In the northwest corner of Largo Kirk churchyard is the headstone shown in the photograph above. It appears again below in a black and white image which featured in the East Fife Mail in July 1976. The gravestone stands out because of the shells which are scattered around its base. The stone features a carved "winged soul" effigy (representing the flight of the soul from one realm to another). The date appears to be 1817 and the fading words begin: HERE LYES ANDREW SELKIRK NOTAR PUBLICK. Notar Publick was a public official who would witness the signing of important legal documents - see Dictionary of Scots Language entry - https://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/notar. This man must have been an important figure in the community. 
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On the other side of this same headstone are the initials of the parents of the famous Largo-born inspiration for the character Robinson Crusoe, Alexander Selkirk:

JS (for John Selcraig) and EM for his wife Euphan Mackie

Selcraig is a variation of Selkirk. This side marks an earlier burial as the pair likely died at least a century before Andrew Selkirk. Their side of the stone is shown above (image from the book 'The Story of Largo Kirk' 1990 edition). The J looks like an I because J was not differentiated from the letter I until comparatively recent times. For example, John and James appeared as Iohn and Iames (see examples below). The exact relationship of the Andrew Selkirk on the reverse side of the stone to John Selcraig and Euphan Mackie is unclear - he could be 3 or 4 generations further down the family tree.

The stills below are from an episode of Weir’s Way filmed in Largo in 1985, showing Tom Weir visiting the grave of John Selcraig and Euphan Mackie while on the trail of the life story of their famous seventh son, Alexander, who was born 1676. As there is no memorial to Alexander Selkirk himself (he was buried at sea in 1721), over the years people have brought shells to the grave of his parents, acknowledging the family's connection to the sea and to pay tribute to the man who inspired the famous Crusoe story. Comparing the 1980s image below to the more recent one at the top of the post, the number of shells seems to have grown in recent years.
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Above is a partial photograph of the frontage of Mackie's Glasgow chemist shop (image from Glasgow City Council's Virtual Mitchell). Note the elaborate window display of branded and mass produced goods, which increasingly became a part of the offering of chemist shops during his years in the business. However, Mackie would also have been using old-fashioned dispensary tools and pill-making machines - such as those shown below.

James Bowie, Mackie's predecessor, had been local chemist throughout the 1920s and early 1930s.  On 25 May 1935, the Fife Free Press reported that "Mr Bowie, who has carried on a chemist's business at Upper Largo for a great many years, is leaving the district.  The premises will be opened soon under new management."  Prior to James Bowie there had been a chemist named Peter Cowie in Upper Largo, who had died in 1917 at the age of 46. Mackie sold more besides typical chemist products - the advert below highlights that cigarettes and tobacco were available, along books and stationery.

After six years in Upper Largo, George Mackie died, aged 77, in 1941. Outside of his profession, he had been "an authority on music, having one of the finest collections of high-class musical recordings in the District", according to the Kirkintilloch Herald, which reported his death on 14 May 1941.  It also noted that Mackie made musical instruments as a hobby and "for some time conducted the Players' Club Orchestra with great success".  He was also an elder at Largo St David's Church. The Upper Largo Pharmacy continued to operate under his name for many years and it was only in 1975 that the business was wound up. Betty Mackie, who continued the chemist shop, died in 1983. The shop at 14 Main Street, Upper Largo, became a hairdresser, see below, before being converted into a dwelling.

Lundin Mill Farmhouse (pictured above in the 1970s from the Canmore collection) shares a number of architectural features with nearby Fir Park Villas on Crescent Road. Castellated detail above the bay windows, and stone finials at the frontage apexes, are two of the notable shared features. The comparison photos below also show very similar chimney stacks and distinctive quoins (masonry blocks at the corners of walls). Fir Park Villas were built by 1875 were originally owned by local builder Archibald Muir White, who constructed them. Given the strong similarities in style, I suspect that White also built Lundin Mill Farmhouse. If anyone is able to confirm this - please leave a comment.

