers had married in 1904 at Coates House in Newburn, where Jane had been born in 1880. Her Dorset-born father William Short had long been the gardener there. John Balmer was born in Westmorland Cumbria and it was there that the couple initially settled there after their marriage. Eldest daughter Nora Jane Fernie Balmer was born there in 1907, followed by second daughter Phyllis in 1909. At the time of the 1911 census, John was a 'confectioner' in Cumbria.
​

Several years later, the family returned to Jane's Largo roots, where John and Jane ran Manderlea for the rest of their lives. Over the decades many visitors enjoyed their hospitality and the view from Manderlea. During the Second World War Polish soldiers were billeted at Manderlea, as they were at other large houses and boarding houses in the village, such as Lindisfarne. The Misses Balmer became regular attendees at the Scottish-Polish Association events, held from the 1940s onwards.

John Balmer died at Manderlea on 17 November 1954 aged 75, with Jane passing away just two months later, also at Manderlea, on 14 January 1955 aged 74. While daughter Nora went on to marry in 1956, to Robert Gemmell, younger daughter Phyllis remained at Manderlea and was still living there when the large house was converted into five flats and renamed 'Manderlea Court' around 1974. Phyllis died in a car crash on the Leven to St Andrews road on 5 August 1989, aged 79. Nora had died in 1984 aged 76. A few years ago two of the Manderlea Court flats were combined back together. Below are images of the building from the 1970s (in black and white) and as it is today, looking very fresh and modern for a building that is now well over a century old.

Last year, this blog ran a series of posts covering the history of Largo Baptist Church. At the time, the church was out of use and its future seemed uncertain. Since then, an exciting new chapter has begun for this 1867 building. So now, let's bring the story of Largo Baptist Church right up-to-date, and introduce those of you that don't already know about it to - The Aurrie!

First, a quick recap on the story of the church from its eighteenth century origins until its final days as a place of worship - click the links below to view the earlier posts:

lundinlinks.weebly.com/blog/largo-baptist-church-beginnings
lundinlinks.weebly.com/blog/largo-baptist-church-part-2
​https://lundinlinks.weebly.com/blog/largo-baptist-church-part-3
lundinlinks.weebly.com/blog/largo-baptist-church-part-4

In December 2020, it was formally announced that the Largo Baptist Church building had been secured as an arts venue and café. Carol and Andy Duff had purchased the building from the Baptist Union of Scotland in order for it to be used for the benefit of the community. The building was renamed "The Aurrie" which is the old Scots name for "area" and is regarded as the root of the many spellings of the slipway road adjacent which runs down to the beach. Over the years this space has been used for various purposes (including boat storage and car parking) and has been referred to as the Orry, Orra, Orrie and Awry, among other things. Given the range of spellings over time, it feels appropriate that this building references the original auld Scots word "Aurrie" from which all the variations of spelling stemmed. 

Located at 68 Main Street Lower Largo, a stone's throw away from the beach, the century and a half old building is flourishing in its new guise. Having undergone essential repairs and a facelift inside and out, the place looks fresh and inviting. The interior has been painted in shades of green, complimenting the beautiful stained-glass windows. Even the chairs echo the green, red, black and white of the window hues. Opened on 17 July 2021, just in time for Largo Arts Week, the venue couldn't have launched at a busier time in the village and was able to host live music within days of opening. 

While Andy and Carol are still involved in projects, the day to day running is now down to Helen Ross and David Peacock. They are keen to grow their range of quality and Scottish/Irish inspired fare started at Lily’s Larder. Helen and David are both committed to the community aspects through supporting local artists and hosting events at The Aurrie. “We see this as just the start of what can be an amazing asset for locals and grow Lower Largo as a destination for visitors” said David.

It's such a transformation from the days of pews packed with churchgoers, of sermons from the pulpit and hymn-singing. Yet, the re-invented space will still host groups of people, talks, music, social occasions and much more - providing the community with a service of a different kind. Gone may be the days such as the one below from circa 1980 when the Fife Baptist Woman's Auxiliary met in the church, during the tenure of the Reverend Joseph K. Campbell (Photo courtesy of Barbara Yardley).
​

The above image appears in the book 'Largo - An Illustrated History' by Eric Eunson and John Band and shows Walter Horne (on the far right) and the local team of joiners that worked with him. They are standing in front of their workshop, which was originally the panhouse of the former salt works at Drummochy.

In an effort to establish who the other individuals in the photograph are, I ran a search on the 1901 census for Largo Parish on the keyword 'Joiner' and found a number of candidates. Ruling out the retired joiners, joiners working on outlying areas such as New Gilston or Woodside and those based in Kirkton of Largo (such as Agnew Broomfield), there is a short list of 24 men and boys. Mostly living in Lower Largo. So the list below offers potential matches for those in the image. Certainly some of those on the list will be in the picture (most probably some of the other Hornes listed). If you think you can identify any matches - please leave a comment.

Walter Horne was still noted as the proprietor of the Drummochy workshop in the 1940 Valuation Roll. He died in 1941 at the age of 77, however, 'Walter Horne and Son Joiners' were still listed as proprietors in 1950. Meanwhile, ​Alexander Gillies Tait, son of joiner David Tait (and an apprentice joiner at the time of the 1901 census above), went to on become a master joiner and also had a Joiner's Shop at Drummochy for many years (in what is now the Net House). When Alex Tait turned aged 70, he was obliged to place an advert in the 5 December 1956 Leven Mail, following rumours of his retirement (see below). Horne's workshop (seen from a different perspective in another HES image below) survived until the late 1960s before being demolished and the site rebuilt upon. Alex Tait died in 1970, aged 84, having provided joinery services in Largo since his mid-teens.