The Stone at Edgelaw
On the shores of the Edgelaw Reservoir, between Gorebridge and Temple on the outskirts of Edinburgh, a stone was erected to commemorate the deaths of the unfortunate gamekeepers, on or near the murder site.
John Fortune , one of the victims, is listed in the 1881 census. His address was Gamekeeper House, Temple. he would have been 52 at the time of his death; and had a wife, Agnes, one year his junior, and five children. For more on the gamekeepers, see here.
The head gamekeeper, James Grosset, is also listed at the same address. He would have been 40 at the time of the incident, and also had a wife called Agnes, and 5 children. He survived the incident.
I have as yet been unable to track down any information on John MacDairmid, the other victim.
Directions: Walk down the main access path until you get to the dam. Straight ahead is a weir / bridge cross this and climb the stairs. At the top of the stairs is a stile, cross this into the field (2). Turn left and follow the edge of the field for 350 paces. This should bring you to a point (3) where you will have gorse bushes to your left (looking down towards the resv.) In the centre (about 30ft down) there is a grassy area with a single tree. The stone is next to the tree. You dont have to go through the gorse bushes.
My thanks to Colin Wilson for the diagram, photo and directions.
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