​The postcard shown above was posted on 26 August 1908 by someone who was residing at Prospect Bank in Lower Largo. The message had been written earlier that day at 11:15am and the writer clearly hoped that their message would reach the recipient in Glasgow later the same day. Their message read:

Elsie is first in her German Exam. Isn't it grand? Bob sent a telegram this morning. She is almost wild with delight. This is another fine day. With kindest remembrances to all. Yours etc. J

P.S. I hope you get this tonight.

Clearly Elsie's exam result was important news among their circle of family and friends. The news was shared with some urgency via telegram and postcard.

Rossini Place in Lundin Links, as it was in 1893, is highlighted on the map above in red. This section of Emsdorf Street comprised ten dwellings - a row of five on either side of a courtyard. For decades these dwellings were all owned by one individual and rented out. These buildings likely date back to the creation of the village of Emsdorf back around 1800.

​Emsdorf village took its name from a battle that took place during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) - a struggle for world supremacy between Great Britain and France which is considered to be the first global conflict in history. Read about how that became connected to the Lundin Estate here.

Some of the Rossini Place dwellings can be seen on the far right of the 1890s photograph below, with the hand barrow on the pavement outside and the uneven-looking roof tiles. This image is looking east towards the old Pump Green with its stone wall, and to David Lindsay's grocer shop on the corner of Hillhead Street.

After the younger James Thinn's death in 1891, ownership of Rossini Place passed to his son John Thynn, until he in turn died in 1897 at the age of 47 years. Rossini Place then came into the ownership of George Clark, the Lundinmill-born stone mason mentioned in the previous post about Braemar. Below is an extract from the 1905 valuation roll for Largo Parish where the tenants of the ten properties are listed.

George Clark continued to own the properties at Rossini Place (shown above in the 1930s with an arrow pointing to the vennel access point to the rear properties) until his death in 1931, which occurred at the Rossini Place dwelling that he kept for his own use. This was not usual residence (which was in Leven) but it could have been a decision to return to the place of his birth at the very end of his life. The properties subsequently passed to his stepson William Brown, then a publican at the Crown Bar on Kirkcaldy's High Street. During the decade of Brown's ownership, the properties did undergo some renovation work as the 6 June 1936 Fife Free Press notice below informs us.

By 1950, however, the dwellings of Rossini Place were in decline. They remained under the ownership of the trustees of late William Brown (who died in 1940), and at this time, three of the dwellings were empty having been condemned. By 1960, the new owner of the properties was Mary K. Browning. In 1973, she received planning permission to create lock-up garages, with rear access from Links Road lane. The 24 October 1973 East Fife Mail reported that this was at a cost of £1,000. In recent years, there have been further alterations at the site.

The aerial image below shows the footprint of Rossini Place in recent times, marked by a dashed red line. One mystery remains - why was this place given the name Rossini?  Answers, or even just theories, would be very welcome!

The late Victorian villa on Crescent Road in Lundin Links pictured above was originally named Braemar and, interestingly, its origins are intertwined with the Railway Inn in Lower Largo.

Long before the dwelling was built, Kirkcaldy-born George Brown and his Kinghorn-born wife Agnes (nee Mitchell) ran the Railway Inn. George had followed in the footsteps of his father William Brown, a Leven-born spirit merchant. He had married Agnes, a housemaid, on 23 February 1886 in Kirkcaldy by which time George was already inn-keeper at the Railway Inn. The notice below appeared in the 27 February 1886 Fifeshire Advertiser.
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It was the Clarks who secured this triangular feu - one of the earliest to be taken up in this phase of development. Subsequently the villa named Braemar was built upon it and the family of three moved in upon completion. Perhaps, being a stone mason, George Clark, was directly involved in the construction. By the summer of 1896, the property was being let to summer visitors - see example below from the 8 August 1896 Fife News, when the McCraig family from Edinburgh were staying there. So, to an extent, Agnes was continuing in the hospitality business that she had become used to as an inn-keeper's wife.

