Andrew Melrose & Co., tea merchants, Couper Street

Category

Library Item

Item no

5491

Title

Andrew Melrose & Co., tea merchants, Couper Street, Leith

Description

Lorries loaded with sacks of tea leave the warehouses of Andrew Melrose in Couper Street in Edinburgh. The lorries leave onto a cobblestone road through an arched entrance, which has a coat of arms signifying "by royal appointment".

Artist / maker

Unknown

Date

1920

Size

30.2 x 39.2 cm

Type

Photograph

Location

Edinburgh and Scottish Collection

Andrew Melrose founded his tea company in 1812. The company was the first to import tea into Leith, aboard the clipper Isabella in 1835.

Leith is situated in the north of Edinburgh where the Water of Leith joins the Firth of Forth. It has acted as Edinburgh's maritime connection for many centuries, and continues to be one of the UK's busiest ports. It was incorporated into Edinburgh in 1920 having previously been a separate burgh. It is now home to the Scottish Executive's main offices, Edinburgh's Sikh temple, the Royal Yacht Britannia and Ocean Terminal, a large shopping and entertainment complex.

The word cobble has been used here to help with searching, an alternative term is sett. Sett stones describe both the type of stone and the method in which they are used.

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Related subjects

Manufacturing Industry > Manufacturing facilities > Warehouses

Places > Edinburgh areas > Leith

Places > Scotland > Edinburgh

Transport > Land > Lorries