Within Whose Town? you’ll find the fascinating story of Luca Scappaticcio. It is a name you might not recognise, but turn it around and shorten it a little, and it may seem a bit more familiar. Luca is the man behind S. Luca’s ice-cream business of Musselburgh.

When Luca came to Edinburgh at the turn of the 20th Century from rural Southern Italy he initially found work at the newly built North British Hotel as a hotel porter. We have a striking photograph of the half-built hotel, today recognisable as the Balmoral, taken in 1901 from North Bridge. Luca worked his way up to the position of pastry chef and in Luca’s Life in a Box, you can see pictures of the extravagant dining and grill rooms from the time. Luca lived in the Grassmarket where he met and married his wife Anastasia. There’s even have a copy of their entry in the marriage register for you to discover. Shortly afterwards, Luca and Anastasia set up their tea-room in Musselburgh selling ice-cream and then moved out of Edinburgh.

We were delighted that Luca’s descendents who are now at the helm of the ice-cream business, were happy to share family stories, and images and ephemera from their own archive to help us tell Luca’s story. Here is a picture of Luca and Anastasia (and dog) taken outside their shop and tearooms. You’ll see the name has changed over the years.

And if a field trip to the ice-cream parlour is out of the question, take a look at our video showing how ice-cream is made in S.Luca’s factory.

Investigate Luca’s Life in a Box, and build up the story of his life in Whose Town?