History of the Route: Cranston Street
Extract from the Ordnance Survey’s 1893–94 Town Plan of Edinburgh
Evolution: Cranston Street
The City Improvement Act of 1867 led to Leith Wynd being replaced by Jeffrey Street and Cranston Street. Jeffrey Street started outside the Netherbow from the same point as Leith Wynd had, however it then curved around to the west. Cranson Street started slightly east of Jeffrey Street but then curved slightly west and followed the old route of Leith Wynd, connecting up to Calton Road.
By the 1890s, Cranston Street had several rail lines running over it, but it still followed the old path of Leith Wynd, forming a continuous route from the top of the Canongate across the Waverley valley to Calton Road. The parliamentary boundary also followed the route of Cranston Street and Calton Road, and can be seen by the dotted line on the Ordnance Survey map below.
The 1893–94 Ordnance Survey map below you can see Jeffrey Street and the entirety of Cranston Street. You can also see the northern end of New Street on the far right of the map, significantly east of Cranston Street. Note that ‘North Back of Canongate’ (to the east of the north end of Cranston Street) has since been renamed as a continuation of Calton Road.