The census of 1901 finds George, Agnes and William at Braemar, where George is still described as a stone mason. However, the three would soon be living somewhere else - the Railway Inn. The licensee had changed a couple of times at the inn since Agnes had left in 1892. When the Railway Inn came up for sale in 1906, Agnes Clark decided to buy it. Her son William, who had been born on the premises, became barman and she was landlady. George switched occupation to Insurance Agent, according to the 1911 census. By 1921, Agnes and George were still at the Railway Inn and George was now described as a 'spirit merchant'. Stepson William Brown was now the tenant at the Crown Bar at 181 High Street, Kirkcaldy, where he remained for decades. The name A. Clark can be seen on the sign on the gable end of the Railway Inn in the photograph below taken on the day the first car drove over the road bridge at Largo Harbour on 3 October 1914.
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Braemar was put up for sale when the Clarks moved to the Railway Inn. The advert below dates to the 14 February 1907 Leven Advertiser. The next occupant was Dr John Jamieson physician and surgeon. He was noted at the house in the 1911 census, with his wife Emily Clayton Jamieson and 3 year old twin daughters Jessie and Elizabeth, plus one servant. They retained the house name Braemar.

Around 1915, the house name changed from Braemar to Dundarroch - the name by which the villa is still known today. For many years it was occupied by Andrew Somerville, who I was interested to learn had a passageway made between the house and the back of his grocer shop on Leven Road.

​George Clark died in 1931 at Rossini Place in Lundin Links, although by then his usual residence was Murrayville on Links Road in Leven. Agnes Clark returned to her native Kinghorn, living at King's Drive in a home named Braemar - a name which that house there retains to this day. The notice below is from 4 November 1939 Fife Free Press.

Recent blog posts have covered the pioneering Leven golf club maker John Patrick (1820-1866), and two of his sons - Alex Patrick (1845-1932) and David Patrick (1858-1948). To continue the family story into a third generation, this post will begin with John Patrick (1851-1916) and his sons who continued in the business and took the family expertise overseas. 
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John Malcolm Patrick was born in Leven in 1851, six years after elder brother Alex and seven years before younger brother David. John was a teenager when his father John, a pioneering maker of golf clubs, died of cholera in 1866. The 1871 census records John in Govan, Glasgow, working as a blacksmith. On 27 December 1872 John married Margaret Steedman in Colinton, Edinburgh. On the marriage record, John's usual address was given as Campbeltown, Argyll and his occupation was practical engineer. The couple's first son, John, was born in Campbeltown on 20 January 1875, where John was employed as an 'engine fitter'.

However, by 1876, the family were back in Leven where John switched his occupation to golf club making like his older brother Alex. In the 1881 census, John, Margaret and family were recorded as living at Parkhill Place in Leven. Between 1876 and 1883 six further children were born to the pair in Leven. Then around 1884 the family moved to Dunbar in East Lothian, then known as Haddingtonshire.
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The advert above from the 5 December 1894 Haddingtonshire Advertiser, shows that John was a golf club and ball maker in Dunbar. However, that phase of his life was short-lived, as the 1891 census finds John and Margaret back in Leven, residing at North Street, with seven children in the household. John was recorded as a golf club maker and his eldest son, John, was an apprentice golf club maker, aged 16. The latter became the third generation golf club maker with the name John Patrick in Leven. His younger brother, Alexander, born in 1878, also followed the golf club making path.​

As young John and Alex moved into golf club making, their father returned to his roots as a blacksmith for a time. The 1901 census finds him in that occupation living in Edinburgh, with wife Margaret and three of their daughters, Mabel, Agnes and Margaret. By then the young John and Alex had emigrated to USA and settled in New York (from around 1895). A passenger list below shows them travelling together from Glasgow to New York in 1896, although this may not have been their first voyage.
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In the USA, young John was employed as instructor and golf club maker at the Tuxedo Club in New York, presumably assisted by younger brother Alex. The demand for quality golf clubs was huge as the sport boomed over there. After a few years at the Tuxedo Club, the brothers became trailblazers in the brand new trend of indoor golf tuition. 

The history of indoor golf appears to date back to 1896, when Willie Dunn began an golf school on New York's 42nd Street. Dunn's enterprise was replicated by the Patrick brothers, who had their indoor golf school on 58th Street, By the turn of the century many major cities had several indoor golf schools, which were particularly popular in winter. Indoor golf venues provided greens made of carpet and high nets to catch the specially adapted balls. Practising of swings and putting were well suited to the format. 

