City blacksmiths Blake's Group relocate from Leith to Gogarburn after 82 years

They were forced to leave an old World War II aircraft hangar, that had been dismantled at East Fortune Airfield and brought to Leith in the 1940’s, as the structure had become ridden with holes and damp.

Ronnie Blake, 72, inherited the business from his father James, who had started Blake’s after borrowing £20 from his mother.

James, at age 16, set up the blacksmith at the Citadel in Leith. He hired his father to work shifts during the day as he had to continue his day job of fuelling steam trains such as the Flying Scotsman to balance the books.

He would return to the blacksmith’s after his shift on the trains and take over from his father - often working hours well into his teens each day.

But fast forward several generations and Ronnie is now the man with the plan to ensure that the family business lives on.

The business is believed to have hemorrhaged money over several decades by trying to fix holes in the old hangar roof and to keep any form of heat within its walls.

Moving felt like their only option as they struggled to find a suitable location that would be able to house the 82-year old business.

Ronnie said: “I remember describing the hangar as an old satanic mill and to be fair it has served its purpose for the last twenty years. Ultimately though it has been in really bad condition for some time and we were throwing money at it to keep the employees warm and keep the rain out.

“Around ten years ago it was going to cost millions to fix it and we really did not have that money at the time. The patchwork repairs weren’t great and I could sense everyone’s patience running thin but eventually a house developer bought the land from us which allowed us to have the capacity to move.

“I’d like to thank the staff for their patience.”

But that did not mean that things were going to be straight forward. Covid wreaked havoc on industries across the UK but it was a particularly difficult time for Blake’s to relocate.

They had been given a deadline of September 30 to move to their new location at West Craig’s Quarry on Turnhouse Road. However Covid had meant that the completion of the new building was only just finished in time - a sense of relief for Ronnie and his staff.

Tom Chisolm, 74, has worked at Blake’s for 50 years as a welder, he said: “Leith was a busy, bustling and loud place when I first started out but all the industry that was there has all disappeared and been replaced with houses.

"We used to use local suppliers that used the port to receive the materials for us but now it will come by lorry to our new site.

"I got very bored during the lockdown so I'm very glad to be back at work and have no plans to retire yet.”

Ronnie Blake added: “I’d like to think if my dad was here now, he would say well done for keeping the business going.”

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.