Poor Relief – Poorhouses in Scotland

Poorhouses or almshouses have existed in Scotland since medieval times, principally in burghs and often called hospitals. These accommodated people who were deemed unable to work, including people with disabilities. In 1672 parliament attempted to deal with beggars and homeless people by requiring thirty named burghs to build houses of correction but it appears that these more punitive poorhouses were not constructed.[1]

Between 1845 and 1930 over 70 poorhouses were constructed in Scotland, many serving a number of parishes (called ‘poor law unions’ or ‘combinations’). They were built following the Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845, which established parochial boards in rural civil parishes and in the towns, and a central Board of Supervision in Edinburgh.[2] The poorhouses were for those categories of paupers who did not receive outdoor relief (normally in the form of small weekly sums of money). The regime, diet and living conditions in poorhouses were austere, partly to discourage applications from those who could rely on family support instead. On the other hand, poorhouses provided medical and nursing care of the elderly and the sick, at a time when there were few hospitals and private medical treatment was beyond the means of the poor. In 1948 the poor law was abolished and replaced by the modern social security system, and by then hospitals had largely replaced the medical function of poorhouses.[3] Many poorhouses, indeed, expanded to become hospitals, for example Govan poorhouse, which formed the nucleus for the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow and East House, Dundee, which as Maryfield became its principal maternity hospital for two decades. Other poorhouses became old people’s homes or social work administrative offices.

Compilers: SCAN contributors (2000).

Related Knowledge Base entries

Poor Law 1579-1845

Poor Law 1845-1948

Links

A useful website is <http://www.workhouses.org.uk/Scotland/> [accessed 26 April 2024]. This website focuses mainly on poor relief in England but has helpful information about the Scottish law and systems.

References

[1] Act for establishing correction-houses for idle beggars and vagabonds, 1672. The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707, ed. by K.M. Brown and others (University of St Andrews, 2007-2021), 1672/6/52<http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1672/6/52> [accessed 7 October 2021]; Alexander Dunlop, A Treatise on the Law of Scotland Relative to the Poor (Blackwood & Cadell, 1825), pp.18-19.

[2] Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c.83).

[3] National Assistance Act 1948 (11 & 12 Geo. VI c.29).

Poor relief – 1902 poorhouses

From a list of poorhouse governors in the Post Office County Directory for Scotland, 1902.

Poorhouse	Also known as	Portfolios of plans in National Records of Scotland
Aberdeen East
Aberdeen West
Arbroath and St Vigeans		RHP30857
Atholl and Breadalbane	Ballinluig
Black Isle	Fortrose, Rosemarkie	RHP30852
Buchan	New Maud
Cambusnethan	Motherwell	RHP30881
Campbeltown
Cunninghame	Irvine
Dalkeith
Dumbarton		RHP30850, RHP20064-5
Dumfries
Dundee East		RHP30847-8
Dundee West	Liff and Benvie	RHP30845-6
Dunfermline		RHP49120-49134
Dysart	Thornton	RHP30849
East Lothian	Prestonkirk	RHP30863
Easter Ross	Tain	RHP30911, RHP44805-11
Edinburgh	Craigleith	RHP30841, RHP30570-1
Edinburgh	Craiglockart	RHP30842-3
Falkirk
Forfar		RHP30858
Galashiels		RHP30874
Glasgow City
Glasgow Barony	Barnhill	RHP30844, 30851
Govan	Merryflats	RHP30861
Greenock
Hamilton		RHP30865
Hawick
Inveresk
Inverness
Islay	Bowmore
Jedburgh		RHP30862
Kelso
Kincardineshire	Stonehaven
Kirkcaldy	Kinghorn	RHP30864
Kirkcudbright		RHP40990
Kirkpatrick-Fleming		RHP30856
Kyle	Ayr	RHP30860
Lanark		RHP30872
Latheron	Caithness	RHP30853
Leith
Lewis		RHP30866
Linlithgow
Lochgilphead		RHP30871
Long Island	Lochmaddy
Lorn	Oban
Maybole	Carrick	RHP30869
Morayshire	Elgin	RHP30870
Mull	Tobermory	RHP30877
Nairn		RHP30868
New Monkland	Airdrie	RHP30873
Old Monkland	Coatbridge
Orkney	Kirkwall	RHP30875-6
Paisley
Peebles		RHP30879
Perth		RHP30878
Shetland	Lerwick
Skye
Portree
Stirling
Sutherland	Bonar, Ardgay
Thurso	Halkirk	RHP30910
Upper Nithsdale	Thornhill, Morton	RHP30855
Upper Strathearn	Auchterarder	RHP30882
Wigtownshire

Poor Relief and Welfare

The ways that people in poverty have been supported by various institutions in Scotland from medieval times until the present is a very large subject, which is of interest to a wide variety of researchers.

Supporting the poor was primarily a church responsibility from 1579 until 1845.[1] The Heritors and the Kirk Session of each parish administered a poor fund which was maintained through an assessment of the parish. Those eligible for poor relief had to have a close connection to the parish by birth or long-standing residence.

The Poor Law (Scotland) Act, 1845 followed this pattern and set up parochial boards in every parish with a Board of Supervision in Edinburgh. The parochial boards were allowed to raise a poor rate and were required to appoint an inspector of poor. Parochial boards were replaced by elected parish councils and the Board of Supervision was replaced by the Local Government Board for Scotland by the Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1894.[2] The Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1929 abolished parish councils and gave poor law responsibilities to the town councils of large burghs, the four cities and county councils.[3] The poor law was abolished in 1948. Thereafter central government operated a welfare system and local authorities provided support through what became social work services.

