The first Superintendent of the Malta House Labour Home was Tom Murray who for two years had been in charge of the Church of Scotland Home at its previous location in Sciennes. He was manager for four years of Grove House,1 which opened in 1900 to provide food and lodging for ‘men of the respectable working class.’2 He had previously been associated with Fountainbridge United Free Mission.
Before taking up social work, Tom Murray was a sailor for twelve years and experienced shipwreck three times.3 In September 1904, he helped rescue four boys from a leaking boat off the coast at Aberlady, with the assistance of the then Prime Minister who was golfing nearby at Craigielaw. For this, Tom Murray was given a testimonial by the Lambert Swimming Club.4
Tom Murray left Malta House in 1910 to become superintendent of the newly opened Naval and Military Veterans Home at Whiteford House in the Canongate.5
References
- Edinburgh Evening News. 04 December 1908. p. 4, col. 4. https://britishnespaperarchive.co.uk: accessed 20 October 2024.
- ‘A New Venture in Lodging Houses.’ Edinburgh Evening News. 05 June 1900. p. 2, col. 3. https://britishnespaperarchive.co.uk: accessed 20 October 2024.
- Ibid.
- ‘Swimming.’ Edinburgh Evening News. 05 December 1904. p. 4, col. 6. https://britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk: accessed 21 March 2026.
- The Scotsman. 14 October 1910. p. 4, col. 7. https://britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk: accessed 04 February 2024.