John Traill
John Traill (11 January 1835 – 8 June 1897) was the owner of Traill's Temperance Coffee House which was regularly visited by Greyfriars Bobby.
John Traill | |
|---|---|
 John Traill, 1895 | |
| Born | January 11, 1835 Dunfermline, Scotland |
| Died | June 8, 1897 (aged 62) Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Resting place | Newington Cemetery |
| Spouse | Mary Traill |
| Children | 2 |
Early and personal life
Traill was born in 1835 in Dunfermline and was the son of a weaver. He and his wife Mary had two children called Alexander and Elizabeth Ann.
Traill's Temperance Coffee House
Traill's Temperance Coffee House was a temperance coffee house located on the ground floor of 6 Greyfriars Place. In 1975, 4, 5 and 6 Greyfriars Place were B listed by Historic Environment Scotland.[1] In modern times, Greyfriars Bobby's Bar and Greyfriars Bobby Fountain are located in Greyfriars Place.
Later years and death
In 1895, Oliver Morris painted a picture of Traill which has been on display at the City Art Centre since 1962.[2] Traill died in 1897 and is buried at Newington Cemetery in Edinburgh.
In popular culture
- John Traill is featured in the 1912 novel Greyfriars Bobby. Traill is depicted as the landlord of Ye Olde Greyfriars Dining-Rooms and is commonly referred to as Mr. Traill.[3]
- Traill is played by Edmund Gwenn in the 1949 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film Challenge to Lassie based on the novel.
- Traill is played by Laurence Naismith in the 1961 Disney film Greyfriars Bobby based on the novel.[4]
References
- Historic Environment Scotland. "4, 5 AND 6 GREYFRIARS PLACE (LB18973)". Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- "John Traill (1835–1897), Master of Greyfriars Bobby Oliver Morris (active 1866–1895) City Art Centre". ArtUK. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- Atkinson, Eleanor. "Greyfriar's Bobby Text". The Project Gutenberg EBook of Greyfriars Bobby, by Eleanor Atkinson. Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
- "Greyfriars Bobby The True Story of a Dog (1961)". BFI. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017.