No Pedlars, Hawkers or Salesmen

When I was doing my early morning paper run for Bairds Newsagents a door plate which I saw at a house in Morningside read No pedlars, hawkers or salesmen. 

I didn't have a clue what the first two terms meant but always found the sign intriguing.

When I read the sentence out aloud  it had a certain rhythm to it - like the Cher song, Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves. Even now, there's a medieval feel to it.

It made me reflect on how lucky we were in some respects to be brought up in Oxgangs.

There was a certain richness of experience in our lives which might have been missing if we'd been brought up elsewhere. We got the chance to meet all these wonderful characters and shared in the vibrancy and colour of communal living. If we'd stayed in the leafy suburbs of Morningside life would have been quieter and much more solitary.

So, No Pedlars, Hawkers or Salesmen certainly wasn't the kind of door-plate that appeared on any door in The Stair. And perhaps if there had been such a notice it might have read as below!

'Another salesman was a Pakistani gentleman who my brother Douglas irreverently called 'Sambo'. I have no idea what his real name was but I always admired him because it took guts to do what he did. He wore a traditional trench coat like Humphrey Bogart and carried a large brown suitcase stuffed with all manner of goods.' Liz Blades

As Liz says one of the many itinerant pedlars, hawkers and salesmen who visited The Stair each week was a small Pakistani or Indian travelling salesman.

We both recall how he was always dressed the same way, no matter whether it was summer or winter, he wore a fawn coloured raincoat/trench-coat.

My mum seemed to recall that he wore a turban - I don't recall whether he did or not. If he did, the odds are that he was Indian.

As Liz said she admired him - it took a lot of chutzpah to go from household to household trying to peddle wares.

He was always impeccably mannered with a ready smile on his face.

For me he was like the rag n bone man because of his suitcase full of curiosities.

The only occasion I recall us getting something from him was a little tin of polish which he recommended to me for cleaning my bicycle.

Ironically, I don't think we bought it - instead it was a free sample to tempt us to purchase the normal size tin. I believe the manufacturers produced these sample tins for that purpose.

I wonder what happened to him and his family over the years and decades?

His was such an exotic appearance and visitation that he left an indelible mark on my memory.

But two stories we do know about is that of Lal Khatri and Baldev Singh from the book Moving Worlds, the Personal Collections Of Twenty One Immigrants To Edinburgh which give an interesting insight into the world of the Pakistani or Indian gentleman with the suitcase who used to visit the residents at The Stair. 

Lal Khatri left the Punjab in 1929 and came to Edinburgh.

He was advised by a friend...If you get a pedlar's licence from the police and you buy some stuff and you sell it, then that will give you some income to live on if you are lucky. He then goes on to say...I managed to get the licence and it was very good from then onwards. Things were hard but I could always get enough money to buy bread and pay for my room and all that sort of thing. We sold all sorts-shirts, dresses and blouses. I sold what I had with me and took orders for anybody wanting anything...the prices were quite reasonable but lots of people had no money. Even one eleven-ha'penny article took two or three visits for customers to pay for. Some people banged the door in front of you...others would open it...Oh, some of those people became friends through that, and others, of course, had no time for you at all.

Baldev Singh with Pappinder in 1969

Baldev Singh came to Edinburgh in 1958.

He was born in Lahore, Pakistan in 1947. He is a Sikh. 

He says...my grandfather came to Edinburgh as a door to door salesman...He used to sell shirts, ties, hankies, blouses, things like that. They all did that when they first came here...But 90% o' Sikhs went roond the doors sellin' with a suitcase, took orders and delivered the stuff. It's freedom to them, you see. Naebody but themselves, naebody tellin' them what to do. They used to go whenever they felt like it...

Even Oxgangs.

The Wednesday Profile #7 Ben Mackenzie, Hairdresser

When do you know you've really made it as a businessman? 

In the days leading up to the start of the new school term in August after the summer holidays my brother Iain and I (6/2 Oxgangs Avenue); the Hanlons (6/7); and dozens of other small boys would be taken up the hill to Ben Mackenzie's to get our hair cut to look smart for our return to Hunters Tryst for the start of another school year. 

Despite some of the images of unhappy kids produced over the years by artists and comments from others I quite enjoyed the whole barbering experience.