Inspection of old maps of Lundin Mill Farm shows that there was a forerunner to the present farmhouse. It was also known as Lundin Mill Farmhouse but it had a different layout and stood in a slightly different position. The annotated maps below show, on the left a 1912 site map and, on the right a 1866 equivalent. Both maps feature Broadlea and its associated stores (marked 1) and Ernest Cottage (marked 2) but the present day Lundin Mill Farm House (marked 3) is not present on the older map. So when was the newer farmhouse building constructed?

Census information for the dwelling reveals that, up until the 1881 census, the farmhouse was noted as having "5 rooms with windows" whereas, from 1891, the farmhouse was described as having 10 windows. This suggests that a new, larger farmhouse was constructed during the 1880s. This was during the tenancy of John Whyte (or White), whose family had run the farm for generations. The valuation rolls for the period confirms that the value of the farmhouse rose substantially between 1885 and 1895. So the new farmhouse likely dates to some time between 1885 and 1891.

Around 5-10 years after the building of the house, tenant farmer John White/Whyte had to retire due to ill health, breaking his 'tack' (tenancy). This turn of events (covered on 18 September 1896 by both the Dundee Courier and the East of Fife Record above) signalled the end of a long era of the Whytes farming this land. On 28 October 1896 a displenishing sale took place at Lundin Mill Farm - attracting a huge gathering, with farmers from far and wide in attendance (see 30 October 1896 Dundee Courier piece below). The farmhouse went on to be occupied by subsequent tenant farmers for several more decades.

Celebrating a Golden Wedding Anniversary is a landmark achievement. Back in the 1940s, to reach that milestone and have a parent present at the occasion was newsworthy. When Robert Imrie and his wife Isabella (nee Mitchell) marked 50 years of marriage, the above feature appeared in the 1 September 1945 Daily Record. Mrs Imrie's mother Helen Mitchell (nee Swan) appears with the golden couple in the photograph above.

In fact five generations of the family were represented at the event, including Isabella's sister, Margaret Honeyman (nee Mitchell) of Kennoway who was bridesmaid at the wedding. At the time of the celebration, Mr and Mrs Imrie had two daughters and five sons (one of whom lived in Canada). They also had fourteen grandchildren and one great grandchild. The couple, who lived at Watson Cottage on Mill Wynd, received many gifts and messages of best wishes, including a cablegram from Canada.

Robert Imrie was born in Strathmiglo and married Isabella in Kennoway on 30 August 1895. He had a long career in agriculture, becoming a farm grieve like his father George before him. He started out at Gateside, followed by a spell at Stanley in Perthshire, before completing the remainder of his working life in Fife. He worked at Hayston Farm near Balmullo and at Luthrie Bank, ahead of twenty years as grieve at Lundin Mill Farm (where he oversaw the other farm workers, when George Bell was the tenant farmer). The family lived in Broadlea Cottage on Cupar Road during that era.

Later, Robert spent thirteen years as farm grieve at Cassingray Farm, near Largoward, on the Kilconquhar Estate, working for Lady Lindsay. Above is an image of the farmhouse at South Cassingray where the family were based (image from the Canmore collection). Below is an advert for the lease of the farm in 1939, with Robert named as the grieve who would show round interested parties. It must have been soon after this point that Robert returned to Lundin Links, a place to which he obviously felt a strong connection. ​The Imries were members of Upper Largo Church for forty years and Robert had a spell on the District School Board.

The newspaper article at the top of this post describes Robert as "green keeper on the Lundin Ladies' Golf Course". This was late career shift brought about by the Second World War. Having returned to Lundin Links, where son Jimmie was green keeper at the Ladies' course, Robert was well placed to step into his son's shoes when Jimmie joined the Auxiliary Fire Service full time in 1941. At Jimmie's suggestion, Robert took over as greenkeeper while his own wife Christina acted as starter and looked after the clubhouse. Jimmie and Christina lived in the greenkeeper's cottage (the 1911 built cottage pictured above to the right of the club house).

