I work alone at night in Edinburgh's dark and spooky vaults
- Published
'I work at night in Scotland's most haunted place'
The vaults in Edinburgh's Old Town are dank, dark and spooky - but that is where Jamie Corstorphine spends his nights.
He starts work shortly before midnight, then spends up to 10 hours maintaining the dimly-lit tunnels.
Jamie says some of his friends think he's mad spending hours in the vaulted chambers on his own - but he has become used to his surroundings.
"I find it quite peaceful now," he said.
The 43-year-old has to work at night because history tours take place in the vaults during the day and evenings.
Jamie's job includes painting the doors and walkways, and making any repairs that are needed.
Jamie Corstorphine works in dark vaulted chambers which leak from above as the bridge they are part of was never waterproofed with puddling clay when it was built
So how scary is it working in these eerie conditions?
"The dripping water, the rats, the echoes and the shadows can make your mind play tricks when you are alone in here at night," says Jamie.
"When I first started working here I was a bit nervous because I didn't know the sounds that were naturally made inside.
"Things cause huge shadows when you have a torch on. For example, a small spider's web can make a huge shadow and then when it moves in a draught it can be quite unnerving.
"Stalactites sometimes break off and fall from the ceilings too.
"When this happens I tell myself to pull myself together."
On one occasion when Jamie was working near the entrance he heard children laughing. He thought that was strange at 03:10, so he went outside - but the street was deserted.
"That is the only time I haven't finished my shift and I have called a taxi to take me home," he said.
Jamie works for the City of the Dead Tours in the vaulted chambers at South Niddry Street, which are located off the Cowgate.
Jamie now finds it peaceful working in the vaults
The vaults were behind shops in the archways of South Bridge, which was built between 1785 and 1788.
They were used for storage and as workshops, but were abandoned in 1796 because they leaked so badly.
The shops themselves remained dry and their rent paid off the bridge's construction debt.
Shopkeepers insisted on the vaults being taken off their title deeds so they did not have to pay the extra rent for them.
The South Bridge was built across the Cowgate, which was a valley, so the well-off could bypass the area, which had become a slum.
In the early 1800s, there was an influx of people from Ireland and the Highlands looking for work in Edinburgh.
"We weren't welcoming to them at all," says Jamie.
"They had no jobs and no shelter so they chose to use the abandoned vaults."
Manure from horses pulling carts on the South Bridge above would mix with sewage and rain water, which then seeped into the vaults below.
Jamie paints and varnishes doors as part of his job
Living in these wet, unhygienic and unventilated conditions led to illness, and cholera was rife. As a result many people died in the vaults.
Due to that grisly history, the tunnels - which still leak to this day - have long been popular with ghost hunters.
"Some friends think I'm mad spending hours in here alone but others are intrigued and often ask if they can come with me," added Jamie.
"But I prefer working on my own because I get more done."
With no phone reception due to the 75ft of stone between him and the street outside, he needs to be careful and have his wits about him.
"I don't have an escape plan should something happen. I need to think about that," he said.
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- Published30 October 2022