Ben's shop was located at the back of the Oxgangs Broadway shops at number 18 on the south facing side. 

It was the furthest away shop from The Stair. 

Ben was a great advert for his business - neat, immaculate and dapper, with brylcreamed greying hair and a little moustache; in some ways he was a walking advertisement for his profession. But not necessarily a good barber. 

Ronnie Cutt felt you were 'lucky to come out with your ears intact!' Whilst Doreen Rutherford Black said her sister, Margaret, went in for a ladies trim and he mistook her for a boy! Margaret retorted that her mum 'made me wear a hat for a month lol!'

Anne Mckenna said 'I remember my mum complaining about his poor barbering. I think she sent my dad back to complain or went herself at some point...the lack of mothers' involvement probably explains how he got away with it for so long.'

We usually had to sit in a queue in his shop but there were always some decent comics to sit and read. 

Also older men would 'pull your leg' whilst chatting up the mothers - it was my mother who usually always took us along to ensure Ben did what was wanted. 

When the great moment arrived to have your hair cut, because we were small, we had to sit on this little cross bench which was laid across the arm rests of the barber's chair which I thought was pretty cool.

Ben was never this bad, but the barber bears more than a passing resemblance to him!

Ben would set to work and the haircut was always finished off with some 'jungle juice' which he plastered our hair down with; as I had wavy hair I liked this and regretted it never stayed that way for long.

We were never allowed number ones which the Hanlons got. 

The only way we ever got a number one was when Iain and I gave ourselves self-administered haircuts at home one day when my mother was out at work!

Norma Fraser said 'My dad always said (when my brothers were sent there) down to the wood. One style only.' Similarly Brian N Cherie Clement said 'when I was young I went down with my old man and used to ask for a trim; my dad obviously had signalled to Ben and I ended up being scalped - was not impressed.' Neil McGilvray said 'Big Chief Ben gave everyone the same haircut.'

Anyway, when you returned to school, the opening remarks or soubriquet from your pals was, 'Aye Peter, ah see you've had a Ben Mackenzie!' aka a BIG Ben schoolie! (Alan Robertson)

When you're name becomes a trademark, that's when you've really made it in business!

The Sunday Post #7 We Plough The Fields And Scatter - The Harvest Festival

Was it the poorest giving to the poor?

'The Harvest Moon', Peter Hoffmann, 2008

At this time of the seasonal year in the 1960s, sometimes tying in with the Harvest Moon, the annual Harvest Festival was held at Hunters Tryst Primary School.

Local schoolchildren were expected to bring in small items of food - some fruit, vegetables or a tin.

The contributions were then laid out artistically on tables in the school hall making for a wonderfully colourful display.

There would also be a special Harvest Service held in the school hall conducted by the Reverend Jack Orr from the local parish church. It was always fun to bark out Matthias Claudius' marvellous hymn  'We plough the fields and scatter the good seed on the land...'

Because of its religious connotation, I don't suppose these Harvest Festivals are still held in many schools, but I suspect they're actually more grounded in pagan tradition. Certainly the word haerfest is the old English word for autumn.

I enjoyed the occasion - they always had a particularly happy, optimistic feel to them reflecting the celebration of autumn and the bringing in of a good harvest; it was an interlude before winter set in and it was another of the rather comforting milestones in the calendar year which are important to children.

The food was thereafter distributed to local pensioners, but I wonder if they were not less in need of the largesse than many local young families in Oxgangs?

The Wednesday Profile #6 Bobbie's Bookshop

Photograph, Catherine Stevenson

Bobbie's Bookshop was situated at 181 Dalry Road for over thirty five years.

The shop sold scraps and paperbacks but the reason why I visited it was that it sold the best range of DC Comics around. 

It was an Aladdin's Cave for my Green Lanterns; Green Arrows; Superman; Batman and Robin; and Justice League of America comics.

I also picked up a few Classics Illustrated too.

Occasionally, my sister Anne might be along with me as the shop also sold scraps too.

Bobbie's had a highly unusual arrangement - if you returned books or comics then you would receive credit to be spent on further comics. Theoretically you could visit Bobbie's with no money at all, and instead trade comics.Whilst you would leave the shops with fewer comics than you entered with you were still going home with different comics to read - oh the anticipation!

