Tower with storied past tells transformative tale

Sarah Devine goes weak for this historic 17th-century stronghold that has been thoroughly renovated to host a family household

The character of “Half Hangit” Maggie Dickson, best remembered by the name of a famous pub in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket, was an early 18th-century fish wife who was hanged for the heinous crime of hiding her pregnancy.

Maggie became a local celebrity when – post-gallows – she appeared to awake from the dead in the grounds of the historic Peffermill House, which featured in Sir Walter Scott’s Heart of Midlothian novel.

Today, the L-shaped tower house in the south-east of Edinburgh is a beautifully restored family home entirely unshadowed by botched death sentences of the past.

Built in 1636, the home was owned by the Alexander family for 300 years until architect Nicholas Groves Raines transformed the property from a derelict state into a home for his family and practice in 1980.

Most recently, it was bought in 2016 by Andrew Hunt and his wife, Dr Laura Gilchrist, who were actually married in the grounds and have had each of their three children while living in Peffermill House.

Andrew, a writer and former investment manager, recalls the benefits of enjoying plenty of outdoor space at home while growing up in Edinburgh, but imagined having to move away from the Capital to find a similar sized patch of green for recreation and relaxation.

He remembers: “I was attracted in a large part to having this incredibly large house with around four acres of garden, but being literally two miles from the centre of Edinburgh. I don’t think anyone in Western Europe has that much space while being so close to the centre of a capital city. It is an incredibly rare find.”

Indeed, Peffermill’s garden is a massive draw for those with green fingers and thrives with rare trees, rhododendrons and bushes, as well as visiting wildlife including foxes, badgers, deer, and red squirrels.

Meanwhile, its interior is made up of more than 6,000sq ft of floorspace over four storeys.

The ground-floor features a modern kitchen with AGA and a generouslysized island, ideal for entertaining.

A turnpike staircase leads to the first floor where there is a bright great hall with exposed ceiling beams and stove set within a large stone fireplace.

An additional kitchen-dining space on this level could allow for multigenerational living, providing the opportunity to create a flat.

There is a cosy second-floor sitting room for more entertaining, while a bedroom on each floor ensures ample privacy for hosting guests.

Andrew and Laura have carried out full conservation renovation work as well as a structural survey. Andrew explains: “We had the roof checked and maintained; restored the leadwork, sockets and stonework; as well as having all of the mortar taken off, and the whole house was re-rendered in traditional lime mortar so it looks like it did when it was built in the 17th Century.

“The nice thing for the next owner is – because we did a full survey and all the structural work externally – they aren’t going to be hit with a massive bill.”

The family are relocating to New

Zealand, but they are selling up with heavy hearts. They have enjoyed adding their own touches to such a historic house, which retains a 17th Century painting in the kitchen, and oyster shells between the stonework from the original build.

Andrew adds: “It has all these lovely old features and you feel that emotional weight. Lots of things have happened in the house and it just feels like a really special place where a lot of people have lived and experienced a lot of things. You have this sense that you are part of a historical adventure, and everywhere around you are signs of history.”

Nevertheless, he returns to the great outdoors, saying: “Once you have had a garden like this you can’t imagine not having it – especially when you have children who enjoy it so much.”

For more information, contact Rettie & Co. on 0131-624 9085.

“It has all these lovely old features and you feel that emotional weight. Lots of things have happened in the house”