In addition to the statutory provision for poor relief, many burghs held various mortifications (charitable trusts) which covered a wide range of activities, including educational bursaries, but which often catered for specific groups of people in need. The Brown’s Mortification in Glasgow, for example, was a mortification for the relief of indigent persons named Brown.[4] The Mrs Bailie William Roger’s Widows Fund in Dundee supported 16 poor widows in 1853.[5] Local authority archives services may hold records of those administered by a town clerk.

Within each burgh a wide variety of trades including fleshers (butchers), baxters (bakers), and hammermen (candlestick makers) would charge craftsmen dues for the upkeep of ‘decayed members’, would buy oatmeal in bulk in time of drought for distribution, and would levy mortcloth (funeral pall) dues for the upkeep of widows and unmarried daughters of members of their respective crafts. Some of these records may be held by local authority archives services or may still be held by the clerk, usually a solicitor, of the trade involved if the trade continues.

Compilers: SCAN contributors (2000).

Related Knowledge Base entries

Poor Law 1579-1845

Poor Law 1845-1948

Public Assistance & Community Care 1948-2002

Poorhouses in Scotland

Poorhouses in Scotland in 1902 (list)

Poor relief records

Bibliography

Cage, R. A., The Scottish Poor Law 1745-1845 (Scottish Academic Press, 1981)

Forbes, Kirsty M. and Robert H. J. Urquhart, ‘Records in the National Archives of Scotland Relating to Poor Relief, 1845-1930’ Scottish Archives 8 (2002) pp. 9-32

Gordon, Anne, Candie for the Foundling (Pentland Press, 1992)

Haythornthwaite, J. A. (ed.), Scotland in the Nineteenth Century: An Analytical bibliography of material relating to Scotland in Parliamentary Papers 1800-1900 (Scolar Press, 1993).

National Records of Scotland, Tracing your Scottish ancestors: A guide to research in the National Archives of Scotland (Birlinn, 2020)

References

[1] Act for punishment of the strong and idle beggars and relief of the poor and impotent, 1579. The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707, ed. by K.M. Brown and others (University of St Andrews, 2007-2021),1579/10/27 <http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1579/10/27> [accessed 7 August 2021]. Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c.83).

[2] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1894 (37 & 38 Vict. c.58).

[3] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 (19 & 20 Geo. V c.25).

[4] Post Office Glasgow Directory for 1859, 1860 (Glasgow: William Mackenzie, 1859) appendix p.68 <https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/83903563> [accessed 7 August 2021].

[5] The Dundee Directory for 1853 (Dundee: A.M.Stephen and others, 1853) p.103 <https://digital.nls.uk/directories/browse/archive/87325848> [accessed 7 August 2021].

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Poor relief and welfare

What is the difference between a poorhouse and a workhouse?

There were some differences between Scottish and English legislation regarding the funding and appeal system of the Poor Law, but there does not appear to have been any tangible difference between English ‘workhouses’ and Scottish ‘poorhouses’. It is not clear why the English, by and large, preferred the term ‘workhouse’ and the Scots, by and large, preferred ‘poorhouse’.

What do the terms ‘indoor relief’ and ‘outdoor relief’ mean?

‘Indoor relief’ meant admission to a poorhouse. ‘Outdoor relief’ meant another form of poor relief, usually a single or regular money payment, but sometimes outdoor relief was in the form of medicine, clothing or the payment of school fees.

What is meant by the terms ‘test case’ and ‘test ward’?

A ‘test case’ refers to an application for relief where the Inspector of the Poor suspected that the applicant could be supported by himself/herself or by his/her family. The applicant would be offered ‘indoor relief’ in the ‘test ward’ of a poorhouse. Those admitted to the test ward had to endure a tougher, more restrictive regime than those in other wards. The assumption was that many applicants would either refuse indoor relief in the test ward or, if admitted, would not endure the test ward for long: either discharging themselves or absconding.

Where should I look for information on poorhouses?

If you are interested in looking for the records of a particular poorhouse, you should contact each of the following, who might hold the records:

your local authority archives service,
your local health board archives (possibly within a university archives)

Bear in mind that substantial records do not survive for most poorhouses

Poor Relief – 1845-1948

1845-1930

The Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 established parochial boards in civil parishes and a central Board of Supervision for the Relief of the Poor in Edinburgh.[1] The Board of Supervision, which oversaw the operation of the poor law and the parochial boards, consisted of the Lord Provosts of Edinburgh and Glasgow, the Solicitor General, the Sheriffs of Perth, Renfrew and Ross and Cromarty and three members appointed by the Crown – one of whom was paid. The parochial boards administered the poor law locally, were allowed to raise a poor rate and were required to appoint an inspector of poor. The system of poor rates spread more widely, although it was still not universal even in the 1860s. The parochial boards built poorhouses for those categories of paupers who did not receive ‘outdoor relief’, normally in the form of small weekly sums of money. More often parishes combined to build ‘combination poorhouses’. During the second half of the century government increasingly found it convenient to give added powers to parochial boards, such as the registration of births, deaths and marriages, and in particular public health. In 1894 parochial boards were abolished and replaced by wholly elected parish councils, and the Board of Supervision was replaced by the Local Government Board for Scotland.[2] Poor law responsibilities and other existing functions continued but public health responsibilities were increased after 1897 and in 1919 the functions of the Local Government Board for Scotland were transferred to the Scottish Board of Health.[3] This was then replaced by the Department of Health for Scotland in 1928, and re-organised in 1939 into the Scottish Home Department.[4]

The trade depression of the 1920s led to the abandonment of the rule that the unemployed were not entitled to poor relief.[5] Thereafter the civil parishes usually kept separate series of records of poor law applications, distinguishing ‘Ordinary’ applications for relief from those from the ‘Able-Bodied’.