If you also had money with you, even better! I guess it was a book exchange.

Back in the 1990s on a return visit to Edinburgh I looked out to Dalry Road for fun to see if the shop still existed - I couldn't believe my eyes - yes it did!

I ventured in and spoke to the owner for a wee while - he was retiring soon, closing the shop in a few weeks; for old times' sake I bought some DCs with the Bobbie's Bookshop imprint on them and thanked him for the wonderful service he provided to the community for decades.

On doing a little research I discovered the shop was also a newsagent and had been allegedly black-balled for a few years by the Sunday Mail and Daily Record for failing to open on New Year's Day 1967 to sell papers - evidently the locals supported his stance and switched their allegiance to other papers.

The Wednesday Profile #7 Mr Forgan; Sandra Catterson and Mrs Davidson

For all the years I recall living in Oxgangs between 1958 to 1972 and beyond the chemist's shop at Oxgangs Broadway was run by Mr David R. Forgan. Ann-Marie Bain recalls that his displayed certificate showed that he had qualified as a chemist as early as 1939 at the start of the Second World War.

I assume he was one of the original shopkeepers.

As might be expected this was a well-run shop and always had a classy feel to it.

You somehow felt secure in his shop - it exuded a certain confidence and professionalism, something which you would look for in such an important profession.

If you needed to wait for a prescription there was a seat, however there was always such a mix of interesting goods in the shop and other customers that sometimes you didn't mind waiting.

It sold an interesting array of perfumes, salts, talcum powders, cough sweets and small penny lollipops - to help the medicine go down? The chemists' shops at that time had a certain pleasant smell about them. As Karen Reid said ‘I can still remember the smells!’

Mr Forgan was a patrician sort of a chap - with his balding head and remaining white hair he seemed old to me then, but I guess he was much younger than I am now, 62 years of age.  

He was courteous and pleasant and had a distinctive presence - in my memory he looked a little like the Colonel Blimp character portrayed by Roger Livesy; but on seeing a photograph of him recently there is only a very slight resemblance.

Many local girls enjoyed their first Saturday job there including Linda Hamilton, Ann-Marie Bain and Karen Macleod as well as holiday jobs. And judging by the positive comments it was a good place to work. Karen said ‘I loved all the old ladies coming in to choose a new lipstick!’

Several members of the Oxgangs A Pastime From Time Past Facebook group comment on what a lovely man Mr Forgan was and how helpful - if you needed some advice rather than a visit to the doctor’s he always had the time for a quick chat.

Sandra Catterson said ‘My old boss and very dear friend; I was very lucky to have the privilege of working with him for eighteen years until his retirement.’ 

Others including Susan Henderson recall how it’s changed days – it was to the chemist’ that we ventured in to, to have our camera spools developed - that prominence can be seen in the Kodak advert in the shop window. Extract from Retep Nnamffoh's diaries:  Friday, Hogmanay, 1971 '...It was a boring last day of 1971. The only wee excitement was going up to the chemist's shop to collect my photies...' 14th February, 1972: '...I also looked in to Forgan's the Chemist at Oxgangs Broadway to buy a spool for my wee Kodak Brownie camera...'

Douglas Cutt commented ‘Good God, another memory! I bought a 2/6d plastic Diana camera from my paper round money and took some photos of my Jackie Stewart Formula 1 car model that I had just put together and painted. I took the photographs on the street. He (Mr Forgan) was asking how I had managed to get such good photos... he thought it was the real car!’

Because we lived closer to The Store, where as part of the overall building, there was an additional two separate shops, one of which was a paint and decorator's shop, (which couldn't possibly survive today) and t'other a chemist (where the chip shop is today) we tended to share our custom between the two chemists shops. The chemist here was actually part of St Cuthbert's Co-operative Association Ltd.

It had the same feel as Forgan’s Chemist shop, but was smaller, less inviting and there was less freedom to roam and as a customer you were kept at a distance.

