When I spotted the above postcard of Largo Villa, Newport, I suspected that there must be a connection to Largo, perhaps involving the people shown in the image. This seemed even more likely to be the case when the recipient of the card turned out to be Mrs James Gillies of Lower Largo (see below). Fortunately, the postcard was clearly dated and the sender had signed the message, which read:
With invited wishes for your happiness this Christmastide. R. Robertson. Xmas 1904.
So, with a timeframe and a name to go on, here's the story behind the postcard. Robert Robertson was born in Lower Largo in 1858, the youngest of five brothers. The 1861 census shows father Henry Robertson (a tea dealer - although previously a linen weaver) residing on the main street close to the Orry, with his wife Janet Gibb and sons William, Henry, George, David and Robert. The family moved to Dundee when Robert was about nine years old.
By 1871, Janet Robertson had been widowed and was living with three of her five sons in Dundee. William was a 'provison traveller', David a 'grocer' and Robert still at school. Eventually Robert was apprenticed to the grocery trade too and went on to start business with William as wholesale produce merchants under the name of W. & R. Robertson. This partnership continued until 1917 when the brothers retired.
Robert married Mary Ann Young in 1883 and by the time of the 1891 census the pair were living at Largo Villa, which was at Woodmuir Park in Newport, commanding panoramic views over the Tay to Dundee. It must be Robert and Mary that are sitting in the deck chairs in the postcard image, with their housekeeper Isabella Williamson (who was with them for many years) standing in the doorway. The couple had no children.