Bernard Street
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Bernard Street is a
thoroughfare A thoroughfare is a primary passage or way as a transit route through regularly trafficked areas, whether by road on dry land or, by extension, via watercraft or aircraft. On land, a thoroughfare may refer to anything from a multi-lane highway ...
in
Leith Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by '' Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world. The earliest ...
, Edinburgh, Scotland. It runs west north westerly from the junction of
Constitution Street Constitution Street is a thoroughfare in Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland. It runs north from the junction of Leith Walk, Great Junction Street and Duke Street to the Albert Dock in Leith Docks. History The street takes its name from Constitution ...
and Baltic Street to meet the
Water of Leith The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, Scotland, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Name The name ''Leith'' may be of Britto ...
at The Shore. It forms the northern boundary of what was known in the 19th century as 'Old Leith'.


Overview

Whilst some sources claim the street is named after innkeeper Bernard Lindsay who was granted the barony of the area by
King James VI James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
in 1779 this is clearly an error as the street is named St Bernard Street in the 1777 plan of Leith, linking the concentric street names of St Giles Street and St Andrew Street. The second issue in the theory is that, if true, it should have led to its being named Lindsay Street. In 1780, the first public sewer in Scotland was built in Bernard Street, flowing into the Water of Leith. The iron seal of the sewer is still visible by the bridge at the end of Bernard Street. At the east end of the street is a statue of Robert Burns by
David Watson Stevenson David Watson Stephenson (25 March 1842 – 18 March 1904) was a Scottish sculptor, executing portraits and monuments in marble and bronze. Biography Stevenson was born in Ratho, Midlothian, Scotland, on 25 March 1842, the son of William Ste ...
erected in 1898. Other buildings include the premises of Leith Merchants Club and the former home of the Leith Banking Company. Today, the buildings of Bernard Street have been converted to use as pubs, cafes and the offices of media, marketing and publishing companies. From the mid-18th century, a
stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
service ran from Bernard Street to the city's
Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
. Bernard Street forms part of the main coastal route around north Edinburgh. From the 1970s until the 1990s a Bernard Street bypass was proposed, Taking traffic northward through the docks and closing the street to through traffic at its east end. This was then to preserve Bernard Street as a historic enclave.Leith Local Plan 1972, EDC Bernard Street was a stop on Leith's electric tram line from 1905 until 1955 and will have a tram stop as part of the new
Edinburgh Trams Edinburgh Trams is a tramway in Edinburgh, Scotland, operated by Edinburgh Trams Ltd. It is a line between St Andrew Square in the New Town and Edinburgh Airport, with 15 stops. Construction began in June 2008, and after encountering delays ...
development for which construction commenced in 2020. It is thought that the stop, to be located at the junction of Bernard Street and Constitution Street will be known as 'Port of Leith'.


Buildings of Interest

*Kings Wark - 1702 with silhouette of the former forestair on its north flank *
Currie Line Currie ( gd, Currach, IPA: kʰuːᵲəx is a village and suburb on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated south west of the city centre. Formerly within the County of Midlothian, it now falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edi ...
offices - lead roofed building at centre of north side *Former Norwegian consulate/
Christian Salvesen Christian Salvesen was a Scottish whaling, transport and logistics company with a long and varied history, employing 13,000 staff and operating in seven countries in western Europe. In December 2007, it was acquired by French listed transport ...
HQ - south side, west of domed bank *Waterloo Buildings - huge tenement of 1816 *Leith Bank 1806 - by John Paterson


See also

*
Edinburgh Street Tramways Edinburgh Street Tramways operated a horse-drawn tramway service in Edinburgh between 1871 and 1896, and Leith between 1871 and 1904.The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis. History Services started on 6 November 1871 from ...


References


External links


Edinburgh TramsBernard Street information
{{Streets and Squares in Edinburgh, state=collapsed Streets in Edinburgh Leith Proposed Edinburgh Trams stops