Wartime had a significant impact upon the Ladies' course with much ground given up for agriculture. The War Cabinet instructed that portions of golf courses had to be leased to increase food production. By special arrangement, the Ladies Club gave up more than its quota (two thirds of its area) so that the main Lundin course could remain intact. The much reduced course comprised six holes with the added feature of some grazing sheep (which both supported food production and kept the grass short at at time when there was little fuel for green keeping).

​When Jimmie returned to post after the war, he set about the restoration of the course (shown below) including re-seeding and the re-laying out of the lost greens, tees and bunkers. As the book published for the club's centenary by Alan Elliot said of Jimmie Imrie:

"He was an excellent worker, conscientious and thorough. When it is realised that he put the course back from its wartime ploughing to its former state almost single-handed, it may give some idea of what he did. He worked with the minimum of equipment....a spade, a shovel, a barrow, a roller, an elderly tractor and mowers of great age: an awesome lot of effort. He achieved much in a remarkably short time after the war, and overall he provided the club with a course again when it mattered most."

In the years following the end of the war, all three of the family members featured in the photograph at the top of this post passed away. Helen Mitchell died in 1946 aged 94, Robert in 1947 aged 75 and Isabella in 1950 aged 70. Jimmie Imrie lived until 1985, reaching the age of 79. This remarkable and hard working family left their mark on the community in several ways over many years. Their descendants must be very proud of them.

The images above and below from the Canmore collection were captured in 1975 and show Broadlea and its associated stores (formerly a stable and byre). The top photograph shows the oldest part of the group of buildings in the foreground, the end closest to the bridge over the Cupar Road. The buildings once belonged to Largo Estate and were specifically associated with Lundin Mill Farm. The image below shows the farm worker's cottage which became know as Broadlea from the south showing its main entrance (which faced away from the main road).

Above is a 1960s colour image of the same properties, taken from the ninth green of Lundin Ladies Golf Course, with Broadlea in the centre background. The buildings can be seen again in the top right hand corner of the aerial image below. The buildings were demolished to make way for the Penrice Park housing development in the mid 1990s.
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The extract from an 1866 Estate Plan above shows the extent of Lundin Mill Farm. The Broadlea buildings are on the north edge of Lundin Mill village, close to the Mill Dam, conveniently located on the road north towards the upper parts of the farm. Broadlea cottage has the appearance of a circa 1800 dwelling, while the adjacent stable and byre appear significantly older. The imprecisely cut crowstepped gable of the byre, suggests authentic crowsteps of the pre-1750 era. The gable end can be seen in the Canmore image below taken from alongside the Cupar Road bridge. This old building was a characterful and distinctive landmark when approaching Lundin Links from Cupar direction.

The 1826 map below appears to show the Broadlea buildings, Earnest Cottage and Lundin Mill Farm House along with the corn mill (marked with a wheel like symbol). This mill is also marked on the 1775 Ainslie map of Fife.
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Broadlea was built to be a farm worker's cottage, likely circa 1800. Over its history, using census information, it would appear that Broadlea was home to many individuals and their families, including those occupied as field labourer, carter and dairyman. In 1901, carter David Morris lived at Broadlea with his wife and two children but in the warmer months the property was let to summer visitors. By September 1901 the Morris family were preparing to move out and the notice below from the 19 September Leven Advertiser provides an insight to some of their equipment, livestock and household effects.​

The 1911 census shows the row of buildings as three separate dwellings, Broadlea, its annex and the 'bothy'. Robert Imrie, farm grieve, now occupied the main cottage with his wife and six children. A 'lodger' occupied the small annex and a shepherd and ploughman lived in what was then described as the 'bothy' at the edge of the village. The above snippet from the 28 December 1911 Leven Advertiser reports that George Bell, tenant farmer at Lundin Mill, gave each farm servant a Christmas gift of a currant loaf and pound of tea.