The parish system had several inherent defects. One was a tendency for levels of relief to vary between different parish councils. Another was the level of disputes, often litigation, between parish councils as to which was responsible for the maintenance of an individual pauper or pauper family. Larger authorities were needed, partly to bring a measure of standardisation and partly to ensure that the burden of poor relief was spread more equitably.

1930-1948

In 1930 parish councils were abolished and instead the poor law authorities were the county councils, town councils of large burghs and the four counties of cities, acting through departments of public assistance (or public welfare).[6] In county areas the function was often delegated to district councils. Some town councils appointed a public assistance committee and public assistance officers, while some small burghs formed joint committees with the relevant district council. These poor law authorities maintained a system broadly similar to that of their predecessors until 1948, when the existing poor law was abolished and almost all of it replaced by a national system of welfare and benefit support.[7]

Records of parochial boards and parish councils are mainly held by local authority archives services but a few from East Lothian, Midlothian and Wigtownshire are held by the National Records of Scotland. The Board of Supervision and Local Government Board records are held by the National Records of Scotland.

Compilers: SCAN contributors (2000). Editor: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Poor Law 1579-1845

Poorhouses in Scotland

Poor relief records

Public Assistance and Community Care, 1948-2002

Bibliography

Ferguson, Thomas, ‘The Poor, Welfare and Social Services’ in Source book and history of administrative law in Scotland ed. by M. R. McLarty (Hodge, 1956), pp. 177-94

Forbes, Kirsty M. and Robert H. J. Urquhart, ‘Records in the National Archives of Scotland Relating to Poor Relief, 1845-1930’ Scottish Archives, 8 (2002) pp. 9-32.

Groves, W. W. ‘The New Poor Law in Nineteenth Century Scotland, with special reference to Lanarkshire’ Scottish Archives, 8 (2002) pp. 43-56.

Levitt, Ian, ‘Living Standards 4: the Old and New Poor Laws’ in Oxford Companion to Scottish History, ed. by Michael Lynch (Oxford University Press, 2001), pp. 394-95

Paterson, Audrey, ‘The Poor Law in Nineteenth-century Scotland’ in The New Poor Law in the Nineteenth Century ed. by Derek Fraser (MacMillan Press, 1976), pp. 171-93

References

[1] Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 (8 & 9 Vict. c.83).

[2] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1894 (37 & 38 Vict. c.58).

[3] Public Health (Scotland) Act 1897 (25 & 26 Geo. V c. 32); Scottish Board of Health Act 1919 (9 & 10 Geo. V c. 97).

[4] Reorganisation of Offices (Scotland) Act 1928 (18 & 19 Geo. V c.34); Reorganisation of Offices (Scotland) Act 1939 (2 & 3 Geo. VI c. 20)

[5] Poor Law Emergency Powers (Scotland) Act 1921 (11 & 12 Geo. V c.64).

[6] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 (19 & 20 Geo. V c.25).

[7] National Assistance Act 1948 (11 & 12 Geo. VI c.29).

Poor Relief – 1579-1845

Parliamentary legislation concerning the poor began in the 15th century. Early statutes were mostly for the suppression of idle beggars, but gradually two important principles emerged. All parishes were to be responsible for their own poor, but only certain categories of poor were proper objects of poor relief. A statute of 1579, which remained the basis of the poor law until 1845, firmly established these rules. Its twin aims were that ‘the puyr aiget and impotent personis sould be as necessarlie prouidit for’, and that ‘vagaboundis and strang beggaris’ should be ‘repressit’. Those entitled to relief through age, illness or otherwise, were to go to the last parish in which they had lived seven years or failing that the parish of their birth.[1]

In rural parishes, the authorities responsible for the poor were the kirk sessions and the heritors and in burghs it was the town council and magistrates. For the most part the parishes relied on church collections, seat lettings, charitable mortifications and other sources of income. Most poor relief was provided through what was known as outdoor relief: people were supported with an allowance or clothing or food and expected to live in the community. However, some burghs did have town hospitals which provided indoor relief, such as the James VI Hospital in Perth, established in 1569. In 1672, legislation decreed that poorhouses were to be built in thirty named burghs, with regular payments of 500 merks to the commissioners of excise until these poorhouses were built.[2]

The 1579 act permitted parishes to levy a poor rate, but in practice this was unusual and only used when voluntary contributions were insufficient. Even in the 1790s fewer than one hundred of the 878 parishes in Scotland imposed a compulsory rate, although by then the number was growing.[3] The system suited rural society reasonably well but was ill-adapted to the large industrial towns of the early 19th century, where the poor tended to be congregated in slum areas.[4] The established church acknowledged that they could not cope with the numbers of poor in large urban parishes and that the loss of members to secession churches reduced the poor funds.[5] This was compounded by the Disruption in 1843 when over a third of the ministers and congregations left to form the Free Church of Scotland. The Industrial Revolution also brought cyclical trade depressions, with large numbers of able-bodied unemployed, who were not entitled to poor relief. In 1843 a Royal Commission of Inquiry was appointed, whose recommendations led to reform two years later.[6]

Church records and heritors records are the responsibility of the National Records of Scotland (NRS). Many church records are held by local authority archives services under charge and superintendence agreements with NRS. Town council records are held by local authority archives services.