On 26 January 1899, the Leven Advertiser carried an interesting news story from New York City. The piece begins "We have been favoured by a correspondent in New York with a cutting from a paper published in that city, which will be of much interest to local golfers and Leven folks in general". That cutting discusses how there is no longer any need for the golf enthusiast from New York to venture out of the city to play golf. Now there was a place where one could learn "how to shoot the wily ball through space with an accompaniment of most "burr-y" Scotch". Down a narrow alley was a building with a sign displaying the Patrick name and a pendant reading "Golf School". 

As a final footnote, there were two other sons (brothers of the young John and Alex) - Richard born in 1880 and David born in 1883. Both also emigrated to the USA for roles as golf professionals and golf club makers. These younger brothers remained in the USA for their whole lives. Richard Steedman Patrick is pictured below, as a teenager in the 23 July 1897 Dundee Courier and later in life further below. ​He initially emigrated in 1897 and went on to marry widow Alice Gray Silvey (nee Munger) - a survivor of the Titanic in New York in 1918. He became involved in the diamond mining industry and remained in the USA until his death on 19 March 1949 in Minnesota.

David Murdoch Patrick (born 1883) reportedly emigrated to the USA aged just 15 years and pursued a career as a golf professional. He began at the Century Club in Westchester, New York and later had spells at prestigious clubs in New York, New Jersey and Mexico. He was an active member of the National Association of Greenkeepers of America and at the time of his death in Tennessee in 1932 he was owner and manager of St Andrews Golf Club on the Mississippi.  The Patrick family continues to fascinate to this day and no doubt there is more to find out about this extended family of adventurous innovators. If you have information to share about any member of the Patrick family, please do get in touch or leave a comment.
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Meanwhile back in Fife, the sport of golf continued to grow and the courses around Leven and Lundin Links were particularly popular. So in 1895 David made plans to return home and had plans drawn up for a new dwelling, with connected shop premises (shown above). The sasine register (land register) entry dated 2 March 1896 below describes the feu which owner of the Lundin estate John Gilmour granted to David Patrick, then of Wimbledon Common. 
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The plot was on what would become Golf Road - described then as "street to the Links by the under Railway Bridge". The railway bridge can clearly be seen in the 1899 photograph below. The year 1896, when David arrived in Lundin Links, is significant because it was the same year as the opening of the new clubhouse at Lundin Golf Club and the opening of the outlet of Alex Patrick's business at Lundin Links.

​Such was the demand for quality locally made golf clubs, that David set up his own club making business, about 100 metres away from his brother's shop and began making clubs in his own name. The photograph below shows two red arrows - the one on the left points to David's premises and the one on the right to Alex's shop (obscured by the club house). 

David and Rebecca named their new home Linksview, and soon other new villas were built in this corner of the village. Note in the image above that a sign stating D.M. Patrick is just visible above shop window and that there is also wording advertising the business under the eave of the gable end. In the 1905 book Rambles in Scoonie and Wemyss by Andrew Storrar Cunningham, the author notes that like his older brother Alex, David Patrick "also has a world-wide reputation" for his clubs. 
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The pair of adverts below both appeared in the 1907 book by A.S. Cunningham, Upper Largo, Lower Largo, Lundin Links and Newburn.

David Patrick remained at Linksview for the remainder of his long life. The 1921 census finds him aged 63 years, still making golf clubs there. In 1923 he laid out the new pitch and putt course at Lundin Golf Club along with Robert Paxton. David's wife Rebecca died in 1933. He remarried in 1935 to Mary Ann McLeod at the Commercial Hotel in Upper Largo. Mary died in 1944 and on 4 August 1948, David passed away at the age of 90 years. His headstone, pictured below, is at Scoonie Cemetery.

The previous post covered the life of John Patrick who was a pioneering maker of golf clubs in Leven from 1847 until his untimely death in 1866. However, John had been training his sons to follow in his footsteps and eldest son Alexander was able to take on the family business at the age of 21. Alexander's younger brothers John, Nicol and David would all follow him into the trade. The photograph above shows the outlet at Lundin Golf Club which was established in the 1890s.

