A new survey of Scottish Episcopal Church records
Published: Tuesday 28 April 2009
An appeal from Dr Alison Rosie, Registrar of The National Register of Archives for Scotland:
In 1981 Professor Gordon Donaldson was appointed Honorary Archivist of the Scottish Episcopal Church with a view to organising a survey of the historical papers held by the dioceses and congregations. A lay preacher in the church, Donaldson recognised the great wealth of material and the historical value of the records held by the church, some of which go back to the 17th century.
By early 1983 funding was in place, courtesy of the Pilgrim and Leverhulme Trusts, to provide for the appointment of a research assistant. Over the next two years, Dr Tristram Clarke, travelled the length and breadth of the country visiting diocesan offices and local vestries and produced lists of the surviving administrative records, registers of baptisms, marriages, burials and services, minutes and accounts, correspondence, architectural drawings and photographs. These lists collected together into larger surveys organised by diocese and then by congregation.
After the grant money had run out, the work of the survey was passed to the National Register of Archives for Scotland (NRAS). This organisation was set up in 1946 to locate historical records in private hands in Scotland and disseminate information about them to researchers and is part of the National Archives of Scotland.
Since that time many congregational records have been deposited in local record offices or university archives. Some can also be found in the National Archives of Scotland including important ecclesiastical papers collected by 18th and 19th century bishops such as those of Alexander Jolly, Bishop of Moray (died 1838) and the journals of Robert Forbes, Bishop of Ross and Caithness (died 1775). The majority of the church’s archives remain, however, in the custody of the congregations.
In recent years, as a result of enquiries from researchers and our contact with congregations, we have found that the information we hold is inaccurate: items on our list can no longer be located or correctly identified. For that reason we are commencing a new survey. This time, however, instead of visiting each congregation individually, we will be making contact through the diocesan secretaries and asking the congregations to get in touch with us to update us. We also hope that congregations will contact us for advice on any concerns they may have relating to the care and management of their archives.
Please help us help you preserve this important historical resource.
For further information please contact:
Dr Alison Rosie, Registrar
The National Register of Archives for Scotland
National Archives for Scotland
West Register House
Charlotte Square
Edinburgh
EH12 4DF
Tel: 0131 535 1403/1405
Fax: 0131 535 1430
Web: http://www.nas.gov.uk/nras
Email:
