North Canongate School Class Portrait c.1923

"I was born in 1916, the children I would say about seven, which would give a fair date of the photograph. The woman on the left was our teacher, a Miss Stuart. I'm sure she was dedicated to teaching, she taught my mother before me, and later became the headmistress. The young woman on the right was a sudent teacher.

"Most of us pupils came from the poorer districts of Edinburgh, some, including myself, from actual slums. I remember our headmaster, a Mr Young, in his pre-holiday talk making sure to tell our mothers to use the fine-toothed comb. There was a lunchtime school meal, soup and two slices of bread, cost one penny.

"Looking at them now, I'm sure it was the age of innocence, individuals before adult conformity." - David Prior (b.1916)

Donor number: 0037-001