Records of the Aberdeen Endowments Trust (AET) and predecessor charities

Scope and Content
Records of the Aberdeen Educational Trust and Aberdeen Endowments Trust (referred to as the AET).
This includes:
AET/1 Records of the Governance of the Trusts
AET/2 Records of the administration of the Trusts
AET/3 Financial records of the Trusts
AET/4 Records relating to the properties owned by the Trusts
AET/5 Records relating to the management of the Trusts' estates
AET/6 Records of the administration of the Trusts' foundations, bursaries and scholarships
AET/P Trust Plans
Also records of the charities which were amalgamated into the Education Trust in 1888:
AET/AFOA The Aberdeen Female Orphan Asylum
AET/BGH The Boys' and Girls' Hospital
AET/BS Dr Brown's School
AET/CS Chalmers' Girls School
AET/D Davidson's Endowment Fund
AET/H The Hospital for Orphans and Destitute Female Children, Aberdeen
AET/MT The McRa Trust
AET/RS Ross's School
AET/SH Shaw's Hospital
AET/TS Thain's School
Records for the Poor's Hospital of Aberdeen, which came in as part of the same accession as much of the material from the predecessor charities, have been catalogued under the reference PH as this organisation was not connected with the Trusts.
The collection also includes:
AET/RGC Records of Robert Gordon's College, largely related to the estates passed to the AET and the 1909 Provisional Order
***Please note that although the majority of records are held at Old Aberdeen House, the records of the Boys' and Girls' Hospital and the Poor's Hospital are held at the Town House.***
Administrative / Biographical History
The Aberdeen Endowments Trust (AET) was formed by the 1909 Robert Gordon's Technical College and Aberdeen Endowments Trust Order Confirmation Act. This passed to the AET the functions and estates of its predecessor, the Aberdeen Educational Trust, as well as some of the properties and functions of Robert Gordon's College.
The Aberdeen Educational Trust was formed in 1889 under the terms of the Educational Endowments (Scotland) Act, 1882, in a scheme of administration of 1888. The scheme amalgamated the following older Aberdeen charities into the Educational Trust:
- The Aberdeen Female Orphan Asylum (which evolved into the AET Girl's Home)
- The Boys' and Girls' Hospital, Aberdeen
- Dr. Brown's School
- Chalmers' Girls School
- Davidson's Endowment Fund
- The Hospital for Orphans and Destitute Female Children, Aberdeen
- The McRa Trust
- Shaw's Hospital
- Ross's School
- Thain's Charity School
The Trust can date its history back to 1739 when the Town Council, Brethren of Guild, Kirk Session and Convener Court of the Trades of Aberdeen undertook to erect an infirmary and workhouse "to propagate industry and virtue" - this Poor's Hospital evolved, in part, into the Boys' Hospital.
The Educational Trust, formed to administer these charities, had the power to grant bursaries, provide free school books, conduct the Boys' and Girls' Hospital School (where 305 children were provided with three free meals on five days each week and the most needy of these were provided with clothes and boots or shoes) and conduct a Girls' Home and School of Domestic Economy, both at the former Boys' and Girls' Hospital site at 352 King Street. The Trust was also to administer the endowments set out in Man's Mortification.
In terms of the Robert Gordon's Technical College and Aberdeen Endowments Trust Order Confirmation Act 1909 the Educational Trust was dissolved, and the AET and Robert Gordon's Technical College incorporated. The properties, funds and estates comprising the endowments which had been administered by the Governors of Robert Gordon's College and by the Aberdeen Educational Trust, excepting school grounds and the property at 352 King Street, were transferred to AET. In terms of that Act, the administration of the School of Domestic Economy became a function of the Technical College. The feeding of school children by the Trust was discontinued and a fixed annual sum became payable to the School Board and later to the Education Authority to be applied towards their expenditure on meals. The award of Robert Gordon's benefactions became a function of the AET. Over time this widened to the provision of benefactions and grants to students at other educational institutions in the City. The AET continued to run the Girls' Home and to provide grants from Davidson's Fund. The Act specified that the AET's surplus revenues were to go to the Technical College.