Sandra Catterson and Dorothy Davidson

There was a link between the two shops because Martin Davidson’s mother (from further down Oxgangs Avenue) worked there; she was a glamorous lady with blonde hair - she was a very friendly woman, but someone who could also be sensitive combined with great customer care - an asset to the business. Although I haven't thought of Mrs Davidson in over four decades it's strange the impact and impression that people can make on you even as children and still remain with you after all these years. It was rather lovely to see a photograph of her with her colleague, Sandra Catterson, taking a short break on a sunny day outside Forgan's the Chemist's shop - I hadn't realised that she had worked there too - perhaps after The Store chemist closed down?

Sunday Post #6 Stealing Apples

For many people it's the start of autumn'...season of mist and mellow fruitfulness.

'

As August turned to September and then drifted toward October the daylight available to play started to diminish, but immediately after school finished there were still enough hours for adventure .

Some of the fun to be had revolved around apples.

Outwith the likes of Mr McQueen at Oxgangs Park not many fruit and vegetables were grown in Oxgangs so half the fun was that a group of us would have to venture out of the area - for apples it was mainly to Greenbank or occasionally to Colinton or even as far afield as Blackford.

These trips always gave us a buzz because strictly speaking we were stealing and there was a high degree of risk - possibly even getting caught.

Because of the nature of the theft, somehow it didn’t feel like theft in the normal sense of the word; I suspect this was because of tradition and partly because of the nature of the items involved.

Painting by Karl Witkowski

We weren't after the apples s because we were starving or desperate for a piece of fruit. We didn't eat apples very often and the apples stolen would often be sour.

The fun was in the act.

The fun was in going out in a group and searching out particular gardens where trees were heaving with apples - usually located in residents’ back gardens.

There was the daring involved in clambering into these gardens usually over walls, fences or through gates and then stealing the apples.

On many occasions we would be spotted by the owners and it gave us an enormous buzz when we would all have to take to our heels and run like the deer. After we had reached safety back at Oxgangs we breathlessly exclaimed our relief and laughter at our narrow escape as we headed for home, although there was always still a small risk that the police might yet appear.

Extract from Retep Nnamffoh’s Diary: Sunday, 12th September, 1971 It was a very bonny morning to be out 'n about - cool, but with the prospect of it being a scorcher, not to mention, no school today - braw man! I cycled up to the City Hospital to do my papers. It was good to see my large bundle of newspapers awaiting me. Stuart Baird had at least got up out of his bed on time and got the finger out to deliver them in his cool Triumph Herald.

I managed to sell out once again. I sat with an old patient for over ten minutes having a wee blether with him. I enjoyed doing that and after all, with it being a Sunday I was in no hurry.

Hillend Ski Slope, Capital Collections

Later on in the day a wee bunch of us cycled from Oxgangs up to Hillend to the ski-slope. My sister, Anne and I went on the chair-lift. I always think it's not quite as tame as it looks - particularly coming down the way. But, what a very braw view across old Edinburrie toon - even more so as it was an absolutely boiling day. It's funny the way it sometimes works out when you go back to school; anyway, we were all off to be able to enjoy it.

After our tea a big group of us all went stealing apples at Blackford - what a flipping laugh we all had. It's such a great buzz being out in a good group with all the excitement of us sneaking in to someone's garden.

Happy days and a very braw way to finish off a good weekend.

The Wednesday Profile #5 Dr Motley

Perhaps the most remarkable story of all the individuals at Oxgangs during the early days was that of Dr Motley.

I always thought he looked amazing.

As a wee boy, he would have been the first black man that I had seen.

I couldn't take my eyes off him.

The fact that he was a different colour to me - black to my white; then there were his hands - I noticed too the contrast of his palms which were a much lighter colour. And of course there was his voice - a lovely, deep, rich, American sound; with a sweet cadence, musicality and deep mellifluousness which was something to hear and behold.

I always found him to be a very gentle man - a gentleman - positive and sympathetic to his patients - he struck me as being a very happy person with a happy disposition - he laughed a lot. As I grew older I got a sense of how immaculate in appearance he was; he dressed in beautiful suits, shirts and ties - class jewellery - a gold ring and a lovely watch and a handkerchief in his top pocket.  He had a real sense of style and must have cut quite an exotic figure in grey Oxgangs. And although he wasn't tall he was very handsome with a gentle face.

I have spoken regularly about the concept of transactions and relationships.

