Bellsquarry

Settlement in Midlothian

Scotland

Bellsquarry

Platform, Livingston South Railway Station On the line from Glasgow Central to Edinburgh Waverley via Shotts. — Platform, Livingston South Railway Station Credit: JThomas

Bellsquarry is a small village situated in the county of Midlothian, Scotland. It is located approximately 13 miles southwest of the capital city of Edinburgh. The village is nestled amidst picturesque countryside, offering residents and visitors a tranquil and scenic environment.

Bellsquarry is primarily a residential area, characterized by a mix of traditional stone-built houses and modern developments. The village has a close-knit community, with a population of around 2,000 people. The residents of Bellsquarry enjoy a peaceful lifestyle, away from the hustle and bustle of city living.

Despite its rural setting, Bellsquarry benefits from excellent transport links. The nearby Livingston South railway station provides regular services to Edinburgh and Glasgow, making it an ideal location for commuters. Additionally, the village is well-connected by road, with the nearby A71 and M8 motorway offering convenient access to surrounding areas.

Within the village, there are several amenities to cater to residents' needs. These include a local convenience store, a primary school, and a community center. The nearby Livingston town center offers a wider range of shopping and leisure facilities, including a large shopping mall, cinemas, and restaurants.

Nature enthusiasts can take advantage of the beautiful surrounding countryside, with various walking and cycling routes available. The nearby Pentland Hills Regional Park offers stunning views and outdoor recreational opportunities, including hillwalking and birdwatching.

In conclusion, Bellsquarry is a charming village in Midlothian, Scotland, offering a peaceful and scenic setting for its residents. With good transport links and a range of amenities nearby, it strikes a balance between rural living and accessibility to larger towns and cities.

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Bellsquarry Images

Images are sourced within 2km of 55.86632/-3.519681 or Grid Reference NT0464. Thanks to Geograph Open Source API. All images are credited.

Platform, Livingston South Railway Station

On the line from Glasgow Central to Edinburgh Waverley via Shotts.

JThomas

Murieston Medical Practice

JThomas

Bus stop on the B7015

JThomas

An Accidental Path?

While the tramlines shown to the right of here on the large scale map don't any longer seem to represent anything on the ground, bushes and small trees - some of which are showing at the top right of the picture - occupy the land in the middle of the lines for their entire length. The ground they occupy was part of a road a very long time ago, appearing on late 1700s and early 1800s maps, but no longer in use by the time of the first OS map from the 1850s - by then it is just shown as grass in the middle of two walls or fences. The short grass path is presumably completely unrelated to the old road. It may just be a random coincidence, but may also have been formed by sheep and cattle on their way to get round to the other side of the bushes. The land here is part of a very large untended field in the centre of a circular hard path route. There is a sign when entering the field from the North, warning of the dangers of livestock. I usually find these kinds of signs both bossy and unnecessary (unless warning of the presence of a bull of course). But in this case it is justified. There are often cattle in the field; combine this with the large number of people from nearby Murieston, an area of Livingston, that regularly walk their dogs round the path that circles the field - a lot of whom will not have had that much experience of walking in the country - and you have a potential problem. It must be at least a two minute jog from the centre of the field to the nearest section of path.

Ian Dodds

A Dead Tree

The tree is rather like the one you get on hazardous chemical warning labels which I think usually have a dead fish somewhere near the tree too, to ram the point home. There are a few middling-sized fields in between the houses at Linhouse (which is spelt differently from map to map) and the railway line just North of here. I presume they are, or were, used for horses, though there was no real evidence around save for a muddy path running across one of the fields which looked like it might have been used for walking horses. It certainly didn't look either sheep or cow related anyhow.

Ian Dodds

40-44 Newpark Road, Bellsquarry

These three old terraced cottages were once simply called Newpark Cottages - No 40 is on the right. Above the door of the middle cottage is a fancy placque which says 'ARP 1870', with the 'R' written slightly larger and in front of the other two letters. If they are the original occupier's initials it seems strange to have accented the middle letter. The new park used to be SouthEast of here, close to the road junction. The parkland is now Stromness Gardens, a cul-de-sac containing just two houses, both of such a size that they could probably be called mansions.

Ian Dodds

Some Comedy Art up a Tree

This was very unexpected. And due to having become conditioned to reading so much high-minded impenetrable bullsh*t alongside artworks, I have to admit it took me a little longer than it should have to realise that the accompanying write-up on the plaque below was a joke! It reads as follows: The Oozlum Bird - When startled this creature will take off and fly around in ever-decreasing circles until it manages to disappear completely, which adds to its rarity. Other sources state that the bird flies backwards so that it can admire its own beautiful tail feathers, or because while it does not know where it is going, it likes to know where it has been. David Evan Mackay, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design 2014

Ian Dodds

Elm Tree Bench, Bellsquarry

The wood on the bench, according to the plaque, came from an old elm tree that stood at this spot for over 150 years. The pub on the opposite side of the road near here used to be called The Elm Tree Inn. Although this is still written somewhere above the door, the place has had a refit within the last few years, and now goes by the name of Stones (or Stones at The Elmtree, it's hard to know for sure). It looks like a vast improvement on what was there before - occasionally I still have flashbacks to stuffed fish staring out at me from picture frames positioned behind and alongside the bar in the 1990s!

Ian Dodds

Army Reserve Centre

The centre is tucked away at the end of Beveridge Square, a non-residential street which isn't a square at all, though it does boast a not-very-pretty office building set out in a square around some open ground. To the untrained eye it looks like there is far more going on than there actually is. The sign on the right for the air cadets could have come down years ago, as they have now moved to the Craigshill area of Livingston. And regiments are actually umbrella groups subdivided into smaller units, which is why the bigger signs have two names on them. The 278 (Lowland) Battery is part of the 105th Regiment Royal Artillery, which is the section of the Army Reserves covering Scotland and Northern Ireland. The regiment's headquarters are in Edinburgh, and they have surprisingly few bases - just one in Northern Ireland and seven in Scotland (including one in the Shetlands). They must have been even smaller until fairly recently as this unit was only formed, along with a sister detachment in Edinburgh, in 2014. It is viewed, by Wikipedia anyway, as a continuation of the Edinburgh City Artillery, which ran for around a century until the early 1960s and was involved in operations in both world wars. In a similar vein the 243 Provost Company is part of the 1st Regiment Royal Military Police. I've never been too sure exactly how the military police while away the hours, but was pleased to read that they only have jurisdiction over military personnel, or people they believe to be military personnel. The only time they have powers over the general public is if they are on military property or encroaching onto land getting used by the military for training manoeuvres. This means there is no need to keep a close eye on your speedo when you notice one of their cars behind you in the mirror.

Ian Dodds

Old milestone

The milestone on Beresford Rise in Dedridge near to the A71 has been moved away from the hedge and set into its own paved area. This style of milestone was set up by the Calder District Turnpike Trust. The original legend, probably painted on, would have been Edinburgh 13 Carnwath 15.

John Riddell

Old milestone

This Calder District Trust milestone had been at the Klondyke Garden Centre for a number of years after being found buried in a field about 2005. At sometime it had been knocked over. Now it is back by the roadside on Hunter Road in Howden, set firmly upright with an information board nearby.

John Riddell