Memorial To The Boys Of St Giles' Club

If you're ever unsure what's in an area then the Ordnance Survey map is a great place to start. During a long weekend at Dunbar a survey of the OS Map show the word 'mon' on a headland by the small village of Skateraw. Intrigued I set off one evening to find out what it was, not knowing if it was even still present!

On arrival at the car park by the beach at Skateraw, I could see the cross in the distance. I followed the beach and then headed on to the grassy headland known as Chapel Point. A well defined path leads the way.

The monument turned out to be a stone cairn with a wooden cross. The cross was re-erected in 1980. There are plaques on each side which explains it is a memorial to six boys who attended the St Giles' Club (later Cannongate Boys Club) which was based in Edinburgh. The club was organised by the Reverend RWVS Wright who would take the boys camping in the area. The six boys the memorial is dedicated to all sadly died in WWII. They were all aged between 19 and 23.

The St Giles' / Cannongate Club was set up to assist young boys caught up in the "struggle, unemployment, grim overcrowding and real poverty" in Edinburgh. Revered Wright wrote in his autobiography that "in many ways the people of Canongate were examples of the survival of the fittest".

According to East Lothian at War says that the club identified Skateraw as a location for a camp in 1935 when a local farmer gave permission for them to use a patch of rough ground on Chapel Point. Reverend Wright wrote that Skateraw became "a second home".

Reverend Ronald William Vernon Selby Wright (to give him his full name) was a well known Church of England Minister. He was born in Glasgow and after a stint at Glasgow Cathedral, he became minister at Cannongate Kirk in Edinburgh in 1937 and would remain there until he retired in 1977. He was noted for his social concern (reflected in his establishment of the Boys Club). Cannongate was one of the most impoverished areas of Edinburgh. He was involved in WWII and was evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940. After the war he became known for writing many books and also appearing on BBC radio. In 1961 he became a chaplain to the Queen. Following his retirement he remained in Edinburgh until he died at the age of 87 in 1995.

The Memorial has two plaques, one is dedicated to the aforementioned Six Boys and the other to Reverend Wright.

Pictured below, the plaques read as follows:

"1939-45/ TO THE GLORY OF GOD & IN MEMORY OF/ (NAMES OF THE BOYS)/ WHO LOVED TO CAMP HERE & GAVE THEIR/ LIVES THAT OTHERS MIGHT LOVE IT/ "WHEN THE MORNING WAS COME / JESUS STOOD ON THE SHORE""

"ERECTED TO THE MEMORY OF/ THE VERY REV. R.W.V.S.WRIGHT CVO TD DD/ BY THE MEMBERS OF THE CANONGATE BOYS CLUB/ WHO SPENT THEIR FORMATIVE YEARS/ AT CAMP WITH HIM ON THESE SHORES/ 1945-1977/ GOODNIGHT SIR AND SEE YOU IN THE MORNING"

The route to the memorial from Skateraw passes a ruined building which is prettily adorned with seashells. It even has a little garden on the far side. It is not clear what the ruin is for certain but one suggestion is that it may be the ruin of the hut built by the Boys Club which was originally in this area. This was nicknamed the Scott Hut, however, that hut was later moved to behind where the Lime Kiln stands.

Chapel Point itself is named because it was the site of St Dennis' Chapel. There are no visible remains, the ancient Chapel was washed away by 1836. Human remains have been found in the area so it is believed there was a burial ground.

It seems only fitting that a man of faith would be attracted to this area!

The headland gives contrasting views with Torness Nuclear Power Station to the south and Waste Treatment Plant to the North against the backdrop of the North Sea and North Berwick Law rising in the distance. The area must have looked so different when Cannongate Boys Club camped here.

The monument is a poignant reminder to the memory of Skateraw's past, the six boys who lost their lives in WWII and the Reverend who clearly left a lasting impression himself.