​Initially based at Branch Street by Leven's Shorehead, the club making business moved in the late 1860s to more convenient premises by Leven Links. Matthew Elder, ropemaker, had converted the old washing-house of the bleaching green on the banks of the Scoonie Burn. The Leven and Innerleven Golf Clubs took the upper floors as their clubhouse and Alexander took the ground floor as a shop and workshop. As the business thrived, the premises shown below was built at the corner of Links Road and Balfour Street, around 1892, where a sign above the entrance proudly stated "Established 1847". 
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Alexander married Jemina Kinnell in 1870 in Elie and the following year the 1871 census records the pair at Manse Place in Leven, where Alex is described as "Golf Club and Ball Maker, employing 2 apprentices". A decade later, in 1881 they had moved to a home closer to Leven Golf Links and were at Sweetbank Cottages on Links Road, with Alex's occupation listed as "Master Golf Club Maker employing 1 man". 

Later in the 1880s, Alex and Jemima moved to Surrey. Alex had been appointed professional and green keeper at Royal Wimbledon Golf Club. Notably, the position came with a salary of 30s per week and a free shop, enabling Alex to open a branch of his club and ball making business in the south of England. The notice above from the 2 October 1886 Fifeshire Advertiser tells of a "complimentary supper" held for Alex prior to his leaving Leven.

He would remain at Wimbledon for five years, living on the edge of Wimbledon Common. From his shop there, Patrick clubs were sent all over the world. While down south he also took on a few other projects - for example he laid out the course at Epsom Golf Club. When on a leave of absence in the summer of 1887 for another project, Alex insisted that his brother David Patrick took his place as professional temporarily.  Meanwhile the business back in Leven business continued and in 1891 Alex decided return to Leven. His brother David took his position at Wimbledon permanently.
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The 1890s were a booming era for golf locally and in 1896 when Lundin Golf Club opened a new club house, Alex Patrick established a branch of his club making business adjacent to it. The advert below appeared in the 23 September 1897 Leven Advertiser, when the business was already half a century old, illustrating the range of clubs and balls being produced at that time. By the time of the ​1901 census, Alex and Jemima were in a newly built home on Linksfield Street in Leven which they named Wimbledon Villa.  
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Of course, over time the demand for golf clubs had grown and rival club makers had joined the scene. Different techniques in club making had evolved and naturally there was debate around the merits of different styles of equipment. The 1 June 1899 Leven Advertiser above, describes some of the local club makers of the time. The 16 January 1899 Dundee Advertiser, below, quoted Alexander Patrick from a piece in the publication 'Golfing' on the types of clubs he makes, highlighting his pride in his "wooden putters".

Alexander was something of an expert on the history of golf clubs and had a collection of old clubs. A 12 June 1909 St Andrews Citizen article explained that the two clubs that Alex had displayed in his shop window at the time were hazel and gutta percha clubs that came from South Africa. The piece also stated that "Mr Patrick has in his shop several very ancient iron headed clubs, one of these a driving iron being over 100 years old". The 1906 advert below suggests that by this time the making of golf balls had ceased and balls were now supplied by a large manufacturer.

In July 1909 Alexander retired from the business. The 21 July Leven Advertiser noted that he was succeeded by David James Sellars who was a native of Surrey, and had been engaged in the sports supplies business around London. He came to Fife around the turn of the century to act as foreman for Alex Patrick. Sellars continued the well-established Patrick name for many more years, until his own death in 1936, when the plant, machinery, tools and stock of the Linkside Works were sold off.

Alex lived out his retirement at Wimbledon Villa on Linksfield Street. Singing was his main leisure pursuit and he was a leading member of Leven Choral Union (later Leven Amateur Musical Association). His wife Jemima died in 1914 and thereafter his sisters (who had played administrative roles in the family business) lived with him. 

Alexander died in 1932 aged 86 at Wimbledon Villa and is buried at Scoonie Cemetery with his parents and wife. His life was a remarkable story of a passion for golf, dedication to the family business and to his younger siblings, master craftmanship, innovation and invention. The name of Alex Patrick lives on through the much sought after his antique golf clubs of varying ages, many of which bear his distinctive horseshoe cleekmark and the appropriate words "well made".

John, who was born on 19 March 1820 in Buckhaven to weaver Alexander Patrick and his wife Christina Malcolm (or Malken). He married Agnes Murdoch in 1840 in Dundee and after a short spell in Glasgow they settled in Leven. John started club making as an add-on to his main business but soon saw the demand for golf club making boom. As this line of business thrived, he began to advertise. The notice from the 1 May 1856 Fifeshire Journal above is an example from the time when John was Captain of the Leven Golf Club.

