Niddry Street and the South Bridge Vaults: Mr Boots

Skottland, Edinburgh · United Kingdom · Urban site · Scare 3/5

These vaults were built as storage beneath the bridge, but after thirty years the poorest people in Edinburgh took them over as homes.

These vaults were built as storage beneath the bridge, but after thirty years the poorest people in Edinburgh took them over as homes. Imagine living here: no daylight, no air, no drainage, whole families in pitch black damp. It is said that the body snatchers Burke and Hare took their victims from exactly this place. Around 1860 the vaults were filled with earth and forgotten, until they were dug out again in the 1980s.

Down here you meet the most talked about figure in the whole of Edinburgh's underground: Mr Boots, also known as The Watcher. In the White Room and in the Niddry Street corridor, witness after witness describes the same thing, heavy bootsteps, a rattle of keys, and a tall man in a dark coat watching from the shadows. Much of Edinburgh's ghost tourism is of course exactly that, tourism. But what makes Mr Boots harder to wave away is that the reports are so alike, and have come independently of one another for decades. Stand quietly for a moment. Listen for the boots.

FAQ

How scary is Niddry Street and the South Bridge Vaults: Mr Boots?

Niddry Street and the South Bridge Vaults: Mr Boots has a scare factor of 3/5 according to Haunted Places’ verified ratings.

Where is Niddry Street and the South Bridge Vaults: Mr Boots located?

Niddry Street and the South Bridge Vaults: Mr Boots is in Skottland, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.

Image: Kjetil Bjørnsrud · CC BY 2.5 · Wikimedia Commons