File:East London Street, Edinburgh - geograph.org.uk - 1080575.jpg

English: Gayfield House, 18 East London Street, Edinburgh.

A builder called William Butler built Gayfield House in 1763 as a stylish country villa combining Scots Palladian with Dutch details and a touch of French decor, within walking distance of the crowded Old Town of Edinburgh. In 1765 butler sold it for £2,000 to Thomas, Lord Erskine, the eldest son of the Earl of Mar. The Earl of Mar or 'Bobbin John' had led the First Jacobite Rebellion in 1715. In 1767, after Lord Erskine's death it was sold to the Earl of Leven. An entry in the Scots Magazine at the time states: "Marriage. June 10th. At Gayfield, near Edinburgh, the Earl of Hopetoun to Lady Betty Leven."

A late 18th century print shows Gayfield House standing in attractive grounds, surrounded by fields and by orchards, bounded to the South East by Leith Walk. The fortunes of the house gradually declined in the 19th century as Edinburgh expanded. In 1874, it was sold to form a Veterinary College, and remained in this use for 30 years. In 1904 it was bought by a merchant who stored manure in the downstairs rooms. After World War 1 it was used as a laundry which also manufactured ammonia and bleach. It was used as a garage and for car repairs in the 1970s when a hole was opened in it's facade and the basement used as a garage. By 1990 it had fell into disrepair and was vandalised. A roofer Trevor Harding bought it and restored it. He sold it in 2013.