Compilers: SCAN contributors (2000). Editor: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Poor Law 1845-1948

Poorhouses in Scotland

Poor relief records

Bibliography

Cage, R. A., The Scottish Poor Law 1745-1845 (Scottish Academic Press, 1981)

Levitt, Ian, ‘Living Standards 4: the old and new Poor Laws’ in Oxford Companion to Scottish History, ed. by Michael Lynch (Oxford University Press, 2001) pp. 394-95

Mitchison, Rosalind, The Old Poor Law in Scotland: the experience of poverty, 1574-1845 (Edinburgh University Press, 2000)

Tyson, R. E., ‘Poverty and Poor Relief in Aberdeen, 1680-1705’ Scottish Archives, 8 (2002), pp. 33-42

Wilbraham, Kevin and Christine Lodge, ‘Responses to Poverty in Ayrshire, 1574-1845’ Scottish Archives, 8 (2002), pp. 57-70

References

[1] Act for punishment of the strong and idle beggars and relief of the poor and impotent, 1579. The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707,[RPS] ed. by K.M. Brown and others (University of St Andrews, 2007-2021), 1579/10/27 <http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1579/10/27> [accessed 23 July 2018].

[2] Act for establishing correction-houses for idle beggars and vagabonds, 1672. RPS, 1672/6/52 <http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1672/6/52> [accessed 7 October 2021].

[3] Report by a Committee of The General Assembly on the Management of the Poor in Scotland, Parliamentary Papers, 1839 [177] Appendix Table 1.

[4] R. A. Cage, The Scottish Poor Law 1745-1845 (Scottish Academic Press, 1981) pp. 152-57.

[5] Report by a Committee of the General Assembly on the Management of the Poor in Scotland, Parliamentary Papers, 1839 [177] pp.4-5.

[6] Report of the Royal Commission for Inquiring into the Administration and Practical Operation of the Poor Laws in Scotland, 1844.

Police Forces and Policing

Police forces, in the modern sense of full-time constables and officers, supervised by an elected police authority, and funded by local taxation, came into existence in Scotland from 1800 onwards. Their creation is linked with the reform of local government (especially burgh government) in the late 18th century and early 19th century. The origin of the word lies in the Greek word politeia, meaning the administration or government, especially of a city (polis). This wider concept, of civic administration, should be borne in mind when considering the development of policing. 19th century police acts of parliament almost invariably concern the maintenance of roads, street lighting, pavements, drainage, sewerage, water supply and refuse disposal, as well as the prevention of crime and disorder.

Policing in Scotland developed in burghs out of watch and ward duties imposed on burgesses and town guards in larger towns, and in counties out of parish constables. In the 19th century, burghs and counties obtained salaried police forces by individual local acts of parliament, and, latterly, by general police acts. From the late-19th century onwards there were many amalgamations of county and burgh constabularies. In 1975 all county, burgh and amalgamated constabularies were replaced by eight police forces (Strathclyde, Lothian & Borders, Grampian, Tayside, Fife, Central, Northern, and Dumfries & Galloway), supervised by regional council police committees. In 2013 these eight forces were amalgamated to form a single national force: Police Scotland. For further details see the related Knowledge Base entries.

Contributors: Iain Gray (Aberdeen City Archives, 2002); Christine Lodge (Highland Council Archive 2002); Marion Stewart (Dumfries & Galloway Council Archives, 2002); Steve Connelly (Perth & Kinross Council Archives, 2002); Robin Urquhart (SCAN, 2002); Neil Ogg (Police Scotland, 2021).

Related Knowledge Base entries

Police – Burgh police forces

Police – County Constabularies

Police amalgamations and reorganisations

Police – List of police forces in Scotland

Police records

Police Records Locations

Bibliography

Barrie, David G., Police in the Age of Improvement: police development and the civic tradition in Scotland 1775-1865 (Willan, 2008).

Dinsmor, Alastair, and Robert H. J. Urquhart, ‘The Origins of Modern Policing in Scotland’ Scottish Archives, 7 (2001) pp. 36-44

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

Haythornthwaite, J. A., N. C. Wilson and V. A. Batho, Scotland in the Nineteenth Century: an analytical bibliography of material relating to Scotland in Parliamentary Papers, 1800-1900 (Scolar Press, 1993)

Harrison, John G., ‘Policing the Stirling Area, 1660-1706’ Scottish Archives, 7 (2001) pp. 16-24

Smale, David ‘Alfred John List and the Development of Policing in the Counties of Scotland, c. 1832-77’ Journal of Scottish Historical Studies 33.1 (2013), pp. 52-80

Stallion, Martin and David S. Wall, The British police: forces and chief officers 1829-2012 (Police History Society, 2011)

Stewart, Marion M., ‘A Policeman’s Lot: Police Records in Dumfries and Galloway, 1850-1950’ Scottish Archives, 7 (2001), pp. 25-35

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Policing and Police Forces

Where should I look for statistics on crime and police activity for a particular year or years?

There are two main sources of statistics on crime: parliamentary papers and chief constables’ annual reports.

Parliamentary Papers

From 1836 onwards within Parliamentary Papers there are Annual Criminal and Judicial Statistics. These deal only with crimes which resulted in a trial (until 1868 they deal only with serious crimes – i.e. those tried in the High Court on circuit). Therefore, care has to be taken when using these, as they do not cover all crimes committed. For a discussion of the problems with these official statistics, see M. A. Crowther, ‘The Criminal Precognitions and Their Value for the Historian’ in Scottish Archives 1 (1995). Larger reference libraries, such as the Mitchell Library in Glasgow and the National Library of Scotland, hold Parliamentary Papers.

Chief Constables’ Annual Reports

In the mid-19th century, chief constables (or the equivalent title, depending on the force) made annual reports to the committee which supervised them (police commissioners in most burghs, and police committees or standing joint committees in counties). To begin with these were recorded in the minute books of the committee, and they give statistics for certain types of crime, as well as an account of the work of the police over the previous year. By the late 19th century, the chief constables of cities, counties and larger towns had the annual reports printed and made more publicly available. By the early 20th century most forces issued printed reports, and these contained tables of statistics. Local studies libraries and some local authority archives keep runs of chief constables’ annual reports for forces in their areas.

