WWII Air Raid – 16 October 1939

 Granton, Uncategorized  5 Responses »
Jan 152019
 
Photograph of the entrance to the shore path

The entrance to the shore path

Walking Path, West Shore Road, Edinburgh EH5 1QG

On October 16th, 1939, the skies over Granton’s shoreline were filled with enemy bombers. In the first major raid against Britain of WWII, the German Luftwaffe sent twelve Junkers Ju88A-1s to intercept Royal Navy Battleship HMS Hood. Approaching from the west, the bomber crews saw they were too late – a battleship already safely docked in Rosyth Dockyard. Seeking alternative targets, the Junkers dived to attack shipping in the river below. With total surprise they dropped their bombs unopposed, narrowly missing HMS Edinburgh and HMS Southampton. Wave after wave of bombing harried the desperately zig-zagging ships. Then a shock… Spitfires! The raiders had been briefed there were no Spitfires in Scotland. Now two squadrons of them swarmed in defence. The bombers broke and fled for their lives, chased back down the river or across Edinburgh at rooftop height. Citizens dived for cover as machine guns rattled and bullet casings cascaded onto the streets. Two bombers were shot down into the Forth, their surviving crew rescued by local fishing boats. The 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron had claimed the first ever Spitfire victory. Edinburgh’s skies were safe, but disaster had only narrowly been averted.

Granton Esparto Grass

 Granton  No Responses »
Jan 152019
 
Photograph of a street on the north side of Western Pier, where esparto grass was offloaded; the area was known as Esparto Warf

The off-loading of the esparto grass was located not far from here, and known as Esparto Warf, on the very north side of the Western Pier

Chestnut Street, Edinburgh EH5 1FX

A major industry in the Edinburgh area was printing and publishing, and this required paper. One of the raw components used to make it, esparto grass, had to be transported to the UK. Starting in the 1870s, esparto grass was being imported and by the 1950s, about a third of all the esparto grass that came into the country arrived at Granton – 100,000 tons of it. Coming from as far away as southern Spain and northern Africa, the arrival of esparto grass shipments were exciting times for the local children who adored the off-loading of the shipments, as the occasional tortoise hidden in the grass would quickly become a favourite pet.

Black and white photograph of esparto grass being unloading at Granton's Western Pier

Unloading esparto grass at Granton’s Western Pier

Black and white photograph of an esparto grass train at Granton

Esparto grass train at Granton

Black and white photograph of Granton Square with a lorry loaded with esparto grass leaving the Square, 11 April, 1955

Granton Square with a lorry loaded with esparto grass leaving the Square, 11 April, 1955

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