The Belmont Temperance Hotel, pictured in the centre of the image above, once stood adjacent to Largo railway station. The snippet above from the 8 August 1890 East of Fife Record, details the circumstances that would eventually lead to the building of the hotel. The piece highlighted the "enormous" demand for accommodation in Largo but also pointed out the lack of options for those looking for only a short stay. While a couple of hotels existed, these had a small number of rooms, plus, these were "licensed premises" and many visitors at the time would have objected to that.
The temperance movement, which encouraged abstinence from alcohol, had been established for decades. The local lodge of the Independent Order of Good Templars - the Robinson Crusoe Lodge - had been established in 1872 and was still very active in 1890. Lundin Mill had once had its own small Temperance Hotel. Against this backdrop, a proposal was made to build a new temperance hotel. Specifically, it was to be close to the beach at Lower Largo. By the summer of 1890 it was thought that a suitable site at Drummochy had been identified. However, that particular plan did not come to fruition and teetotal visitors had to wait a little longer.
There was no record of a temperance hotel in the census of 1891 but by July 1893, the local papers were listing summer visitors staying at the Belmont Temperance Hotel on its elevated position between Largo Station and the north side of Main Street. A storm in August 1893 resulted in a Norwegian vessel running aground at the Temple. Her crew were given hospitality at the Belmont Hotel under the care of hotelkeeper Mary Carswell. The 1895 valuation roll shows that Andrew Masterton, joiner, was the property owner, suggesting that he was responsible for its construction.
Soon afterwards, James Houston became tenant hotelkeeper. The advert above dates to 1898 and appeared in the 28 July Leven Advertiser. It would seem that James was not committed to the temperance aspect of the establishment. In April 1898, he applied to the County Licensing Court for a six-day hotel license for the 11-bedroom hotel. James explained that he was acting upon the request of travellers, boarders and summer visitors who were aggrieved at having to "send outside for refreshments". Apparently that Easter a group of a dozen visitors who were all in the hotel one night drew up a petition asking for this "much required license" to be granted. The license was not granted by the court, the members of which believed that there was demand for a temperance establishment. An extract from the 22 April 1898 East of Fife Record notes the discussion at the court which includes the comment that "one place should be reserved for temperance people".
Unsurprisingly, the following year James Houston "removed" from the hotel. A sale of his household furniture and the hotel furnishings took place. The items available were listed in the 9 November Leven Advertiser. The list below gives an impression of what the hotel interior would have been like with its 12 feet dining table, marble top basin stands, brass bedsteads, brass stair rods and paraffin lamps.
In 1900, George Cumming, a draper who had decided to turn his hand to hotelkeeping, took charge of the Belmont. In fact, George was the brother of the well-known Leven draper Alexander Cumming, who began his long-standing business in 1897 (purchasing his shops on Leven's High Street and Bank Street in 1914). George had married Isabella Mill in 1898 and their son George was born in the Belmont Hotel on 28 March 1901. The family were recorded there in the 1901 census along with George's 80-year-old mother Agnes, one boarder (a commercial traveller) and one servant.
George Cumming's time at the Belmont was also short-lived. This may have been precipitated by the sad and shocking death of a guest in the summer of 1902. A young man who had been staying at the hotel for a few weeks was found dead between Strathairly and Viewforth, having shot himself in the head. George Cumming decided to return full-time to drapery and established a business in Colinsburgh. By the 1911 census he and his wife had five children and his mother (now aged 91) was still living with them. Agnes Cumming lived to be 100 and died in November 1920. Some fascinating details about her life are detailed below from the 30 June and 15 November 1920 Dundee Courier.
The 1 April 1903 Scotsman newspaper ran the small advert above stating that the hotel was "under new management". A W Urquhart was named as proprietor. However, by 1906, it was all change once again when there was another auction of furniture from the hotel (see notice below from 26 April 1906 Leven Advertiser).
Finally, a period of stability began when Miss Margaret Pippet Sawyer and Miss Mary Elizabeth Sawyer took over the Belmont in 1906. The sisters were born in the English coastal town of South Shields and were daughters of a mariner turned hotelier. Before coming to Largo they had lived in both Leith and North Berwick (where the family had run a temperance hotel). The article above detailed one of their early bookings at the Belmont - a tea party for a temperance group (30 June 1906 Fife Free Press). The advert below dates to their era. At the time that the 1911 census was taken, a 29-year-old Margaret Sawyer (also known as Marguerite) was the only resident at the Belmont Hotel. She and her sister later moved to Elie, where they ran various holiday accommodation over the years, both eventually marrying.
Andrew Masterton, who had owned the property since it was first built, passed away in 1913. The ownership of the Belmont Temperance Hotel passed to his daughter Catherine Clayton (nee Masterton). She was owner listed on the 1915 valuation roll and a William Francis Ireland was tenant hotelkeeper. Sadly, the hotel was advertised for let in 1916 and the reason given was "death of tenant" (see advert below). William Ireland had died at the hotel on 16 May that year.
The 1920 valuation roll had Mrs J MacDougall and Miss J MacDougall as tenants with Catherine Clayton still the property owner. The 1921 census tells us that this was Jessie MacDougall and her daughter Jessie Mary. Also present for the census were four visitors and a servant (house and table maid). In December 1921 the wedding reception of the only daughter of the minister of Largo Baptist Church, Rev. Pulford, took place at the hotel. The hotel was advertised for sale in both 1920 and in 1922 (but apparently never sold as Catherine Clayton was still listed as owner in 1925).
By summer of 1923 the hotel was under new management with Hugh and Janet McLean taking over the reins. During their time in charge, the Scottish colourist George Leslie Hunter was a guest on more than one occasion. Hunter's choice of a Temperance hotel is significant as his friend, art dealer and biographer, Dr Tom J Honeyman was a big supporter of the Temperance Movement. It's fascinating to imagine such a well-known artist producing familiar artworks featuring local scenes from this base - his hotel room full of his art materials, rough sketches and works in progress.
The story of the Belmont came to an abrupt end in the early hours of Friday 22 January 1926, when the hotel was gutted by fire. Only Hugh and Janet McLean and their child were occupying the hotel at the time. The "magnitude of the blaze attracted many spectators" in what was a unique spectacle for Largo. Later the same day the report below appeared in the Dundee Evening Telegraph.
A more detailed piece from the 26 January Leven Advertiser described the drama that brought an end to the hotel that had graced Lower Largo for more than three decades.
"In the early hours of the morning Mr McLean was awakened by the insistent barking of his dog and, assuming that something must be wrong, he made investigation, and found the lower part of the building a mass of flames. The occupants promptly made their escape in night attire, and were received at a friend's house."
The Buckhaven and Methil Fire Brigade were called just before five in the morning, however, by the time they arrived it was clear that the hotel was beyond saving and the focus was on protecting the surrounding buildings and railway. A shortage of water hampered their work and use had to be made of the sea, although this proved to be challenging as the tide was far out and the hotel situated in an elevated position. Seven hours later the fire brigade left but the hotel's interior was completely destroyed, the roof had fallen in and only the walls remained. The image further below shows the roofless shell of the building, which remained for years.
The side by side maps below show the hotel in 1912 when still standing (left) and the equivalent site in the 1960s (right) when the empty outline of the shell of the building was still marked on maps. The hotel building outline with its sea-facing bay windows is in the centre of the map extracts (below the F.B. which marks the foot bridge over the railway line). Further below are images of some traces of the old hotel which remain on the foot path up to the car park at the old station. A modern private dwelling, aptly named Belmont House, now occupies the plot of the former hotel.
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