Jute mill camel

Quarry every day and chipped about two tons off the huge block to enable them to lift it with the crane”.

She claimed he was on the job from the start, from the making of the plaster cast model to it eventually being put up on top of the gate.

A third account appeared in a letter in the same newspaper which came from A McFarlane, of Broughty Ferry, who stated that the camel was made by John McFarlane, sculptor, Dock Street, to order from Messrs Grimond based on a photograph they supplied.

The letter said Mr McFarlane made a clay model which was then carved in stone in his yard by Duncan Turner, supervised by McFarlane and mounted on the gate at Bowbridge.

A fourth account provided by the Nine Trades of Dundee said it is likely that the carver of the stone was a mason named Draper.

Mr Baxter added: “So you will see, in 1951 it was obviously a much talked about landmark, but there were completely conflicting accounts of its origin.

“Interestingly, the notes I had for 1955 stated that the gate had to go as there needed to be a dual carriage entrance for the works to move forward. However, they also state

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In 1951 it was a much talked about landmark, but there were completely conflicting accounts of its origin. HISTORIAN KENNETH BAXTER

that Jute Industries had been told the camel could not be taken down and successfully put back together to be re-erected.

“The photograph that exists on the day it came down suggests it was in good condition, though notably it only shows the camel, not its rider, raising the question as to whether the latter was damaged.

“I also suppose it is possible that the photograph only shows a side-on view and there might have been damage to the camel that it does not show.”

Jute Industries changed its name to Sidlaw Industries Ltd in 1971 and to Sidlaw Group PLC in 1981.

The mill was demolished in 1984 and the factory buildings were demolished in 1987.

The end for the jute industry came in October 1998 when cargo ship the Banglar Urmi arrived at Dundee docks on the Tay from Bangladesh.

It discharged some bales of raw jute which were the last to ever come ashore in the city.

Tay Spinners, which was the last jute spinner in Europe, closed shortly before Christmas with the loss of 80 jobs.

It lay down its head. And that’s how The Arabs were born.