Alexandra Hostel

The Alexandra Hostel on The Mound was a women’s hostel run by the Scotch Girls Friendly Society [SGFS] which provided training as well as accommodation. 

In 1926, a year after it opened The Scotsman reported on the hostel’s success:

“The Alexandra Hostel in Edinburgh is proving a real boon to the working girl. As you probably know it exists to provide temporary accommodation for girls who find themselves stranded or in difficulty. The matron was giving me instances of those she has already been able to help. Two fisher girls just arrived from Yarrow, found haven there, and one has already left for a situation as a scullery maid. A girl who had come to Edinburgh to attend the infirmary found a lodging there and among others taken in have been social workers and others arriving from the colonies, who did not know where to go; servants and business girls who wanted somewhere to stay until they found work and occasionally a student or a professional woman. Everyone was exclaiming the glorious view from the windows. The hostel stands at the top of the Mound.”

The Scotsman, 24 November 1926

The Matron at the hostel was a Miss Mary Stephens.