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Fulford Tower (site of)

The old Tower of Fulford was built some time towards the end of the 16th century, and consisted of four storeys in an oblong block.

In 1665 the lands of Fulford were erected into the barony of Woodhouselee along with those of Woodhouselee for Sir William Purves of Abbeyhill, later the Solicitor General for Scotland. In the same year Sir William used stone from Old Woodhouselee to repair and remodel Fulford Tower. Fulford was subsequently renamed Woodhouselee, while the former Woodhouselee became known as Old Woodhouselee.

Old Woodhouselee was said to be haunted by the ghost of Isobel Hamilton, wife of James Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh, and according to legend her spirit was transferred to Fulford along with the stones.

Sir William’s daughter, Rosina Purves, married James Deans and Woodhouselee passed to them late in Sir William’s life (he died in 1685). James Deans of Woodhouselee is mentioned in the Parliamentary Register in 1678 and 1696. Following her husband’s death Rosina married Sir John Ramsay, 2nd Bt. of Whitehill, who was described as “the laird of Woodhouselee” in the Parliamentary Register in 1702.

Woodhouselee seems to have passed next to Robert Deans, the son of Rosina and James, who sold part of the estate to Alexander Pitcairn, the husband of his sister Margaret Deans, in 1727. Pitcairn sold his part of Woodhouselee to Patrick Crichton in 1734, from whom they passed to William Tytler in 1749.

Tytler seems to have carried out some remodelling of the old tower as the upper floors were rebuilt in 1796 leaving only the basement untouched. He died at Woodhouselee in 1792 and was succeeded by his son Alexander Fraser Tytler who became a Lord of Session in 1802 with the title Lord Woodhouselee.

Lord Woodhouselee was a keen antiquarian and bought a fireplace, an ornate sundial and numerous carved stones from the demolished Burgh Muir Castle (also known as Wrychtishousis) in Edinburgh. Several of the stones were built into an archway on the lawn at Woodhouselee.

A heraldic panel with the initials “M A A” arranged around a carved shield bearing three stars above two bars and a crescent was incorporated into the archway along with the stones from Burgh Muir Castle but doesn’t match any known individual associated with that castle. It may therefore have come from the Tower of Fulford, although Lord Woodhouselee may have obtained it from elsewhere.

The Book of the Old Edinburgh Club (Fourth Volume)
Edinburgh, 1911

Woodhouselee passed down the male Fraser Tytler line, to Lord Woodhouselee’s second son James Tytler, his grandson James Stuart Fraser-Tytler and his great-grandson Major James Francis Fraser-Tytler, before the estate was sold in 1922.

At some point Woodhouselee and Old Woodhouselee seem to have become separated as the ruins of the latter are now within the policies of Firth House, built in 1770 as a dower house for the Inglis family of Auchendinny House. Woodhouselee and Fulford Tower were demolished in 1965 and the site is now grassed over.

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Alternative names for Fulford Tower

Foollfoord; Fullfoord; Tower Of Fulford; Woodhouselee

Where is Fulford Tower?

Fulford Tower is in the parish of Glencorse and the county of Midlothian.

Grid reference: NT 2370 6450

Lat / long: 55.867654, -3.220715

Bing Maps | Google Maps | Historic maps (NLS) | OpenStreetMap | Ordnance Survey | PastMap | Streetmap | Wikimapia

OS Map for Fulford Tower

OS map 344
Pentland Hills (Penicuik & West Linton)
OS Explorer map 344


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Directions to Fulford Tower

Enter a starting point

Weather at Fulford Tower

14°C
max 15°C / min 13°C
19km/h W
1004mb
72%
75%
03:27 21:02

Broken clouds
Weather observed at Penicuik at 15:45

References (books)

