Melville Street Home Guard memories

This week we have an interesting query from a local resident curious about the history of Melville Street, where bomb disposal teams had to be called in after some unexploded Second World War hand grenades were uncovered.

Graham Esson, 64, of Leith, asks: “I read the story about the unexploded Second World War munitions with great interest, and I was particularly intrigued by the fact they were not the only things uncovered by excavation works.

“As well as the grenades, it seems there was a lot of old ammunition discovered, which apparently may have been left there by a member of the Home Guard and simply forgotten about.

“I would be very interested to find out if any of your readers have any more details about whether there was indeed a Home Guard station there and, if so, when it was set up and why was it simply abandoned?

“It seems unusual that they would leave ammunition behind, certainly, and it would be fascinating to find out if anyone can perhaps remember the guard station there.

“The story also got me wondering if there could be similar unforgotten stations in the Capital. Perhaps the council should investigate?”

Is there a burning question about life in the Capital you’d like answered? Maybe you are looking for an old friend, want to find a specialist shop or service or want to find more about the history of a building. If Google can’t help, maybe our readers can! Email [email protected], call 0131-620 8973 or write to Readers’ Queries, Edinburgh Evening News, 108 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh EH8 8AS with a query or an answer.