A couple of years later, in the piece below from the 10 June 1858 Fife Herald, described his clubs as "all the go" with golfers far and wide. John's eldest son Alexander left school in 1857 aged about 12 years to assist his father. It was around this time that the group photograph at the top of this post above was captured. It was taken by pioneering photographer John Patrick, who shared a name with the golf clubmaker, as they were first cousins. 
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In fact, fairly detailed information survives regarding the men in this image, which was taken around 1858. Two different sources do slightly disagree on who is who but most likely interpretation is as follows:

1. John Patrick - Leven's first golf clubmaker
2. Alexander Patrick - golf clubmaker in the making - standing next to his father John
3. Robert Bruce, Leven tailor
4. William Wallace
5. John Davidson, grocer
6. David Malcolm
7. J. Guthrie
8. Dr James Cornfoot, Leven surgeon
9. Robert Smith, Leven draper
10. Peter Keddie, saddler
11. William Henderson, grocer
12. Matthew Elder, rope and twine manufacturer

The identities of those without numbers is unclear. If you have more information about this photograph, please comment.

In a piece in the 15 March 1900 Leven Advertiser, W. Dalrymple writes about the photograph. He notes that it was taken in front of Piper's Knowe on Leven Links. He comments on the hats that were the fashion of the day - ranging from top hats to straw hats. John Patrick appears to be wearing a large straw hat and in fact one of his daughters was a milliner and another a straw hat maker. The young Alexander Patrick apparently had to carry the camera down to the links for his Dad's cousin.

Robert Bruce, was a native of Anstruther and an uncle of the famous Old Tom Morris and was himself an excellent player in his prime. Bruce carried on his tailor business in Leven for sixty years, passing it onto his son George. William Wallace was reportedly a lawyer, while John Davidson was a grocer and David Malcolm was a shoemaker. Guthrie was the father of Colonel Guthrie. Dr James Cornfoot was a Leven surgeon, who retired to Lundin Mill. Robert Smith had a draper business at Leven Shorehead and was instrumental in the founding of both Leven and Lundin Golf Clubs, having been a long time Honorary Secretary at Innerleven Golf Club. Peter Keddie was not only a saddler but also made golf balls. He was one of the first in the district to do so and "his guttas were favourites far and near" according to Alex Patrick. William Henderson was another grocer while Matthew Elder, the rope and twine manufacturer, was apparently one of the finest golfers of them all. The produce from his ropery at School Lane, Leven supplied the local fishing industry from Buckhaven to Crail. It was he, that gave the use of an old washing-house by Scoonie Burn for use as a clubhouse to the new Leven Golf Club.

By the time of John Patrick's death in 1866, his eldest son Alex had already been working alongside him making golf clubs for almost a decade. In addition, younger sons John, Nicol and David were also following in his footsteps. More on them, and the Patrick golf club making business, in the next blog post. John Patrick is buried at Scoonie Cemetery, where his headstone can still be seen. ​
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The postcard above was posted in August 1909 and features three ladies at the Serpentine. Despite being posted in Upper Largo, the postcard was sold by John Welsh at the Post Office in Lower Largo, suggesting that the sender himself walked this path between the upper and lower villages. The message on the reverse reads:

Dear Jim, 

We are staying at Viewforth this month. I had a fine catch of partans this morning. Would you like one? Pa and George were golfing. This is Ma's birthday. Love to all.

Arthur

Partans are crabs and the question of 'would you like one?' is of course a joke - particularly as the recipient was Mr James Clark of Nelson, British Colombia. The postcard was sent to him care of the Post Office there, shown below when it was newly opened just a few years before. Perhaps Jim had recently emigrated there from Scotland.