A history of the family of Seton during eight centuries (Volume 1)
George Seton
Edinburgh, 1896
Miscellany of the Scottish History Society (Volume VII)
Various
Edinburgh, 1941
Romantic narratives from Scottish history and tradition
Robert Scott Fittis
Paisley, 1903
The beauties of Scotland (Volume 1)
Robert Forsyth
Edinburgh, 1805
The Book of the Old Edinburgh Club (Fourth Volume)
Various
Edinburgh, 1911
The Castles of Scotland
Martin Coventry
Prestongrange, 2015
The Haunted Homes and Family Traditions of Great Britain
John H. Ingram
London, 1897
The history of the Fife Pitcairns
Constance Pitcairn
Edinburgh, 1905
The House of Seton (Volume 1)
Bruce Gordon Seton
Edinburgh, 1939
The Woodhouselee Manuscript
A. Francis Steuart
Edinburgh, 1907
Tytler's History of Scotland (Volume 3)
Patrick Fraser Tytler
Edinburgh, 1873

References (websites)

Canmore
  • Ancestry UK

Castles near Fulford Tower

Glencorse (site of)

1.6km away

Auchendinny House

3.5km away

Old Woodhouselee Castle

3.6km away

Logan Castle (site of)

3.6km away

Morton House

3.7km away

Broomhill House (site of)

3.9km away

Dreghorn (site of)

3.9km away

Old Comiston House

4.1km away

Rosslyn Castle

4.1km away
more castles....
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Ancient sites near Fulford Tower

Castle Law souterrain

1.0km away

Castle Law fort

1.0km away

Glencorse rock art

2.1km away

Camus Stone (site of) standing stone

3.7km away

Cat Stanes (site of) cairns

3.9km away

Caiy Stane standing stone and rock art

3.9km away

Buck Stane standing stone

4.8km away

Wester Craiglockhart Hill fort

5.6km away

Samson's Ribs fort

8.7km away
more ancient sites....
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Pictish stones near Fulford Tower

Abernethy No. 2 Class III symbol stone

9.1km away

Abernethy No. 4 Class III cross shaft

9.1km away

Princes Street Gardens Class I symbol stone

9.2km away

Court Cave Class I rock carving

34.1km away

Doo Cave Class I rock carving

34.2km away

Jonathan's Cave Class I rock carving

34.5km away

Sliding Cave Class I rock carving

34.5km away

Scoonie Class II cross slab

39.9km away

Tullibole Class III cross slab

40.6km away
more Pictish stones....
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Pictish sites near Fulford Tower

Borland silver chain

25.3km away

Todholes (possible) silver chain

27.3km away

Haddington silver chain

29.2km away

Whitlaw silver chain

30.9km away

Traprain Law silver chain

36.1km away

Norrie's Law hoard

46.1km away

Hoardweel silver chain

55.1km away

Whitecleugh silver chain

61.4km away

Dunnicaer fort

136.6km away
more Pictish sites....
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Accommodation near Fulford Tower

Aaron Glen Guesthouse
bed and breakfastLoanhead
3.2km away
Rosslyn Castle
self-cateringRoslin
4.1km away
Craigiebield House Hotel
hotelPenicuik
4.4km away
Best Western Braid Hills Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
5.5km away
Alvar House
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
5.6km away
Liberton Tower
self-catering apartmentEdinburgh
5.9km away
Ture Bed and Breakfast
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
6.0km away
Laird & Dog Inn
hotel, pubLasswade
6.7km away
15 Merchiston Gardens Bed & Breakfast
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
6.9km away
A Flat Apart
self-catering apartmentsEdinburgh
7.2km away

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bed and breakfasts
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self-catering cottages
self-catering lodges
spas
more accommodation....

Cafés, restaurants & bars near Fulford Tower

Best Western Braid Hills Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
5.5km away
Morningside Glory
barEdinburgh
6.4km away
The Waiting Room
barEdinburgh
6.4km away
Laird & Dog Inn
hotel, pubLasswade
6.7km away
Merlin
barEdinburgh
6.9km away
Aaron Lodge
hotel, restaurantEdinburgh
7.5km away
Montpeliers Bar & Brasserie
bar, restaurantEdinburgh
7.6km away
Caley Sample Room
bar, restaurantEdinburgh
7.8km away
Links Hotel, Edinburgh
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
7.8km away
Leslie's Bar
pubEdinburgh
7.8km away
more food.... / more drink....

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Published on the 14th of May 2010 at 1:59 pm. Updated on the 18th of February 2018 at 2:36 pm.

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Andy Sweet above Fast Castle

Stravaiging around Scotland is written, photographed and researched by Andy Sweet.
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