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Old Comiston House

All that remains of Old Comiston House is a single round tower, thought to have been a corner turret and latterly reused as a doocot.

The earliest mention of Comiston was recorded in 1337, and an undated roll from the reign of David II (1329 – 1371) records an Elizabeth Auldburgh transferring the “lands of Braid, Baulay, Colmanstoun and Ravinisnuick” to a John Burgens Virgin.

The lands were owned by Alexander de Meignes in 1355 but later passed to Cunningham of Kilmaurs. James Foulis of Colinton is then mentioned as the owner in 1531 before they later passed to the Fairlie family.

Exactly when the original Comiston was built is unclear. There would probably have been a defensive building on the site from the 14th century, however the remaining tower is thought to be late 16th or early 17th century in date.

It measures around 3.5m in diameter with walls around 0.7m thick and rises to a height of around 6.0m. Constructed from coursed rubble with sandstone dressings, the damaged upper stage projects slightly on sandstone corbels. A pair of splayed oval sandstone gunloops point approximately south-west and east.

A low, narrow entrance with sandstone surround at ground level on the north-west side suggests that the tower stood at the south-east corner of the castle. The initials “WD” are cut into the lintel of the entrance. A small section of original castle wall, measuring around 1.2m thick, extends from the north side of the tower.

Comiston is mentioned in a charter dated the 11th of June 1608 when John Fairlie of Braid disposed of the lands of Colmanstoun to Andrew Creich and his wife Margaret Dick.

A date stone inscribed with the initials AC and MD, the date 1610 and a lozenge over a scroll and rosette, which presumably came from a dormer window on the original Comiston, was later installed in the back wall of a lodge for the current Comiston House. This lodge was still standing (at NT 2453 6886) in 1942 but has since been demolished and I have been unable to ascertain the whereabouts of the date stone.

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

Their daughter, Katherine or Catherine, married John Cant some time before 1612 and Comiston passed into the Cant family around 1635 upon her father’s death. Following John’s death in 1647 Comiston passed, along with considerable debts, to their son, Andrew. Andrew’s sister, also Catherine, married Walter Porterfield and succeeded to Comiston in 1660 so it passed into the Porterfield family.

Comiston appears on John Adair’s map of Midlothian, published around 1682, as Comeston.

Map of Midlothian
John Adair, Edinburgh, c.1682

I have been unable to ascertain the ownership of Comiston after this point in history, although it remained in the Porterfield family for more than half a century. Walter and Catherine’s daughter Katherine Porterfield married Alexander Nisbet of Craigentinny and died in 1693. Her brother Patrick is mentioned as “of Comiston” in 1695.

The tower was later converted into a doocot and has around 160 nesting boxes irregularly arranged around the inside of the walls.

In 1715 Comiston was acquired by James Forrest, a merchant from Leith, and it would remain in the Comiston remained in the Forrest family for the next century and a half. He was succeeded by his son and then grandson, both named James, the latter of whom built Comiston House in 1815. This James Forrest was an advocate and later Lord Provost of Edinburgh. The doocot was incorporated into the south-east corner of a courtyard wall for nearby stables built at a similar time, seemingly on the site of the old castle.

In September 2015 the stables were offered for sale at auction, and in March 2016 work got under way to renovate the stables into a four bedroom detached home, with the dovecot left standing at the south-east corner of the property.

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Alternative names for Old Comiston House

Colmanstoun; Comeston; Comestoun; Comiston House; Comistoun; Comostoune

Surnames associated with Old Comiston House

Cunningham

Fairlie

Where is Old Comiston House?

Old Comiston House is in the parish of Edinburgh and the county of Midlothian.

