1908 Robert Ritchie at Broompark Ave. Photo by D Ritchie, shared by A Bowie

Pictured here in Broompark Avenue is little Robert Ritchie. Photographed by David Ritchie in 1908, Robert stands outside the door of his house in good clothes indicative of Sunday best, or perhaps part of a band or club.

Robert’s home looked out over to Broompark House, pictured in the background later to become home of husband and wife doctors, The Jopes. The site of that large house later became the chapel in Broompark Road and is very built up today, nowhere near the rural scene in the photo.

Broompark Avenue was then a cul de sac, dead end, just as it is today. Nowadays there is an entrance into Kirkton Park, which would later be to the left of this photo, but at the time of David’s photo, did not exist.The building to the left is part of the Broompark House property and may have been the doctors surgery.

The trees in the background, beyond the house are on the railway embankment, which ran from left to right of the picture immediately behind the house. To the right, just out the picture the railway crossed over Broompark Road. To the left in the picture were open fields all the way over to Old Mains Place.

The houses in Broompark Avenue, where Robert lived are still there today.

Thanks to my distant relative Alex Bowie for sharing this photo.