What was a police burgh?

Police burghs were towns where a local or general act of parliament provided for services (such as water supply, drainage, sewerage, policing, paving, street lighting and refuse disposal) to be supervised by an elected body of commissioners and funded by local rates. Not all police burghs had police forces.

In the second half of the 18th century and the first decades of the 19th century many burghs and other towns faced problems coping with industrial pollution, sewerage, water supply, public health and crime. In 1800 Glasgow obtained a local act of parliament to set up a system of policing, whereby a body of police commissioners, elected by householders, oversaw a police force, and the maintenance of paving, lighting and cleansing the streets. Other Scottish burghs obtained similar local acts in the next few years. In 1832 and 1833 legislation converted royal burghs and many burghs of barony and regality into parliamentary burghs with elected councils. The Burgh Police (Scotland) Act allowed burghs to adopt policing, paving, lighting and cleansing powers through a sheriff court process (which was much less expensive than an act of parliament). Under the Police of Towns (Scotland) Act 1850 and the General Police and Improvement (Scotland) Act 1862 these (and further public health) powers were extended to populous places, and the result was the creation of over 100 ‘police burghs’. The Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1890 ended the anomaly whereby some burghs had an elected body of police commissioners and a town council and granted further powers to burghs.

What are (or were) special constables?

Special constables are individuals who carry out limited police duties on a part-time and voluntary basis. Most forces now use special constables. In the past, particularly in the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century they were used extensively by Scottish police forces in times of emergency, such as wartime and at times when fear of invasion or civil unrest was threatened. Special constables do not receive a police pension, and do not appear in police personnel registers, although separate registers of special constables sometimes survive in police records.

I am doing a school project on the history of the police. Where should I go for information?

Libraries, Police Museums and Archives.

Visit your local library for advice on published histories of the police in your area, annual reports of the chief constables of local police forces, and other material.

There are two police museums, one in Glasgow and one in Kirriemuir, which hold collections of police uniforms, memorabilia and equipment.

<https://taysidepolicemuseum.org.uk/about/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

<http://www.policemuseum.org.uk/museum-overview/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

Eleven archive services hold collections of police records: Aberdeen City Archives, Angus Archives, Dumfries & Galloway Archives, Dundee City Archives, Edinburgh City Archives, Fife Archive Centre, Glasgow City Archives, the Highland Archive, Perth & Kinross Council Archive, Scottish Borders Archives and Stirling Council Archives. See Police Records Locations for further details. Contact details for each of these archives are available in the directory pages of Your Scottish Archives

Where can I identify or obtain information about the award of a police medal?

Most police medal enquiries concern two distinct types of medals: awards for gallantry and medals awarded at the coronation of British monarchs.

The King’s Police Medal was created in 1909 by Edward VII, for issue to members of a recognised police force or fire department throughout the British Empire for acts of gallantry or long and dedicated service. In 1954 the King’s Police Medal was replaced by the Queen’s Police Medal and the Queen’s Fire Service Medal.

Medals have been awarded to some classes of people in public service (including certain grades of police personnel) on the occasion of coronations and jubilees of monarchs since 1887.

The most comprehensive public collection of police medals in Scotland is in the Glasgow Police Museum. <http://www.policemuseum.org.uk/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

Alternatively you could ask the Police Insignia Collectors Association of Great Britain. <http://www.pica.co.uk/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

If the medal was awarded for an act of bravery, a good source for what occurred is a local newspaper. For information about which newspapers were current at the place and time in question consult Alice Mackenzie, NEWSPLAN: report of the NEWSPLAN project in Scotland (British Library, 1994); or J P S Ferguson, Directory of Scottish Newspapers (National Library of Scotland, 1984). You can also search the British Newspapers Archive <https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/> [accessed 25 May 2024] for a fee or subscription. For details about the service record of a policeman who received an award, go to the FAQ How can I find the service record of an individual police officer?

Where can I obtain information about police badges, uniforms or equipment?

The most comprehensive collection of police insignia, uniforms and equipment in Scotland is in the Glasgow Police Museum. <http://www.policemuseum.org.uk/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

Alternatively you could ask the Police Insignia Collectors Association of Great Britain. <http://www.pica.co.uk/> [accessed 25 May 2024]

Where can I obtain photographs or illustrations of police?

The chances of obtaining a photograph of an individual, named policeman or policewoman is practically nil before the 1960s, as it is only then that police forces kept personnel files with photographs. For the photograph of a policeman during this period advice should be sought from the force in question or its successor.

For photographs relating to policing in general there are two main sources: police museums and heritage societies; and local authority archives and libraries.

If there are little or no surviving photographs of police personnel etc, it may be worthwhile looking through street photographs for the period in question, if you have the time, as these sometimes include policemen directing traffic or on the beat, photographed by chance or design by the photographer.

Where can I find information about Harbour or Canal Police?

Under the Police (Scotland) Act 1858 (21 & 22 Vict., c.65) the sheriff of a county in which a canal or other public work was in the course of construction was empowered to direct the chief constable to appoint additional constables to keep the peace and ensure the security of persons and property from crimes and unlawful acts within the limits of such public works and a radius of one mile therefrom. Under the Harbours, Docks and Piers Act, 1847 (10 & 11 Vict., c.27), provision was made for the appointment of special constables within the limits of a harbour, dock or pier and a mile beyond, but in the larger Scottish ports police duty in the harbours was normally undertaken by constables supplied by the chief constable of the burgh. Therefore, you should look for information in the records of the burgh or county constabulary concerned. Two forces on the River Clyde briefly operated in the mid-19th century. The Clyde River Police was formed 1862 and merged with the Glasgow City force in 1867. The Greenock Harbour Police operated between 1817 and 1822, and, again between 1825 and 1843. It was absorbed by the Greenock Burgh Constabulary.

