Ninewells

I was brought up in Ninewells, which in the early 50's was a village on the western outskirts of Dundee. It was called Ninewells because a line of natural springs used to appear now and then and water would run across the dip in the Perth Road.

Over the decades the re-surfacing of the road has raised it's level and the water must now drain underneath. The tram terminus was just to the east of Invergowrie Drive and Lauries nursery. It also served as the bus terminus until that was moved further west to where the roundabout is now.

Back then there was a shop run by Bill Davidson and a smiddy where River Crescent is now. The smith was called Joe Johnston who lived with his sisters Annie and Aggie. The smiddy had a forge with bellows and an earthen floor. Joe would also light the boilers for the greenhouses behind Lauries nursery.

The ninewells garage is still there, albeit much changed but still in the hands of the Simpson family. My family stayed in an old coaching house called Maybank, No 564 Perth Road, now demolished and replaced by four houses.

To the north of the Perth Road was farm land until Dempsey and Dye started building houses. To the west the railway bridge ran over the road by Johnny Callaghan's scrap yard. There were a row of cottages between theree and the Invergowrie burn.

My family (Dryden) had a small holding called East Loan. The Chalmers lived at West Loan. Across the road was the "tidie".