​By the next census ten years later, in 1921, Robert Imrie was still at Broadlea and still employed as a farm grieve. The former byre was now referred to as 'Bell's Bothy'. A shepherd and three ploughman (aged 20, 16 and 16) lived in the bothy. Below is a report from the 8 December 1925 Leven Advertiser about the Imries departure from the farm (they later returned to live in Lundin Links). Farm workers continued to live at Broadlea for many more decades, including ploughman Sebastian Ramsay in the 1940s and the Osborne sisters in the 1960s. Below are the buildings as viewed from Cupar Road and a 1964 maps showing the three separate dwellings.
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The above advert, from the 3 November 1948 Leven Mail, is for Largo Roses, which were grown at Kirkton Nurseries on the edge of Upper Largo beyond the cemetery. The 1940s aerial photo below shows the nurseries in the central rectangle, to the north of the cemetery and the school. The proprietor of Kirkton Nurseries was David Strathearn Abernethy. Born in 1900 in Dalkeith Parish, Midlothian, David was the son of David Alexander Abernethy an Inland Revenue Officer and Margaret Nisbet. By the time of the 1921 census, aged 20, David was already a 'nurseryman' working for Dickson & Co Nurserymen and living in Liberton. 

By 1923, David Abernethy had relocated to Largo and was owner occupier of 'greenhouse, office and land' at Chesterstone Farm. The nursery would continue to operate from this site for more than four decades, David living on site for much of this time. He would become known locally as an authority on roses, acting as judge at local flower shows such as the St Andrews Rose Show. 

Above is an advert from the 23 November 1935 Leven Mail. Note that David is a Fellow of the Royal Horticultural Society. Roses were hugely popular at this time, with most gardens featuring the "Queen of the Garden" amongst their displays. Being easy to grow, coming in many varieties and blooming long and lavishly, the rose was seen to provide a good return for its cost. Being able to visit a nursery to view roses in bloom and having the option to order a catalogue, made it easy for customers to confidently place an order. The nurseryman would give advice on the best varieties for a garden's situation and soil type. The Kirkton Nurseries would have had a wide range of varieties and its reputation grew quickly. Below are example adverts for the "widely known" Largo Roses from the early 1950s, available via Thomas Oswald, Florist and Fruiterer, Shorehead, Leven.

In the summer of 1955 there was a fire at the Nurseries - the 20 July Leven Mail reported on the incident below. The fire started on the roadside, close to the wooden house of Mr Smith who worked at Kirkton Nurseries. Fortunately, the blaze was noticed quickly and was extinguished by a unit from Methil Fire Brigade before it reached the house. The Smith family were unharmed but a bed of roses was destroyed. A discarded cigarette was presumed to have led to the fire.
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Hugh Cameron was born in Edinburgh in 1835, eldest son of tailor John Cameron and his wife Isabella Armstrong. At the age of 14 he became an apprentice in architecture and surveying. However, his true passion was for painting and by 1852 he was studying under Robert Scott Lauder. Cameron exhibited for the first time at the Royal Scottish Academy in 1854 at the age of nineteen (and went on to be represented at every exhibition bar two up until the year of his death). Having given up architecture entirely in 1856, he became an Associate of the RSA in 1859. The 1861 census describes Hugh Cameron as an 'artist figure painter' and the census of 1871 records him as living in India Street in Edinburgh as an 'artist (painting)'.

In 1877 at the age of 42, Hugh married widow Jessie Allan (nee Anderson) in Helensburgh. Their first daughter Margaret Kerr Cameron was born the following year. Their second daughter Isabella Armstrong Cameron was born the year after. The family then moved to London - Hugh following in the footsteps of many of his fellow Scottish painters. While based in London, at West Cromwell Road in Kensington, the couple had their son Hugh and a third daughter, Jessie. The family returned to Scotland after only a few years "not finding London very congenial". Based in Edinburgh at the time of the 1891 census, Hugh had already by this time discovered Largo as a place of inspiration. 

