Basic Site Details

Name: Thistle Foundation scheme with houses, hostel and medical centre
City or county: Edinburgh
Country: Scotland
Parish:  
Status:  
Grid ref:
Notes: The estate was conceived in 1944 by Sir Francis Tudsbery, as a village for disabled ex-servicemen to enable them to live in the comfort of their own homes with their families, and with the ability to received regular and skilled medical treatment on site rather than venturing to, or residing in, a hospital. Originally intended for 140 houses, but rising costs saw the scheme stop at 100 houses in 1950, with £600,000 expended to this date on the building operations and equipment (houses and clinic).

Street Addresses

The following street addresses are associated with this building:
 AddressMain entrance?Notes
Item 1 of 51-9, Chapel CourtYes 
Item 2 of 5Craigmillar Castle AvenueYes 
Item 3 of 5Niddrie Mains RoadYes 
Item 4 of 51-11, 14-18, Queen's WalkYes 
Item 5 of 51-23, West CourtYes 

Events

The following date-based events are associated with this building:
 FromToEvent typeNotes
Item 1 of 31945 Competition design 
Item 2 of 319461950Construction 
Item 3 of 31969 AdditionHostel for single people added

People

Design and Construction

The following individuals or organisations have carried out design/construction work. Where architects or practices worked together, matching letters appear beside their names in the Partnership Group column.
 NameRolePartnership GroupFromToNotes
Item 1 of 5John Fraser Matthew A19451950 
Item 2 of 5Lorimer & Matthew A19451950 
Item 3 of 5Stuart Russell Matthew A19451950Won the competition independently of his father in November 1945 with the assistance of his brother Robert
Item 4 of 5Robert William Kelly Cupples Rogerson C1960s Hostel for single people added.
Item 5 of 5Rogerson & Spence C1969 Hostel for single people added

Clients

The following individuals or organisations have commissioned work on this building/design:
 NameNotes
Item 1 of 1Tudsbery, Francis, SirOriginally conceived idea

Related Buildings, Structures and Designs

Child Structures

This structure or site has the following component or child structures (click on an item to view details):
 Building NameNotes
Item 1 of 1Thistle Foundation, Robin Chapel 

References

Bibliographic References

The following books contain references to this building:
 Author(s)DateTitlePartPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 2Gifford, John, McWilliam, Colin and Walker, David M1984Edinburgh (The Buildings of Scotland) Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltdp544
Item 2 of 2RIBA1970RIBA Directory 1970   

Periodical References

The following periodicals contain references to this building:
 Periodical NameDateEditionPublisherNotes
Item 1 of 6Architect and Building News5 July 1946   
Item 2 of 6Architect and Building News26 June 1952   
Item 3 of 6Builder7 December 1945  p453 [Winning design of S R Matthew]
Item 4 of 6Edinburgh Evening Dispatch5 September 1950   
Item 5 of 6RIBA JournalBetween 1945 and 1946LIIILondon: Royal Institute of British Architectsp63
Item 6 of 6Scotsman29 November 1945   

Archive References

The following archives hold material relating to this building:
 SourceArchive nameSource catalogue no.Notes
Item 1 of 2Historic Environment ScotlandListed Buildings Register48687 
Item 2 of 2National Monuments Record of Scotland/NMRS, RCAHMSLorimer and Matthew Collection D40556 (Photo of plans dated 1946), LOR E/203, LOR E/53