Grid reference: NT 24004 68604

Lat / long: 55.904633, -3.217307

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

OS Map for Old Comiston House

OS map 350
Edinburgh (Musselburgh & Queensferry)
OS Explorer map 350


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Directions to Old Comiston House

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Weather at Old Comiston House

11°C
max 13°C / min 11°C
20km/h ENE
1016mb
92%
100%
04:05 20:12

Overcast clouds
Weather observed at Colinton at 09:50
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References (books)

Calendar of the Laing Charters
John Anderson
Edinburgh, 1899
Edinburgh and the Lothians
Graham S. Coe
Musselburgh, 2006
Historic South Edinburgh
Charles J. Smith
Edinburgh, 2000
Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (Volume 62)
Various
Edinburgh, 1928
The Book of the Old Edinburgh Club (First Volume)
Various
Edinburgh, 1908
The Book of the Old Edinburgh Club (Fourth Volume)
Various
Edinburgh, 1911
The Castles of Lothian and the Borders
Mike Slater
Malvern, 1994
The Place Names of Edinburgh
Stuart Harris
Edinburgh, 2002

References (websites)

Listed Building record
Canmore

Castles near Old Comiston House

Morton House

1.7km away

Dreghorn (site of)

1.8km away

Braid Castle (site of)

2.0km away

Craiglockhart Castle

2.1km away

Craig House

2.1km away

Mortonhall Castle (site of)

2.2km away

Colinton Castle

2.4km away

Meggetland (possible) (site of)

2.6km away

Liberton Tower

2.7km away
more castles....
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Ancient sites near Old Comiston House

Caiy Stane standing stone and rock art

0.4km away

Cat Stanes (site of) cairns

0.6km away

Buck Stane standing stone

0.8km away

Camus Stone (site of) standing stone

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Wester Craiglockhart Hill fort

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Castle Law souterrain

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Castle Law fort

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Samson's Ribs fort

5.1km away
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Pictish stones near Old Comiston House

Abernethy No. 2 Class III symbol stone

5.0km away

Abernethy No. 4 Class III cross shaft

5.0km away

Princes Street Gardens Class I symbol stone

5.1km away

Court Cave Class I rock carving

30.1km away

Doo Cave Class I rock carving

30.2km away

Jonathan's Cave Class I rock carving

30.5km away

Sliding Cave Class I rock carving

30.5km away

Scoonie Class II cross slab

36.0km away

Tullibole Class III cross slab

37.1km away
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Pictish sites near Old Comiston House

Haddington silver chain

27.9km away

Borland silver chain

28.6km away

Todholes (possible) silver chain

30.5km away

Whitlaw silver chain

33.0km away

Traprain Law silver chain

34.8km away

Norrie's Law hoard

42.2km away

Hoardweel silver chain

55.3km away

Whitecleugh silver chain

64.6km away

Dunnicaer fort

132.8km away
more Pictish sites....
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Accommodation near Old Comiston House

Best Western Braid Hills Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
1.4km away
Liberton Tower
self-catering apartmentEdinburgh
2.7km away
15 Merchiston Gardens Bed & Breakfast
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
2.8km away
Ture Bed and Breakfast
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
3.0km away
Alvar House
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
3.1km away
Royal Ettrick Hotel
hotelEdinburgh
3.4km away
A Flat Apart
self-catering apartmentsEdinburgh
3.5km away
Alba Executive Apartments
self-catering apartmentsEdinburgh
3.5km away
Albyn Townhouse
bed and breakfastEdinburgh
3.7km away
Wrights Houses
self-catering apartmentEdinburgh
3.7km away

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Cafés, restaurants & bars near Old Comiston House

Best Western Braid Hills Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
1.4km away
Morningside Glory
barEdinburgh
2.3km away
The Waiting Room
barEdinburgh
2.3km away
Merlin
barEdinburgh
2.8km away
Montpeliers Bar & Brasserie
bar, restaurantEdinburgh
3.5km away
Caley Sample Room
bar, restaurantEdinburgh
3.7km away
Links Hotel, Edinburgh
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
3.7km away
Ardmillan Hotel
hotel, barEdinburgh
3.8km away
Best Western Bruntsfield Hotel
hotel, restaurant, barEdinburgh
3.8km away
Earl of Marchmont
barEdinburgh
4.0km away
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Published on the 27th of January 2013 at 12:25 am. Updated on the 29th of March 2016 at 1:11 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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