There is often a feeling of sadness while committing the West Calder Registers of the Poor onto an Archive database. Each page records a glimpse of lives brought to the point of dependence by illness and injury; of broken limbs, fever, lunacy, bronchitis and almost endless widows who list their disability as “children”, too young to work and therefore subsidise the family income. Of people sent to the Poorhouse which some, perhaps through pride or fear, refuse. Turn the registry page and that brief glimpse is over, onto the next name, the next short story.

We get all sorts of interesting records in local authority archives. Unfortunately not all (possibly most?!) of it is in such good condition and requires professional conservation. This was the case with Musselburgh Burgh records found at Musselburgh Town House. A large volume of records with the earliest dating back to 1545 had been stored in bin bags in the cellars. Once they found their way to the archives the staff undertook some basic conservation such as cleaning and repackaging

William McTaggart (1835-1910) is recognised as one of the great Scottish artists. He is famous for his paintings of the sea and the countryside although he considered himself primarily as a portrait painter. He was especially interested in children and often included them in his work.               In 1890 William McTaggart moved to a house called Dean Park in Bonnyrigg, Midlothian where he lived until his death in 1910. There is a family tradition that he moved away from Edinburgh to

  First known foursome, Leith Links, 1681 ‘Gentlemen of honour skillfull in the ancient and healthfull Exercise of the Golf’    Edinburgh City Archives holds in its Town Council Minutes probably one of the first written set of rules for the games. Dated 7th March 1744, these rules were recorded well before the highest authority in golf was established, the Royal and Ancient, founded in St Andrews in 1754.  The R&A runs the prestigious Open Golf Championship amongst many other tournaments,

        The Black Collection is a remarkable record about Penicuik and surrounding area from 1880 to 1930. It is named after James Black and his son Robert, who assembled a mass of material about life in Penicuik.         The main part of the collection is a series of carefully compiled scrapbooks on life in Penicuik. The subjects range from local industries, sport, clubs and societies, and biographies of Penicuik people.         In the 1970s, the Black Collection was gifted to Midlothian Library

All over Scotland, anxious teenagers will be receiving their exam results this week. The right grades could mean the first step to that dream job; a place on a training scheme or admission to university or college.Things were very different before the 20th century.

    John Brown Manuscripts, East Lothian Archives EL192   A famous and influential figure in the history of Haddington, the Reverend John Brown was born in Carpow in Abernethy. Orphaned at the age of 11, he educated himself while working as a shepherd. Not only did he pick up reading and writing but he also went on to learn Greek, Latin and Hebrew.  He worked as a schoolmaster and was a soldier in the defence against the Jacobites before becoming

    ‘Novelties and Amusements: A trifle larger round the Wrist than a Shilling’     This 1860s advertisement held by Edinburgh City Archives gives some idea of the kinds of spectacles and shows that drew nineteenth century crowds. Victorians  flocked to shows featuring human curiosities.  Varied audiences  turned out to take in sights of people with unusual physical characteristics and unique talents. People with stage names such as the ‘Elephant Man’, ‘Jo Jo the Dog Faced Boy’,‘ John Chambers the

By 1981 the Livingston Festival had become the largest community festival in Scotland. But in the early years of the new town annual gala days were only held in Livingston Station and Village, where they were already an established tradition. It was the celebration of Livingston’s tenth birthday in 1972 that inspired the beginning of a new West Lothian tradition in the form of an annual festival. The first festival week held in Livingston was a huge success and included

The Black Collection is a remarkable record about Penicuik and surrounding area from 1880 to 1930. It is named after James Black and his son Robert, who assembled a mass of material about life in Penicuik. The collection includes research and lecture notes, newspaper cuttings, notebooks, postcards, photograph albums and many other items. It is particularly strong on papermaking, the Thistle Lodge of Free Gardeners, the Penicuik Rifle Volunteers, and Penicuik and the First World War. The main part of