The full catalogue of his works exhibited at the RSA shows Viewforth (beyond the Temple at Largo) named as his studio base from 1889. In 1889 he produced works such as Pleasures of the Sea and The Timid Bather. These were followed by pieces such as Summer Pleasures and Morning by the Sea. Viewforth (the ruins of which are pictured below) was right on the shore of beautiful Largo Bay, was fairly private and isolated and had a quality of light quality just perfect for capturing seascapes. The fresh breezy weather and opportunity for sea-bathing was beneficial to the wider family and Cameron's pieces from this time often feature women and children by and in the sea.
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In fact Hugh was already associated with Largo by 1888. The piece above from the 10 February 1888 Fifeshire Advertiser shows him present at the annual dinner of Largo Curling Club. He continued to split his time between Edinburgh and Largo beyond 1905, when his wife Jessie (who produced her own paintings of Largo) passed away aged 59. One of the most recognisable scenes of Largo is the one below (Summer Pleasures, 1890) looking west along the bay towards the Crusoe Hotel. Further below is a selection of other works depicting Largo.
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In the 1901 census, Hugh, wife Jessie and two children, Isabel and Hugh, were recorded as residing at Elphinstone on Crescent Road (pictured above). The census took place on 31 March, perhaps suggesting that while this time of year was not conducive to being at Viewforth, the family still opted to be based in the Largo area. Two local women were also part of the household, employed as a cook and housemaid (see below).
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The above portrait of Hugh Cameron, painted by John Brown Abercromby in 1898, is significant because it depicts Cameron painting a scene of Largo Bay. The word 'Largo' is also incorporated into this artwork in the centre at the foot (see detail below). Although known as an Edinburgh artist, there is no doubt that Largo was an important place for Cameron, a place which not only inspired him but one which was also for a long time his home. The 16 July 1918 Scotsman included the following words in his obituary:

"For some years he resided in Fifeshire whence originated some attractive pictures of child life being painted sympathetically at play on the shore, the compositions having a sense of light and movement which have characterised the best of the later work of Scottish artists." 
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Hugh Cameron died in Edinburgh, aged 82, at the residence of his daughter, Isabella Armstrong Archibald, on Spottiswoode Street. He is buried in Grange Cemetery, Edinburgh along with Jessie and two of their daughters (see image at foot of post).
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The 30 July 1969 East Fife Mail reported on the gift given to Largo Kirk of a model of The Yellow Caravel (the 15th century ship of Admiral Sir Andrew Wood). The man pictured working on the model is Dan Marshall, who lived in Westora on The Promenade, Leven. Sir Andrew Wood had been a boyhood hero of Dan's and his model making idea had begun as far back as 1934. It was then that he visited the Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street in Edinburgh, to view their model of the Yellow Caravel.  He gained permission to examine and sketch the model and take measurements, with a view to creating a replica.

Dan was home on leave from China and he intended to follow up the preparatory work by embarking upon his own model on his subsequent visit home. While in the museum, an older man sat down next to Dan and asked him about his plans. He turned out to be the maker of the museum's model, Richard Paterson of Lasswade. Mr Paterson had undertaken a number of commissions for the Museum. His other works included the Great Michael and a Viking longboat. Richard Paterson's original 1926 Yellow Caravel model can be viewed here.

Dan Marshall made a start on his version of the Yellow Caravel but progress was slow and, after some time had passed with only the hull completed, he scrapped the model and the project ground to a halt. More than three decades later, while working in the Gas Board Offices, Mr Marshall had a conversation with Upper Largo minister, Reverend Douglas Lister. Dan explained that he had long dreamed of making a model ship to hang in a church. Nothing happened for six months, until the pair talked again and Rev. Lister asked when Dan was going to start on his model.

Around 500 hours of intricate work later, Marshall's model was presented to Upper Largo Parish Church on 3 August 1969, at a service televised by the BBC for Songs of Praise. The Church still has this special memorial to Wood on display today. Built at a 1:48 scale, the Yellow Caravel is positioned on a small table against a wall next to the main dais so that all members of the congregation looking at the communion table and pulpit will see the little ship as well. The black and white photograph below shows the model (to the right) in context.
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Here is a description of the model:

