The People’s Story Museum

The museum, opened in 1989, is housed in a building dating from 1591 which was once used as a prison. Visitors are still able to observe traces from that time.

The exhibitions

The museum’s three floors feature several exhibitions that reflect the lives of Edinburgh’s citizens, from their day to day jobs to the way the Scottish people enjoy their free time and holidays.

The first floor houses various large life-size waxwork that show the daily lives of the town’s inhabitants from the eighteenth century; how they earned their salaries, how their houses were, or how criminals were punished.

Climbing to the next floor you’ll get to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries when the cooperative movements and businesses become more organized and specialized. In times of war, poverty seeps into the households and the exhibitions show how families struggle to make ends meet and make the most of what they have.

After a hard day’s work, it is finally time to relax. The exhibitions on the third floor reveal how the people of Edinburgh spent their free time and holidays, especially at home. Other important topics that are portrayed on this floor are how religion and culture have influenced different generations.  

An enjoyable visit

The People’s Story Museum is one of the most visually-attractive and experiential museums in Edinburgh. Visitors will spend an enjoyable few hours exploring the detailed life-size models that reflect different aspects of the city’s residents. It is not often that you get the chance to walk into a war period kitchen or a bindery (bookbinders) from the nineteenth century.

Not only is it highly entertaining, but it is excellently located in front of Canongate Kirkyard (Cemetery) and the Museum of Edinburgh. Moreover, the entrance is free, so there is absolutely no excuse not to visit.