Porty Power Station

Novastar · Post by **Novastar** » 13 Mar 2006, 19:07

Have just watched the item on Porty TV about the Power station. Where was this (what's there now)? Looks familar but can't place it.

teddygirl · Post by **teddygirl** » 13 Mar 2006, 19:16

The Power Station was right along at the end of the High St just before you come to Kings Road. There is a housing estate there now.

Scorpion · Post by **Scorpion** » 13 Mar 2006, 19:42

I remember it very well as I used to pass it often when travelling to Edinburgh. It was in two parts the other part was across from Kings road at the beginning of Portobello road. I'm not sure what the other part was for. Was it offices? It really stood out because of the red brick. It was really quite sad to see it decay over the years and then they finally demolished it.

arachnid · Post by **arachnid** » 13 Mar 2006, 22:27

Scorpion wrote:I remember it very well as I used to pass it often when travelling to Edinburgh. It was in two parts the other part was across from Kings road at the beginning of Portobello road. I'm not sure what the other part was for. Was it offices? It really stood out because of the red brick. It was really quite sad to see it decay over the years and then they finally demolished it.

I think the other part was used for training.

I remember the power station too! It used to have " open days" when the public were invited to tours round the building but I never went to any.

It used to get supplies of coal in via the railway line which was opposite seafield and went under the road at the roundabout at Kings Road.

Epykat · Post by **Epykat** » 13 Mar 2006, 22:39

The thing I remember most was how beautifully kept the grass was on the slopes. When I was a wee girl I wanted a garden like that

Robin! · Post by **Robin!** » 17 Mar 2006, 14:56

When your at the bus stop, have a look on the pilars in between metal fences, it still has the "Warning 150,000 volts" or something like that.

Poppy · Post by **Poppy** » 17 Mar 2006, 15:29

Robin! wrote:When your at the bus stop, have a look on the pilars in between metal fences, it still has the "Warning 150,000 volts" or something like that.

That's nothing to do with the old power station! That's Westbank resident Mr Poppy's electric personality!!!!

Ed · Post by Ed » 17 Mar 2006, 20:30

I am sure I was there when it was blown up. Mother will be able to confirm...

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 17 Mar 2006, 20:39

Ed wrote:I am sure I was there when it was blown up. Mother will be able to confirm...

You would perhaps care to rephrase that. Lizzie will be horrified.

Ed · Post by Ed » 17 Mar 2006, 21:28

Porty wrote:
Ed wrote:I am sure I was there when it was blown up. Mother will be able to confirm...
You would perhaps care to rephrase that. Lizzie will be horrified.

Ha ha ha. Ach, you've got to laugh. Nah, I will leave it as is, I do remember being told I was there in my buggy so it must have been about 28-29 years ago

Lizzie · Post by **Lizzie** » 17 Mar 2006, 23:01

Yes Ed thats true I remember it well, you were in your buggy (probably about the age your Jack is now) - we stood on the beach and watched while they blew up the chimmney - very spectacular it was too

No photos I'm afraid we were too poor to afford a camera in those days

Lizzie · Post by **Lizzie** » 18 Mar 2006, 10:30

Poppy wrote:
Robin! wrote:When your at the bus stop, have a look on the pilars in between metal fences, it still has the "Warning 150,000 volts" or something like that.
That's nothing to do with the old power station! That's Westbank resident Mr Poppy's electric personality!!!!

Poppy · Post by **Poppy** » 18 Mar 2006, 20:13

Lizzie wrote:
Poppy wrote:
Robin! wrote:When your at the bus stop, have a look on the pilars in between metal fences, it still has the "Warning 150,000 volts" or something like that.
That's nothing to do with the old power station! That's Westbank resident Mr Poppy's electric personality!!!!

OK OK, it's a relict from the Power Station days!!!!

ceejam · Post by **ceejam** » 20 Mar 2006, 16:53

I believe the red stone building at No1 High Street was the control room of the power station.

The fences still have Danger notices as the building right on the corner at the roundabout is still a ScottishPower operational site.

It will be interesting when they start doing excavation works on the old Scottishpower site, as there might be all sorts of "legacies" in the ground

Didn't think that the "Ramsay tech" opposite Rossleigh Land Rover was anything to do with the power station.

Post by **wangi** » 20 Mar 2006, 17:36

ceejam wrote:Didn't think that the "Ramsay tech" opposite Rossleigh Land Rover was anything to do with the power station.

No, it was originally a chocolate factory:

http://hsewsf.sedsh.gov.uk/hslive/porta ... BNUM=27288

HISTORIC SCOTLAND

EDINBURGH, CITY OF COUNCIL

Information Supplementary to the Statutory List
(This information has no legal significance)

EDINBURGH BURGH, STATUTORY LIST

HB Number 27288

Item Number: 57 P
90-102(EVEN NOS) INCHVIEW TERRACE, PORTOBELLO ROAD, FORMER WM RAMSAY TECHNICAL INSTITUTE WITH GATEPIERS, GATES AND RAILINGS

Group with Items:
Map sheet: NT27SE
Category: A
Group Category:
Date of Listing 26-AUG-1989

Description:
J and J Hall, dated 1906. 3-storey and basement, Arts and Crafts technical institute, with single storey and basement bays to W side. Re-inforced concrete framed to E P Wells? system. Red brick; cream sandstone ashlar dressings and red granite dressings, rusticate quoins, cill and coping, brick dies. Sited on falling ground. Segmentally-arched windows and stone mullioned semi-circular windows. Lesser doors and service/machinery doors boarded.