Scale: 1:48
Length Overall: 1000mm
Breadth: 250mm
Height: 960mm
Material: wood, paint, cotton thread and metal fittings
Construction: Block built with built up topside
Description: Hull is painted black below the waterline and yellow and blue above. The stern castle and forecastles are both built up in the style of the fifteenth century warship, painted yellow, blue and red stripes with shields depicting the Scottish red lion rampant, the saltire and one bearing the oak tree family crest of Sir Andrew Wood. A saltire is also picked out in blue lines on the lugsail at the foremast and in decorations around the crows‐nest on the main mast. Two yellow metal carronades are on each side of the main deck.
Transom: painted blue, yellow and red stripes with two Scottish lion shields and a central saltire shield.
Masts and Spars: painted yellow with blue bands.
Rigging: fully rigged with sails set. Main sail is painted with two images of ships carrying saltires and a large oak tree, the family crest of Sir Andrew Wood.
Flags: Large tin saltires fly at the bow, stern and mainmast. 
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This model represents a typical armed merchantman of the 15th century rather than specifically the Yellow Caravel, no illustration of which survives. It carries seven guns, crossbows and pikes. The mainmast has a fighting top. The coat of arms on the mainsail are those of Sir Andrew Wood. Wood began his naval career as a privateer under James III and prospered under James IV. By 1489 he owned the Flower and the Yellow Carvel, both fighting ships, which fought and captured five English ships close to Dunbar.

The English launched a larger offensive the following year under Stephen Bull, which attacked Wood's ships in the Firth of Forth. After two days of fighting, Wood triumphed, capturing the English ships, despite having been outnumbered. James IV knighted Wood following this battle, granting him land in Largo. Wood built a fortified tower house there, married Elizabeth Lundie and had several sons. In 1511, he took command of the Great Michael, the flagship of the Royal Scots Navy, said to be the largest ship in Europe, weighing 1,000 tons and measuring 240ft (73 metres) long.
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The Upper Largo Church model is one of many ship models found in Scottish Churches. If you would like to find out more about ship models in Scottish Churches, click here, to read a thesis on the topic by Meredith Clare Greiling (June 2019).
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The stables associated with Largo Parish Church and its manse date to the 1830s. Originally, the building would have provided the minister with stables, a gig house and possibly a byre for any livestock kept. It likely also would have provided stabling for the horses of some of the worshippers for the duration of Church services. While the majority of the congregation would have walked to Church (some covering long distances) a few would have brought horses. 

The building's original use became redundant long ago but it was not until the late 1960s that it was repurposed as a hall facility. In 1965, renovation work had taken place in the Church itself. It was redecorated, new lighting was installed and a new communion table was gifted. That same year, the pulpit and baptismal font from Newburn Church were moved to Largo. With those changes completed, attention focussed on the need to renovate the old stables. The objective was to create a new hall facility with good car parking facilities. The challenge was how to achieve this in a cost effective manner.

Assistance came in the form of a work party of thirteen young people from different parts of Europe, led by David Cowan from Farnham, Surrey. The Christian Movement for Peace group arrived in the summer of 1969. As the East Fife Mail reported, "the clatter of bulldozers and cement mixers announced that they had made a start on the projects". Staying in the nearby Church Rooms and Scout Hall, the seven females and six males, aged between 20 and 22, came from Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Norway and England. During their three week stay, the work party began work at 7 a.m. and worked until 1 p.m. each day, after which, their time was their own.

As well as making a start on the conversion of the stables and the laying out of a the car park, the group carried out redecoration work in the public rooms of the manse and in the homes of some of the old folk in the village. Mechanical equipment had been loaned for the project and a cement mixer was used to concrete the floor of the stables. Most of the group were new to building work but professional supervision was on hand.

The photograph above appeared in the 30 July 1969 East Fife Mail and shows some of the work party in action on a sunny day. The Christian Movement for Peace (now known as Volunteer Action for Peace) was founded by Etienne Bach an army officer from Alsace. Originally, it was formed to help reconciliation between France and Germany but it expanded following the Second World War to cover many countries in Europe. After 1950, an emphasis was placed on practical work and discussion to promote greater understanding between denominations and nationalities. The group's visit to Largo, ​coincided with two services being recorded in the Church for BBC television's Songs of Praise on 3 August. The image below shows Reverend Douglas Lister, minister at the time, right of centre, on the day of filming.

