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The recorded history of North Leith begins in 1128 when King David of Scotland granted land to his newly founded Monastery of Holyrood. By the end of the 15th century the population had grown considerably and in view of this the Abbot of Holyrood in 1493 built a chapel dedicated to Saint Ninian on the north west bank of the Water of Leith, right beside the bridge which he had also constructed for the benefit of the people. That bridge was demolished and replaced in 1788). | |||
| At the time of the Reformation the Church was temporarily closed and the inhabitants had to trudge all the way to Holyrood to go to worship. The people petitioned the authorities to have the chapel handed over to them and this was granted in 1569, but the building was far too small for their needs so it had to be demolished and rebuilt, a process completed in 1586. Though they had their own church building, the people had to wait until 1599 to have their own first Minister" the Rev James Muirhead. In 1606 the Scottish Parliament, sitting at Perth, passed an Act that conferred upon the church the full status of Parish Kirk. All that now remains of the original building is the 1675 Dutch style steeple and behind it the Minister's manse, which are now incorporated with the premises of what was until recently McGregor's Mill at Quayside Street. |
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A second pre-reformation chapel dedicated to Saint Nicholas (the patron saint of seafarers) stood in North Leith until its demolition in 1656 to make way for the Citadel of Leith constructed by General Monk in Cromwell's time. Very little is known about its origins or precise location. | |||
| In 1736, following the discovery of serious rotting in the roof timbers, St Ninian's Church was extensively renovated, but by the end of the 18th century it was again too small to accommodate all the worshippers. After the fashion of the day, extra galleries had been crammed in, but it was clear to the Rev Dr David Johnston and his Kirk Session that a new church was the only solution. After many years of intense legal wrangling with certain vested interests, the splendid new church in Madeira Street was opened in 1816 to the design of William Burn, the well-known Architect, who was also responsible for the Edinburgh Academy, the Dundas Memorial in the center of St Andrew's Square and the building which now houses the Gallery of Modern Art (formerly John Watson's College). When we see the situation of the church today it is hard to imagine how, in 1816, there were people who complained that it was too far out into the country! |
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In 1816 the Secession congregation leased the newly vacated St Ninian's Church until the completion of their own premises in Coburg Street. This church was later named Harper Memorial in memory of its distinguished first Minister. In the meanwhile, an independent mission congregation had begun meeting in a ship moored permanently in Leith Docks. In 1840 they moved into church premises in Dock Street, but in 1843 the congregation joined the Disruption Free Church and were able to retain their building. Their original name was the Mariner's Church, but later they were known as St Ninian's Dock Street. The Dock Street building still stands, but is no longer a church. The Harper Memorial building was closed after a later union and eventually demolished. It stood right opposite the old North Leith burial ground. | |||
| In 1843 a large number of people in North Leith left the Parish Church to found North Leith Free Church. Their first building was a modest affair at the north end of Junction Bridge where the Bank of Scotland is now situated. It soon proved too small and so in 1859 a new and much more grand church was built to the west along Ferry Road. The most prominent feature of the original building was the carved "Burning Bush" which adorned the gable wall and now stands over the door of our church hall. From 1929 this congregation bore the name St Nicholas' Church, but in 1962 when it united with St Ninian's Coburg Street, it was renamed St Ninian's Ferry Road. | ||||
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In 1941 a land mine fell at Largo Place and another at David Kirkpatrick's School (now Ferrylee Home) causing considerable damage to houses in the vicinity. North Leith Church did not escape. All of its upstairs windows were shattered, the church crypt was damaged and the concussion caused some movement in the foundation. This rendered the church unsafe for worship and services had to be held in the Church Hall. By March 1948 the foundation of the Church had settled again and repair work began, followed by extensive renovation that lasted until May 1950. On 13th May 1950, after much fund-raising and a good deal of hard work, the Church was re-opened for public worship; and amid great excitement and thankfulness it was re-dedicated. It has been used by the congregation ever since. |
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The Secession strand of the Presbyterian Church established an extension congregation called Bonnington in the new terraced housing to the west. Bonnington Church stood at the north end of Summerside Street and retained its independent existence until 1968. It was united with North Leith Parish Church in Madeira Street under the new name of North Leith and Bonnington. Bonnington Church was sold and demolished to make way for modem housing. By 1968 there was, therefore, only two congregations remaining - St Ninians' Ferry Road and North Leith and Bonnington. These in turn were united in 1982 under the name of North Leith Parish Church and the place of worship is the 1816 building in Madeira Street. The Ferry Road building was sold for redevelopment in 1985 and is now sheltered housing accommodation known as St Nicholas Court. The united congregation decided to construct new hall premises in the grounds beside the surviving church and the hall was opened and dedicated at the end of 1987. |
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Renovation of North Leith Church and the Session House began in 1989. It was divided into three phases that involved respectively, rot eradication, work to the Church spire and the Session House as well as interior decoration of the Church and Session House. The work was finally completed in October 1993 at a total cost of nearly £350,000 made possible through generous grants, donations and much hard work on the part of the congregation. 1993 saw the congregation celebrating the 500th Anniversary of a Christian presence in North Leith with a whole range of events culminating in a Thanksgiving Service held in October 1993 to mark the completion of the restoration work. |
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