Is there a complete list or index of Scottish police officers?

No. Scottish police forces were organised on a local basis until 2013. Before 1975 they were organised as county and burgh forces (or amalgamations of these). From 1975 until 2013 they were organised as 8 regional forces. Each force was responsible for keeping its own personnel records.

How can I find the service record of an individual police officer?

If you are researching the career of a senior police officer, such as a former chief constable, go to the FAQ Where should I look for information about a former chief constable or senior officer of a force?

For other police officers, you need to find out which police force the officer served in and whether and where any records of that police force survive.

If you do not know which police force the person served on – go to the FAQ If I know someone was a police officer but not which force they served on, how do I find out which force?

Once you know police force concerned, check which of the eight regional police forces was the successor force in 1975 and ought to have inherited the records. Do this by checking the Knowledge Base List of police forces in Scotland. Then go to the Knowledge Base on Police Records Locations to find out which archives service holds the surviving records and contact that archives service to find out whether personnel records and other useful records have survived and how you can get access to them.

If you are fairly sure which force the individual served on, but he or she does not appear in the relevant personnel registers, see the FAQ Why might I be unable to trace a service record of a police officer?

Where should I look for information about a former chief constable or senior officer of a force?

Start with a recent publication, which attempts to provide dates for the careers of chief constables of British police forces: Martin Stallion and David S Wall, The British police: forces and chief officers 1829-2012 (Police History Society, 2011)

The minute books of the relevant police committee should provide some information about the appointment of a chief constable and, in some cases, other senior officers, such as dates of appointment and leaving, and some details about their background, such as their previous constabulary. If further details are required, such as major events during the period in office, more lengthy research might be required in minute books, scrap books, memoranda books and letter books, if any or all of these survive.

If I know someone was a police officer but not which force they served on, how do I find out which force?

If you do not know which part of the country he or she lived in you require to find out more basic information about the individual from other records – statutory registers, census returns, civil registers of births, marriages and deaths, etc. For basic advice go to the Family History pages.

If you know where someone lived you need to work out which forces operated in that area. Bear in mind that police forces were arranged into burgh, county or amalgamated forces until 1975. Also, some small burgh forces, in the suburbs of cities, were annexed later by Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen. Someone who lived in Glasgow may have served on a number of forces, for example Glasgow City Police, the Lanarkshire Constabulary, Clyde River Police, or the constabularies of one of Glasgow’s many small burghs (e.g. Govan, Maryhill, Calton, and Partick). You can do this by finding out which county and/or burgh the place concerned was in before 1975. You could ask the relevant local authority archivist or police museum which forces were in operation in or around a particular place at the time in question.

Once you have a list of forces in that area go to the FAQ How can I find the service record of an individual police officer?

If you have searched all the surviving police personnel records for that area go to the FAQ Why might I be unable to trace a service record of a police officer?

Why might I be unable to trace a service record of a police officer?

Archives which hold police registers frequently receive enquiries where someone researching a police officer does not find an entry on them in the personnel registers concerned. There are several possible reasons why this might be the case:

The individual was a special constable, not a permanent member of the force.
The individual served on another force, e.g. the person lived in Glasgow but served on a county or suburban burgh constabulary.
The individual was not a police officer but worked for the police commissioners in some other capacity (e.g. fireman, clerk, typist).
The individual began service before personnel register was started, and an earlier register is not extant.
The personnel registers do not survive for that force.
The individual did not progress beyond the status of ‘probationary constable’ (i.e. he or she did not complete a probationary period and merit enrolment in the register of constables).
Clerical error – although this is unlikely, since personnel registers were carefully kept, as they were the main source of information for police pension purposes.

Planning & Development Control

Planning and development control deals with where buildings can be constructed, the designation of land for particular purposes such as industrial, residential or countryside, and the aesthetics of buildings, such as the style of doors and windows. For the processes of ensuring a building is structurally sound and functional see the Knowledge Base entry on Building Standards. Planning and development control is primarily a local authority function but has an appeal process to central government and is subject to central government policies and planning frameworks. Planning records are therefore found in local authority archives but related central government records may also be found in the National Records of Scotland.

Town planning began formally with the Town Planning (Scotland) Act 1909 which enabled local authorities to prepare town planning schemes, partly to ensure proper sanitary conditions and to develop amenity and convenience.[1] The 1909 Act did not cover the planning schemes for the countryside and the town planning schemes required the approval of the Local Government Board for Scotland. In 1919, town planning became compulsory for burghs with a population over 20,000 and central government permission was no longer required to make a town planning scheme.[2] In 1925 further legislation added land use and housing lay-out to the town planning schemes.[3]

In 1932 planning was extended to both urban and rural developments, enabling town councils of large burghs, county councils and joint county councils to prepare and adopt town planning schemes with the approval of the Department of Health for Scotland. This also introduced preservation orders for buildings of historic or architectural merit and the schemes could include provision for preserving single trees or groups of trees.[4] During the Second World War, partly to deal with war damaged areas, all land was brought under planning control and local authorities were empowered to buy and develop land for planning purposes, recognising that land would be needed to re-locate people and industry.[5]

The Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 overhauled the planning system. It introduced planning control which was the requirement for all developers to obtain planning permission from the local authority for any and all developments; and it required large burghs, counties and counties of cities to prepare development plans which would provide a framework for all new development.[6] Development plans had to be renewed every five years and were subject to the approval of the Department of Health for Scotland. Tree Preservation Orders were introduced along with strengthened Building Preservation Orders, the Secretary of State was required to compile a list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest, and there were various protections for agricultural land and provisions for mineral workings. [7] A new concept was the introduction of a development charge payable to a new UK Central Land Board for what became known as planning gain.[8] The development charge was amended in 1954 and 1959 when changes were made to compensation arrangements for planning.[9]

In 1969 the development plan was divided into two plans: structure plans containing policy and strategic decisions on land-use for the whole local planning area (large burgh, county or city) and local plans for smaller areas providing detailed land allocations within the policy set out by the structure plan.[10] There was also provision for local inquiries and for more public consultation.