The above postcard image is entitled High Street Lundin Mill. It predates the development of Leven Road, further to the west. This street (Emsdorf Street), along with Hillhead Street, was where the majority of village shops could be found. The date of the photograph can be narrowed down to between 1895 and 1899. It was captured after the 1895 completion of Bellville, the railings of which can be seen on the far right foreground, yet before the 1900 completion of the Lundin Links Hotel.

The construction of the hotel involved the demolition of the two cottages in the left hand foreground (also shown in more detail below) to make way for gated access to the hotel grounds. The photograph further below, entitled Emsdorf St Lundin Links, was captured a few years later. Note the absence of the old cottages on the left but also the fact that the street lamp holder that was once attached to the demolished cottages has moved to the opposite side of the road. The old dwellings date to the establishment of the village of Emsdorf from 1802.

The cottages looked neglected in the photo, having been unoccupied since before the 1891 census. The three-storey house beyond them belonged to William Dick the coachbuilder. His property incorporated a pend for carriages to go through and a workshop at the bottom of the garden. Local resident Esther Menzies recalled:

"It was a fascinating place to be sent to.  There were wheels all over and upended gigs and such like with the shafts up in the air.  He also sharpened lawn mowers and knives.  Next to this were two cottages or maybe one and a byre.  There wasn't much difference. Two old women stayed there.  Maggie Drummond sold sweets which were displayed in her window on a table....when you were in the shop or room and looked along the passage you could see the cows flicking their tails.  The Seaway is there now."
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Indeed beyond Dick's property was another tumbledown cottage, occupied by sisters Isabella and Margaret Drummond. It was demolished and replaced with La Scala cinema. Looking a decade further back, at the 1881 census, it appears that the residents of these run-down properties were largely linen handloom weavers, bobbin winders for the net factory and paupers. Their simple dwellings were cleared away to be replaced with a hotel of unimaginable modern luxury. The transformation of old Lundin Mill into Lundin Links was dramatic for those that lived through it, such as nonagenarian Mrs Wallace.

There are several details worth highlighting in the circa 1897 image at the top of this post.  Looking at the zoomed in version below, note the water tap to the left, next to the people peering into the baker's shop window. On the opposite side of the street, it looks like a coal delivery has been deposited onto the road and a hand barrow is being used to transfer this through the cottage to be stored round the back. In the distance, to the left of centre, is David Lindsay's grocer shop. Careful inspection shows the letters Y'S PROVISIONS visible behind the row of houses. David Lindsay was the original proprietor of this shop, built not long before the photograph was taken. Esther Menzies recalled this shop saying:

"Mr Lindsay sold everything nearly - bran, parings, oatmeal, dried big cod, doormats, salt herring from a barrel in front of the counter and of course the ordinary groceries not packaged as they are today."

Later owners would include James Turbayne and Robert Leishman. To the right of centre is the wall surrounding Pump Green. As Esther Menzies wrote in her memoires, the green was... 

"surrounded by a high stone wall following the line of the posts and chain there at present but protruding in an arc for several yards at the south end.  There was a gap of about four yards with an iron pump with a turning knob....The washing was laid out to bleach in the curved end and we did not play on the green if the washing was there.  At other times it was a playground.  The grass patch beyond was near oblong.  It was crossed by paths - one leading round by the curved wall to Emsdorf Place Houses, another at the east edge in front of their doors and another from Woodlands Road cutting through to meet the one passing alongside the Pump Green wall and leading up to the Hillhead."
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The annotated map (dating to 1893) below points out the main features mentioned above. Note that there are four water taps (marked W.T.) within this small area. 

1. Site of new Lundin Links Hotel
2. Site of Bellville
3. Old Cottages (demolished)
4. William Dick's Coachworks
5. Drummond sisters' cottage
6. Baker's Shop
7. Site of Lindsay's Grocer
​8. Pump Green