​Arthur's family were staying just a short stroll from the Serpentine path at Viewforth (both of which feature on the map above). The Serpentine Walk is a historic tree-lined path linking Lower Largo to Upper Largo, now managed by the Woodland Trust.  The name 'Serpentine' is a commonly-used one for paths, rivers, lakes and the like which curve and twist like a snake.  Viewforth (at the right on the map) was originally the site of a salt work and was once also referred to as 'Largo Pans' or simply 'the Pans'. Later the location became popular for summer visitors - being well placed for seabathing and getting away from it all.
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​The three ladies in the Serpentine postcard image are shown very clearly. I wonder whether they were visitors or locals. The woman above is looking directly into the camera lens and is clearly carrying something in each hand. The two older women below looked as if posed to be in conversation, with the houses of South Feus in the background. I wonder whether the three just happened to be around when the photographer was on location and were asked to be in shot. It would be fascinating to know more about the scene and who these individuals were. The photographer would have been one hired by James Valentine and Sons to capture local views. Valentines hired a team of photographers to document villages, towns and cities and places of interest across the country to use on their postcards and souvenir booklets. 
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Many old postcards views of the Serpentine Walk featured people - to provide scale and interest, such as the example above. The Serpie is still a handy and enjoyable walk today with a great view of Largo Law as you approach Upper Largo.
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Last October a blog post covered the creative enterprise Genesis Creations Limited which was once based in Mill Wynd, Lundin Links - click here to read.

Since the publication of that blog, a copy of a colour product brochure and a documentary-style video have been kindly shared by Tony Harmsworth, who was Managing Director of the company. Extracts from the colour brochure can be seen above and below and the brochure can be accessed in PDF format in full via the links below:

Genesis Brochure Front

Genesis Brochure Inside

Genesis moved into the Mill Wynd Studio in May 1988 and the company grew over the months that followed. Tony carefully put together a video in June 1990 detailing the processes involved in the creation of the Genesis products. The video includes footage of the Lundin Links workshop - both inside and outside - as well as of the office facilities next door at Marlynn Cottage and the production facility at Levenmouth Business Centre in Leven. The film explains that most of the research and development work was undertaken at the studio in Lundin Links, which was originally built as a silversmith workshop for Norman Grant in 1973. The 1990 film about Genesis Creations is available online in two parts - you can view part one here and part two here. 

As the film describes, an original creation typically starts as a piece of wax, which is intricately sculpted using a range of fine tools. This is the 'master' piece from which a silicone mould can then be made. The silicone mould is subsequently used to form the many replicas of each master piece. Each cast copy piece is then treated, ready to be painted by a member of the team of artists. The finished article is carefully packaged before being sent out to one of the many outlets across the UK and overseas. The film concludes with footage from a trade fair in Birmingham, where Genesis hosted a stand.

Within the film, a display of the master pieces can be seen. Carol Lynn Penny the Creative Director, pictured below, is seen at work. Alan Harrower the main castle sculptor talks about the tools he used to create an intricate crystal castle. The process of the creation of moulds is explained and much more. The film is a fascinating insight to the creativity that went on behind the windows of the Mill Wynd Studio and at the workshop in Leven, and provides real sense of the scale of operations and wide range of designs produced.

The film also explains how the Genesis Creations story came to an end during a time of recession. It was a terribly sad end to a story of enterprise and creativity and its loss still resonates today. Lundin Links was fortunate to have such an innovative endeavour based in the village. If you worked at Genesis Creations, visited the workshop or own one of their pieces - please share your memories by leaving a comment.
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Happy New Year and best wishes for 2026 - the year which marks the 350th anniversary of the birth of Alexander Selkirk - the Largo-born inspiration for the novel Robinson Crusoe. Keep your eyes peeled in the coming months for news of events locally to mark this special occasion.
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For now, let's take a peek back at the New Year news from days gone by. An eclectic mix of topics were covered in the 5 January 1885 Fife News including a curling match at Largo House pond, the unveiling of the memorial tablet to Mrs Dundas Durham at Largo Kirk, a Christmas treat in the Durham School and an accident in Largo Harbour where a steam boat carrying linseed bound for the oil mill blocked the harbour having failed to negotiate the channel between the pier and the Lundie rocks. Stormy conditions and the lack of a pilot on board contributed to the mishap.
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At the start of 1907, it was road and rail travel which were disrupted by weather conditions. The 5 January Fife News below told of a snow storm blocking the roads and impacting railway traffic. No letters or newspapers could get through for a spell and grocers struggled to make deliveries. However, the cold snap was good news for the curlers - both at the Upper Largo rink and at the recently formed Lundin Links Curling Club. The local lodge of Good Templars held their annual social on New Years Day. This 'open social' was an annual fixture on the Robinson Crusoe Lodge's programme (see example programme further below from 1900). Of course the Largo Brass Band played musical selections, as was a New Year tradition for many years.