Partly because it was the 1960s; partly because for years it would have been a one man practice; and partly because of the nature of the man, I always felt I had a personal relationship with him. But no doubt hundreds of his patients over the decades would have felt the same way.

But what a story.

Just imagine for a moment how challenging it must have been for the young Arthur Phillip Motley at the start of his career.

He travelled thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the late 1920s when he came to Edinburgh as a student from the Deep South of the United States of America.

At that time as a black man in Edinburgh he would have been in a very small minority both at Edinburgh University and also in the city.

I would imagine that over the years and across the decades he must have suffered some prejudice and the vicissitudes of discrimination. 

When I looked at his gentle countenance I sometimes thought of the slings, arrows and brickbats he probably endured from people - with his manner he probably did what many smart people do - never reacting, never responding - just ignoring such things and getting on with life. Although my mother made an astute point to me when she said would it not have been a lot worse back in the States?

Coming to the city to train as a doctor at the university and at the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh says a very great deal about his character. To go on to form, develop and build up a practice at McAlester Cottage in the fledgling community of Oxgangs in the late 1940s and early 1950s must have been an even greater challenge.

My early memories of McAlester Cottage are of what a lovely house it was - white and red and the finest house in the immediate area - in a small way it reminds me of the architect Sir Edwin Lutyens’ work.

The waiting room had a highly polished parquet floor with seating arranged around the perimeter; in the centre of the room were eight high quality heavy duty, small brightly coloured chairs for young children - it was great fun to sit on them.

The Motley family would have stayed at the practice too. I don't really remember seeing either his wife Annette or his daughter, also called Annette - they must have kept a fairly low profile.

When he was building up the practice he must have worked incredibly hard and long hours - no doubt he would have been called out at all sorts of times of the day and night. Building up a practice on his own with all the inherent stresses and strains must have been very challenging for him. And yet whenever he saw you he never exhibited any sign of this.

Until now I have never thought about the name of his home and surgery practice - McAlester Cottage - after all it's a good Scots name. However it's now occurred to me that he would have had the house built for himself - after all it's unlikely that such a house would have been built there at the time if it wasn't for a young doctor. But, I've now realised that the name was a reminder of home!

He was born around 1906 in Texas.

The family must have moved after this to McAlester City (the McAlester of McAlester Cottage to remind him of home?), Oklahoma where they resided at 903 E Monroe.

Dr Motley was listed as being a resident there along with his father R Frank Motley who was a minister and his mother Ethel Motley. This is taken from the US Census of 1940.

However it's interesting to see that five years earlier, 1935, he was listed as living in Edinburgh where he was a medical intern at the Royal Hospital, Edinburgh. Did he move back to Oklahoma when the Second World War started? Or was it because there were no jobs available in Edinburgh? Or was it for family reasons?

However, he must have begun studying in Edinburgh in the late 1920s because in the 1928 Yearbook for Lincoln University, Pennsylvania - the leading black university says the following:

Arthur Motley 1928

A R T H U R  M O T L E Y

"Hoops" Motley, now living in McAlester, Oklahoma., also comes to us  from Wiley College.  He belongs to The  Firm, to the Varsity  " L "Club,  and to Alpha .  " Hoops " has been among the honour group students since his matriculation. He is a profound philosopher of life and religion; a lover of women, Wiley, and Bull Sessions. A few years and  "Hoops" will be an M.D. from Edinburgh, Scotland.

I'm surmising here, but I think he perhaps chose to study in Edinburgh at that time, because it was regarded as being the leading medical school in the world.

A medical degree from Edinburgh meant that (in theory) one could have practiced anywhere in the world, although that said, as a black man, this would undoubtedly have restricted his opportunities. Many people would have had deep reservations about being treated by someone who wasn't white.

He was still in Edinburgh in 1935 where the Census records him as working in Edinburgh at the Royal Hospital, Edinburgh as a medical intern. However, in 1940 he was recorded as being back at the family home in Oklahoma.

My mother knew he had been a ship's doctor during the Second World War, but was unsure whether it was with the US Navy or the British - I assume it was the American. He told her that when the ship was in port in South Africa and the sailors encouraged him to go ashore he said no I'll have to remain on board-when they asked him why he replied that he was frightened I'd be lynched!

