Craigleith, Edinburgh

For the island in East Lothian, see Craigleith.

Craigleith (Scottish Gaelic: Creag Lìte) is a district of west Edinburgh, Scotland. Its name comes from various forms of Craig of Inverleith or rock or hill of Inverleith. Much of the Craigleith sandstone was used to build the old and new town houses in Edinburgh as well as many famous buildings including Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Palace and the statue of Nelson on Nelson's Column in London. Because of its particular hardness, Craigleith Sandstone was also favoured for cutting stones used in the making of cut glass during the Victorian era.

The Craigleith area extends from Ravelston Dykes, to Crewe Toll and the Ferry Road, and Comely Bank on the east. Queensferry Road and Craigleith Road both pass through here.

The area is generally middle class, across the entire range, and may sometimes be known as "Bungalow Land". There is a disproportionate number of private schools near here, notably Stewart's Melville College and The Mary Erskine School. Craigleith Retail Park was built upon the infilled Craigleith Quarry in 1995 and is situated at the junction of Queensferry Road and Craigleith Road. The Royal Victoria Hospital is off Craigleith Road while the Western General Hospital on Crewe Road was opened in 1868 as the Craigleith Hospital and Poorhouse.

See also

• Edinburgh Crystal

External links

• A History of the Craigleith Hill District