N ELEVATION: 9 symmetrical bays, centre 3 advanced with doorways in bays flanking centre. Steps over-sailing basement recess to doors, each in moulded ashlar panel, part roll-moulded surround and incised scroll detail above; billeted lintel and blocked fanlight; small windows flanking; panelled 2-leaf doors. Bipartite at centre and to 1st floor, semi-circular windows at 2nd; large windows flanking centre at 1st and 2nd floor. 3 outer bays each side with bipartites to each bay at principal and 1st floor, semi-circular windows at 2nd. Bipartites to basement bays. Gilded "Ramsay Institute" sign.
S ELEVATION: 9-bay. Rectangular, balustraded stair block projecting at centre with door at basement, flanked by smaller door and tripartite windows to each floor above. Large round-arched machinery door to outer left; regular bipartites in remaining bays and at principal and 1st floors to each bay. Semi-circular windows at 2nd floor, that to outer left with door breaking centre, now blocked.
SIDE BLOCK: balustraded single storey and basement block projecting to W, to left of W elevation. 2 bipartites to N, 2 windows to W, and large round-arched service door to S; boarded door. Basement windows to N and W.
W ELEVATION: 3-bay. Set-off, coped brick stalk adjoined to right of centre. Metal scale platt forestair fire escape (section missing), windows altered to door as appropriate.
E ELEVATION: 3-bay. Large service ramp to machinery doors at principal floor level; bipartites to basement, principal and 1st floors of flanking bays, semi-circular windows at 2nd floor, with doors inserted by metal forestair fire escape (as above).

Square-pane glazing patterns to metal windows with pivotal sections. Flat ruberoid roof behind cast-concrete balustrade. Brick water-tank on roof, to W. Original gutterheads retained. Decorative square ventilation bricks at intervals. Decorative cast-iron lamp brackets to angles.

INTERIOR: re-inforced concrete structure to E P Wells? system of square pillars, main and secondary beams of E P Wells? twin bar type.

GATEPIERS, GATES AND RAILINGS: 3 pairs of brick piers, 1 pair with rusticated ashlar quoins and corniced granite caps. Cast- and wrought-iron gates and railings, 1 pair of gates with decoratively wrought detail. Railings set on coped course.

References:
Patricia Cusack CONSTRUCTION HISTORY 3 (1987), "Agents of change. Hennebique, Mouchel and Ferro-concrete in Britain, 1897-1908", p62. CONCRETE AND CONSTRUCTIONAL ENGINEERING 2 No 6 (Jan. 1908), pp459-466. "A Re-inforced concrete factory in Portobello, Scotland". Borders Regional Archive D 30/2/2/30.

Notes:
Of national significance as one of the few works by E P Wells, the first British holder of re-inforced concrete patent. This is one of the first half-dozen re-inforced concrete multi-storey buildings in Scotland, the others being to the French Hennebique system. The contractors were Stuart's Granolithic Co Ltd. Originally a chocolate factory for Messrs Schultz and Co, converted to the Ramsay Technical Institute in 1922 and to housing, 1995. The numbering of the building will be altered once the conversion has been completed, 1995.

Robin! · Post by **Robin!** » 20 Mar 2006, 19:35

ceejam wrote:Didn't think that the "Ramsay tech" opposite Rossleigh Land Rover was anything to do with the power station.

Ramsay Tech was a German chocolate factory before being a college! I'm sure Ceejam meant the red building next to the old car sales forecourt!

arachnid · Post by **arachnid** » 20 Mar 2006, 21:32

ceejam wrote:I believe the red stone building at No1 High Street was the control room of the power station.

The fences still have Danger notices as the building right on the corner at the roundabout is still a ScottishPower operational site.

It will be interesting when they start doing excavation works on the old Scottishpower site, as there might be all sorts of "legacies" in the ground

Didn't think that the "Ramsay tech" opposite Rossleigh Land Rover was anything to do with the power station.

Thanks ceejam. Knew the building was used for training of some sort but wasn't sure if it was for staff or not!

Epykat · Post by **Epykat** » 20 Mar 2006, 22:47

I'm sure the Police were DECANTED into there at some point years ago when the station was being renovated.

Maria · Post by **Maria** » 20 Mar 2006, 22:52

Argh! Is there no escape?

Epykat · Post by **Epykat** » 20 Mar 2006, 22:57

Sorry. I only wanted to use the word

ceejam · Post by **ceejam** » 21 Mar 2006, 11:27

Just ton confuse matters, I was making refernce to 2 different buildings

1. Ramsay Tech opposite Rossleigh Land Rover

2. No1 The High Street, adjacent to car sales forecourt, and where "Get Creative" was located for a few months

Both are red brick construction, Ramsay technical institue did train people from SSEB, but was previously a chocolate factory, so wasn't built as poart of the power station.

No1 High Street was the old control room for the Power station I believe, and in it;s latter years was used as a conference/training centre, workshops, store rooms and telecoms hub for ScottishPower, and was still in use after the rest of the site was sold!

I also believe No1 might be a listed building, so the developers might have fun with that one!!