The big question is why he came back to Edinburgh to set up a practice.

Again, surmising, it is likely that this was because he had met his wife, Annette.

She was the daughter of a shopkeeper who sold tobacco and confectionery.

The shop was close to his digs and he'd met her there. I would imagine this must have been why he chose to stay in Edinburgh; my mother said that he loved Edinburgh - good taste!

When he was developing the practice at Oxgangs he could be seen cycling on his bicycle to visit patients - again what a wonderful sight that must have been. He must have set up shop around the time of the start of the NHS in 1947 - up until then patients had to pay for treatment so people always thought twice about visiting the doctor, not to mention such bills were always paid for in guineas!

Being married to a white woman must have made life challenging, both socially and professionally, yet my mother says that he held regular large parties at home and a line of fancy cars could always be seen outside.

Before McAlester Cottage was built he stayed in one of the Gumley houses across from the Store. When Dr Shepherd joined the practice he moved in there whilst Dr Motley moved to McAlester Cottage. In later years he lived at Buckstone.

Dr Shepherd was an excellent doctor, probably superior to Dr Motley.

Dr Shepherd delivered my sister, Anne Hoffmann, at home at 6/2 Oxgangs Avenue on 19 September, 1961.

In the decade or so prior to this it must have been challenging for Dr Motley to learn all the skills required to be a general practitioner - being human he undoubtedly will have made mistakes. On one occasion I had a poisoned big toe - the poison spread up to my knee - I was delirious and there was a danger that I could have lost my leg - when Dr Shepherd visited on an emergency call out he immediately took control and lanced it.

Over the years Dr Motley was very supportive of our family. It was at his practice that I got a message in June 1976 that I'd been picked for the Olympic Team - ironically I was there getting an injury treated.

Peter Hoffmann 1976

He regularly offered to get me a scholarship to Oklahoma University which I never followed up. Two years later when I moved up to 800 metres for a year I would have been ranked number one in the United States so undoubtedly a good scholarship would have been available, particularly with his connections there.

He kept in touch with his old classmates as can be seen below.

After being selected for Montreal he arranged a collection for me as a poor student to support my athletics. I was about to go off to Loughborough University (which I gave up after a week - I didn't feel Sebastian Coe was good enough to train with when I had David Jenkins et al!). I received a sizeable cheque but we think it was Dr Motley who provided the bulk of the money!

Front row, the author; Dr Motley; Mrs Anne Duncan with the equally remarkable, Rev Jack Orr - two men who made an outstanding community contribution to Oxgangs

As indicated, he kept in regular touch with his alma mater, Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, but I suspect also Wiley College - look out for the film The Great Debaters - all about the outstanding debating team which was formed whilst he was there as a student:

DR.ARTHUR P. MOTLEY, a medical practitioner, travelled the long distance from Edinburgh, Scotland, to be present at Commencement and to celebrate his 55th reunion with his classmates.

Mother doesn't recall ever seeing his daughter, Annette. I thought that I had, but my memory must be playing tricks. Was she black, white or mixed race heritage? Was she sent away to a boarding school and therefore wasn't in Oxgangs very much? She married someone from Scandinavia, possibly Sweden and settled there. 

She may have become estranged from her father and possibly quite bitter toward him.

Towards the end of his life she wrote to him and made an attempt to get back in touch but Dr Motley said that although he intended to leave most everything to her, he felt it was too late in the day and that there had been too much water under the bridge. My mother thinks that back in the 1980s grandchildren came to visit him and he took them for a tour of Edinburgh on the top deck of the number 32 bus which had a circular route.

Whenever I think of Dr Motley it is with great fondness - the very mention of his name brings a smile to my face. He was kind, gentle and a caring doctor. He had an appetite for life and you felt better for spending a few minutes in his happy company.

What a remarkable man and extraordinary character he was.