With local government reorganisation in 1975, responsibilities for planning were split. General planning responsibilities were given to Highland, Borders and Dumfries and Galloway Regional Councils, regional planning responsibilities were given to regional and islands councils and district planning responsibilities were given to district and islands councils.[11] Regional planning functions included survey and structure plans while local plans were mainly a district responsibility, along with planning permission, designation of conservation areas and closing footpaths and bridleways. This remained the position until the regional and district councils were replaced by unitary councils in 1996.

In 1997 the planning system was reviewed, and previous legislation was consolidated, making the unitary local authority the planning authority for its area but also introducing the option of additional planning authorities in enterprise zones and urban development areas.[12] More recent changes included replacement of the term development control with the term development management in 2006.[13] Alongside this a National Planning Framework was introduced and Scottish Ministers were empowered to designate a group of planning authorities to develop a strategic plan, replacing the previous structure plan which was limited to one local authority area. Local development plans replaced previous local plans in 2006 and in 2019, amongst other changes, local communities were enabled to create local place plans.[14]

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Preservation of Ancient Monuments and Listed Buildings

Building Standards

Planning and development control records

Bibliography

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

Gordon, William, ‘Housing and Town Planning’ in Source book and history of administrative law in Scotland ed. by M. R. McLarty (Hodge, 1956), pp. 148-60

Moody, David, Scottish Towns. Sources for Local Historians (Batsford, 1992)

Whyte, W. E., Local Government in Scotland (Hodge & Co, 1936)

References

[1] Housing, Town Planning etc Act, 1909 (9 Edw. VII c.44).

[2] Housing, Town Planning &c Act 1919 (9 & 10 Geo. V c.35).

[3] Town Planning (Scotland) Act 1925 (15 & 16 Geo. V c.17).

[4] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act, 1932 (22 & 23 Geo. V c.49).

[5] Town & Country Planning (Interim Development) (Scotland) Act 1943 (6 & 7 Geo. VI c.43); Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1945 (8 & 9 Geo. VI c.33).

[6] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.53).

[7] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.53) s.26, s.27, s.10 (2)(e), Sch.3, s.78.

[8] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.53) s.66.

[9] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1954 (c.73); Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1959 (c.70).

[10] Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1969 (c.30).

[11] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) ss.172-173.

[12] Town & Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 (c.8).

[13] Planning etc (Scotland) Act 2006 (2006 asp 17).

[14] Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 (2019 asp 13).

Parks

Parks

Public parks began to be developed in the early 19th century as part of the response to urban overcrowding and disease. Initially dependent on philanthropy and public subscriptions, legislation enabled local authorities to use the rates to fund the creation of public parks.

The Police (Scotland) Act 1850 enabled burgh commissioners to provide grounds within the burgh or no more than 3 miles away to be used as a pleasure ground or place of public resort or recreation.[1] There were similar provisions in subsequent general police acts.[2] Alongside this, some burghs obtained local acts of parliament and the Glasgow Public Parks Act 1859 was and early significant example. Subsequently, the Public Parks (Scotland) Act 1878 gave powers generally to burghs to establish public parks with public funds.[3] Burgh powers to use lands and grounds for public recreation were consolidated in 1892.[4]

Parks in rural areas became possible in 1894 when parish councils were permitted to acquire land for public recreation purposes and could be granted up to 20 acres from an entailed estate for public recreation.[5] In 1929 district councils were enabled to make byelaws for recreation grounds and commons.[6]

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 transferred these powers to regional, district and island councils and the Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 extended these provisions to allow councils to lease buildings in parks for use as a shop, stall or restaurant, and conduct or support sporting and recreational competitions.[7] These powers were transferred to unitary councils in 1996.[8] From 2007 onwards, some councils set up trusts, eligible for charitable status, to manage council-owned facilities which could include parks, and some local parks and recreation facilities have been placed into local community management.

Records of parks may be found along with records of cemeteries as it was standard practice for local authorities to manage parks and cemeteries in the same department. Local authority archives services will hold any surviving records and may also hold records of voluntary and community groups which look after parks. The National Library of Scotland holds records of a wide range of local clubs and societies. The National Records of Scotland hold records relating to local byelaws.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Leisure and recreation

Bibliography

Bell, James, and James Paton, Glasgow: Its Municipal Organization and Administration (J. MacLehose and Sons, 1896)

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

Whyte, W. E., Local Government in Scotland (Hodge & Co, 1936)

References

[1] Police Scotland Act 1850 (13 & 14 Vict. c.33) s.320.

[2] General Police and Improvement (Scotland) Act 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c.101) s.367; Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c.55) s.303.

[3] Public Parks (Scotland) Act 1878 (41 & 42 Vict. c.8).

[4] Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c.55).

[5] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c.58) s.24, s.43.

[6] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 (19 & 20 Geo. V c.25) s.26(8).

[7] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.139; Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c.43) s.16.

[8] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39).

Nature conservation

Nature conservation

Local authorities were first given a role in nature conservation when county councils and large burghs were empowered to create nature reserves in 1949 in consultation with the Nature Conservancy.[1] This remained a limited role with the main responsibilities given to the Nature Conservancy (1947-1973) and its successors, the Nature Conservancy Council (1973-1990), the Nature Conservancy Council for Scotland (1990-1992) and Scottish Natural Heritage (1992-present, rebranded NatureScot in 2020). In 1981 local authorities were required to ensure that the public and particularly school children were made aware that wildlife were protected.[2] From 1996, local authorities, generally in partnership with nature conservation organisations, developed local biodiversity action plans and started to employ biodiversity officers, in compliance with the UK Biodiversity Action Plan.[3] The Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 placed a duty on all public bodies and public officeholders to further the conservation of biodiversity.[4] Since 2011 public bodies are required to report on their compliance every three years.[5]

National Records of Scotland hold archival records of the Nature Conservancy Council for Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage under the reference SNH while government files concerning the Scottish Committee of the Nature Conservancy Council and Scottish Natural Heritage are found under the references DD12 and DD37. Local authority archival records on nature conservation and biodiversity are held by local authority archive services.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Countryside

Bibliography

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

Kelcey, John, ‘A Guide to Nature Conservation’ Built Environment 2.11 (1973) pp. 639-41

References

[1] National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 (12, 13 & 14 Geo. VI c.97) s.21.

[2] Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (c.69) s.25.

[3] Biodiversity: The UK Action Plan (HMSO, 1994)

[4] Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 (asp 6).

[5] Wildlife and Natural Environment (Scotland) Act 2011 (asp 6).

Museums and Galleries

Museums and Galleries

Museums have been established and operated by universities, local organisations, charities, private enterprise, central government and local authorities. The first public museum in Scotland, the University of Glasgow Hunterian Museum opened in 1807.[1] Local authority museums were mainly established under legislation dealing with public libraries.

Scottish local authorities were first empowered to establish museums by the Libraries (Public) Act 1853 which extended the Public Libraries Act 1850, to Scotland and Ireland.[2] This enabled royal and parliamentary burghs and burghs of barony or regality with a population of more than 10,000 to adopt the Act and establish free libraries funded by the rates.[3] The museum or library was to be run by the town council or a committee appointed by the council, and admission was to be free. The following year the level of the rate was increased, and the funding could be spent on ‘Specimens of Art and Science’ as well as accommodation and staff.[4]

In 1867, art galleries were specified for the first time and the power to set up free libraries, museums and art galleries was extended to police burghs and parishes.[5] In 1887 the Public Libraries Consolidation (Scotland) Act extended the range of institutions to include schools of science and schools of art. Women householders were entitled to vote and to be appointed as members of the library committee.[6] The requirement that these be open to the public free of charge was retained.[7]

The requirement to have a householder vote to adopt the Act was removed in burghs in 1894 and instead it could be adopted by a resolution of the magistrates and council.[8]

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 partially repealed the 1887 act and defined the term ‘museum and art gallery authority’ to be regional, islands and district councils. The act also required that regional councils should ensure there was adequate provision in consultation with district councils which enabled considerable flexibility in local arrangements.[9] Under the Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 these responsibilities were transferred to the new unitary councils.[10] From 2007 onwards, some councils set up trusts, eligible for charitable status, to manage council-owned facilities and provide museums and heritage functions on behalf of the council.

Several local authority museums had their origins in collections developed by local antiquarian or natural history societies.[11] University museums benefitted from donations and bequests from private collections but these were generally not open to the public until the Hunterian was established in 1807.[12] University departments developed collections for research and teaching purposes, which often evolved into publicly accessible specialist museums, such as the University of Edinburgh’s St Cecilia’s Hall which holds musical instruments, or the University of Dundee’s collections.[13] A combination of the collections of Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and university collections in the Edinburgh Museum of Science and Art, were the basis for what later became the National Museums of Scotland.[14]

The main records generated by museums and galleries are collections documentation, such as entry forms, accession registers and catalogues, held permanently with the collections. The records of the governing body, such as the board of a charitable trust or the relevant committee of the local authority, may include reports from the museum staff and the collections development policy.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Libraries

Leisure and Recreation

Preservation of Ancient Monuments and Listed Buildings

Entertainment and Culture

Bibliography

Murray, David, Museums. Their history and use, with a bibliography and list of museums in the United Kingdom. 4 vols. (James MacLehose & Sons, 1904)

References

[1] The Hunterian ‘History’ <https://www.gla.ac.uk/hunterian/about/history/#d.en.190639> [accessed 17 December 2018].

[2] Public Libraries Act 1850, (13 & 14 Vict. c.65).

[3] Libraries (Public) Act 1853 (16 & 17 Vict. c.101).

[4] Public Libraries (Scotland) Act 1854 (17 & 18 Vict. c.64) s.15.

[5] Public Libraries (Scotland) Act 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c.37) s.2.

[6] Public Libraries (Consolidation) Act 1887 (50 & 51 Vict. c.42).

[7] Public Libraries (Consolidation) Act 1887 (50 & 51 Vict. c.42) s.32.

[8] Public Libraries (Scotland) Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c.20).

[9] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.163(3).

[10] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39).

[11] David Murray Museums. Their history and use, with a bibliography and list of museums in the United Kingdom. Vol. 1 (James MacLehose & Sons, 1904), pp. 167-69. <https://falkirklocalhistory.club/around-the-area/the-early-museums-of-falkirk/> [accessed 3 Mar 2024].

[12] Murray, Museums. Their history and use, pp. 151-69.

[13] <https://www.stcecilias.ed.ac.uk> [accessed 3 Mar 2024]; <https://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum> [accessed 3 Mar 2024].

[14] Murray, Museums. Their history and use, pp. 167-69; <https://www.nms.ac.uk/about-us/our-organisation/history/> [accessed 3 Mar 2024].