Updates and Comments

Whilst editing The Stair into a book format (1 October, 2013) I came across the following extract from the Lincoln University Centennial Alumni Directory(1954)

MOTLEY, Arthur Philip, physician; b

Clarksville Tex June 18 1907; prep

L’Overature HS McAlester Okla; at-

tended Royal College of Surgeons Edin-

burgh: LMSSA (London) 1939; m Annette T H Comb Oct 1929; chil-Annette. Gen prac of med. Mem Brit Med Assn; assoc mem Brit Assn for the

Advance of Sci; mem Coun of Scotish

Health and Soil SOC; foundation mem of

the Coll of Gen Practioners; mem Edin-

burgh Clinical Club, Edinburgh Inter-

nat Hous. Ch of Scotland. Capt Royal

Army Med Corps 1940-46. Address:

(res) McAlester Cottage Oxgangs Rd

Edinburgh Scotland.

This puts a slightly different interpretation on one or two points in the vignette on Dr Motley from 16 December, 2012.

First of all he married his wife much earlier than I had surmised - in 1929, not very long after he came to study in Edinburgh. And second, he was an army captain in the Royal Army Medical Corps between 1940 and 1946.

The standard period of service in this unit was seven years which ties in with those dates. So clearly he served in the British Army rather than the British or American Navy. He would have needed to have trained for 6 months at RAMC Depot, Crookham Camp, Aldershot.  

Immediately after leaving the army he would have sought work, so perhaps he either joined a practice in Edinburgh or set up on his own at Oxgangs.

Again, I’m surmising here, but I wonder whether he recognised that because he was black and because many people would be prejudiced it would be very difficult for a local medical practice to appoint him and that he therefore realised he would have to branch out on his own and open his own practice?

Comment From Neil: Great article Peter, thank you. Dr Motley was always a classy person, we were fortunate to have him in Oxgangs. Your article got me thinking about the dentist - Dr Russell, if my memory serves me correctly. Never had a problem going to Dr Motley but hated every visit to the dentist, Dr Russell!

Response: Aye, I can empathise; I did a swift paragraph on Mr Russell when I was wrapping up the The Stair back on 23 December, 2012. A charming book well worth searching out is Leaves From The Lives Of A Country Doctor by Clement Gunn set in Peebleshire a century or so ago - a rather lovely read - you won't be disappointed! :-) 

Hello Peter Hoffmann,

Dr. Arthur P Motley is my Grandfather. I am jumping up and down with joy. I have been searching for my grandfather for quite a while. I have done Google searches before but all I would get would be old dudes from the 1600 and 1700s. I did it today and up pops your blog. I found a lot of unknown information about my grandfather. Thank you. 

As you might be able to tell I'm from the States. My father Lewie Motley passed on in 2006. He was born in McAlester Oklahoma in 1925; I think that was Dr Motley’s senior year at High School. My grandmother and Dr Motley were never married. My father never talked about his father. So I did not start searching for my grandfather until after my father passed. As a teenager I got a chance to go to high school in McAlester Oklahoma in 1965 at L'Overture; the schools were segregated white only and Black schools until 1968. Some of the teachers I had at L'Overture taught Dr Motley too; they were always talking about how smart he was. While I was living in McAlester I got a chance to meet Dr Motley's mother, my great grandmother and his adopted father Rev. Frank Motley. 

Harold Motley

I would like to find Dr Motley's descendants. I would greatly appreciate any information about his daughter which you can give me. Peter thank you for the treasure of information about my grandfather. I attached a picture of myself to this email.

Harold Motley     

Harold,

Many thanks for your fascinating e mail - one throws a stone in a pond never knowing where the ripples go! 

I've attached a link to a further update I did on Dr Motley, in case you didn't pick up on that one

Harold getting in touch from thousands of miles away raises many further interesting questions: Did Dr Motley know that he had a son (Lewie) and indeed a grandson (yourself, Harold)? Why did he not marry your grandmother? Did it have any influence on him moving so far away to study in Edinburgh?

It's interesting too that both your father and you were given the Motley name. Also, that as you visited Dr Motley's parents (your great-grandparents) it begs the question as to whether Dr Motley was actually aware he had a son and grandson.

You mention that the Reverend Motley wasn't Dr Motley's real father - I wonder who was? Do you have any memories of his parents - what they were like and what they said about Dr Motley? 

Like you I found it difficult to track down any information about him. If his daughter, Annette, is still alive she must be around 85 years old now. As I wrote, my mother thinks she married a Swedish gentleman. It may be possible to track down information about her through Register House, Edinburgh.

My mother was very friendly with Dr Motley and has a lot of information and knowledge about him - they used to meet up for many years each week after he retired until he died. She would be happy to speak to you - her telephone number is 0131… - bear in mind the time difference in Edinburgh! Her e mail address is…

I would be happy to speak to you too - my number is…

If I can be of any assistance don't hesitate to get in touch. As I wrote, your grandfather was a lovely, remarkable man and a legend in Oxgangs!

All the best.

Peter  

Hello Peter Hoffmann,

I was happy to find and read about my grandfather Dr Arthur Motley here on your blog! Amazing to read and see pictures of him. He was a wonderful grandpa. He taught me 'grandpa stick it up yo jumpa' 'I dene kene but canna whackum' He would test us again and again if we remembered who invented the telephone and the raincoat.

He was very generous. His daughter Annette married a Norwegian man and they moved to Sweden and adopted me, my sister and brother. Annette died in 2000, 69 years old in London. She inherited all from her father but lost it all to men cheating her. After Annette and my father divorced she got involved with men of the lowest rank possible unfortunately for me and my sister. She had a very unhappy upbringing though (in spite of such a wonderful grandpa in my eyes) and never found lasting love in her life due to having severe personal problems much caused by her own mother Annette, probably why you saw so little of them. His daughter Annette was a very artistic person, she worked back stage on some theatre when she met my dad. In my youth she designed clothes and painted on glass.

All the best
Yvonne Hjertholm 

Hi,

I lived at 52 Oxgangs Farm Drive; my mother still lives there today and has since my dad built the house in 1957. I have just returned from a visit there over Christmas. Dr. Motley made a big impression on my early life: he was statuesque, kind and dapper. His name for me was 'small fry' and he always said 'You are the bonniest of all the Mckennas'. His surgery, McAlester Cottage, was a pleasure to visit. It had skittles in red leather in the surgery and I never understood why they were there. We had little knowledge of race relations in Edinburgh at that time and Dr Motley was the only black person I knew as a child and that felt like a gift. I think he had a bike in the early days. I have many happy memories of my Oxgangs childhood and would be good to hear from others. 

Caroline McKenna

When I was 12 to 17 I lived next door to Dr Motley in the Oxgangs area of Edinburgh. He was the first black American to study in the late 1920's in Scotland and then set up a GP practice in the late 1940's. I remember him as a lovely, kind and jovial man. I regularly took his wee Jack Russell a walk up the Pentlands. A vicious little devil. On returning Dr Motley would give me a handful of sweets. My Mum, a district nurse, whom he called 'Angel' occasionally helped bath his frail and elderly wife. 

When I was 15 I did this drawing from a photograph of him.

Also, on my wedding day we went to visit him in hospital.  We turned up in full wedding gear and flowers for him. He couldn't come to the wedding so we took the wedding to him. He was very generous. He gave us £100 in an envelope before the wedding. I was so surprised. He died two months later aged 84.

I'd like to thank my Mum for setting a great example and for never saying, 'he's black but he's very nice' in the way I've often heard down the years.

Vicky Mount

Hello, my name is Richard Cropper and I`m so glad to have found your page via Lost Edinburgh. I was brought into the world by this lovely man on 29/10/62 at 2B Oxgangs Green. My younger brother was also delivered by Dr Motley on 29/1/65. My late Dad remembers rushing along Oxgangs Avenue when my arrival was imminent, knocking on the door of McAlester Cottage. Always unhurried, "Calm down Mr Cropper, I`ll be there in a few minutes!"

I continued as his patient up until about 1978 I seem to recall (We relocated to Murrayburn Park,Wester Hailes in July 1970 but still continued with AP as our Doctor). Always referred to us boys as "Professor", as perhaps to all young male children in his practice? I remember him fondly as the archetypal kindly family Doctor "How are your Parents? And your Brothers and Sister?" but I recall his diagnoses could be somewhat hit-or-miss.

Richard

Comments From PsyGeo 'Thanks for remembering Dr Motley; he did his best to help my mum - that trip to the cottage was a regular one with me in tow. We lived at 34 Oxgangs Avenue in the mid-70s/early 80s - so far away now, and a mostly unhappy time but made me who I am.