The Aberdeen Educational Trust's governors were elected by the magistrates and Town Council of Aberdeen, Aberdeen School Board, the Senate of the University of Aberdeen, the Presbytery of Aberdeen, the Incorporated Trades of Aberdeen, the Society of Advocates and St Nicholas Parochial Board (later Parish Council). In 1909 representatives from The Governors of Robert Gordon's Technical College were added to the Trust's board. The administration of the Trust was further amended in 1923 and by the City of Aberdeen Educational Endowments Schemes of 1934 and 1958.
The Educational Trust's Governors had a number of committees, including an administration, benefactions and education, lands and finance, diploma and visiting committees. The AET Trustees had three standing committees: the Lands and Finance Committee, the Benefactions Committee and, between 1936 and 1956, the House Committee, which was concerned with the AET Girls' Home (prior to 1936 the Home was dealt with by the Benefactions Committee). The AET also had representatives on the Board of Robert Gordon's Technical College and the Aberdeen United Coal Fund.
At the current time (2017) the Trust provides 10 full fee bursaries at Robert Gordons College, educational grants (under the terms of the 1958 City of Aberdeen Educational Endowments Scheme), bursaries to support pupils from low income families to attend secondary school, and awards the John Robb bursaries at the University of Aberdeen.
The administration of the Trust was carried out by an officer holding the position of Clerk, Treasurer and Factor. The Aberdeen Educational Trust's first Clerk and Treasurer was Alexander Simpson, later given the additional role of Factor. On Simpson's death in Feb 1900, William Mearns Cooper, his assistant, was appointed. When the Educational Trust was replaced by the AET, Thomas Fotheringham (formerly Clerk, Treasurer and Factor to Robert Gordon's College) was appointed as Clerk, Treasurer and Factor in March 1910. On his retirement from ill-health in November 1912, Mearns Cooper was appointed as replacement (in the meantime he had been acting as Secretary and Treasurer of Robert Gordon's Technical College). David Cormie was appointed to the post in Dec 1935, with Mearns Cooper continuing in an advisory capacity. At some point the Factorship of the Trust's Estates was taken out of house, to Strutt & Parker, who report to the Lands and Finance Committee of the Trust.
The Trusts' offices were successively at: 19 Albyn Place, 352 King Street, 16 Bridge Street, and then 19 Albert Street.
The funds for the Trust's work came in part from estates located in the north east of Scotland, and inherited from the predecessor charities or Robert Gordon's College or purchased by the Trust. The estates are: Barrack and Crichie; Dumbreck and Orchardtown; Elrick and Annochie; Haremoss; Muchalls; and Towie-Barclay.
Access Information
Restricted
Open for consultation at Old Aberdeen House, open Mon-Wed 9:30-12:30 and 13:30-16:30. It is advisable to make an appointment.
Material 50 years old or less require permission from the Trustees or the City Archivist before consultation, and other material is covered by the provisions of the Data Protection Act.
Other Finding Aids
Please see the Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives catalogue at https://archives.aberdeencity.gov.uk/CalmView/
Archivist's Note
The plans series AET/P was catalogued in 2004 and some of the records of the Aberdeen Female Orphan Asylum/AET Girls' Home (AET/AFOA) were catalogued in 2011 by Fiona Musk. The remainder of the collection was catalogued in 2016-17, and the Aberdeen Female Orphan Asylum material was renumbered at this point.
Where possible catalogue records have been linked directly to accessions, but for the accessions 258, 399, 447 and 448 it has been impossible to distinguish what came in in which deposits (KJ, 15/02/17).
Appraisal Information
Certain items appraised and returned to the Endowments Trust on the 25th May 2017. See O:\CorpGov\Legal\archives\USERS\ARCHVIST\ARCHIVISTS\LISTS and SURVEYS\Aberdeen Endowments Trust.
Custodial History
The records have been transferred to the Archives in a number of separate accessions, directly from the Endowments Trust on deposit and from Robert Gordon's College as a gift.
Accruals
Expected
Related Material
PH Records of the Poor's Hospital, Aberdeen
DD642 Papers of James Hendry, Towie Barclay estate manager for the Aberdeen Endowments Trust (1880 - 1935)
DD2388 Papers of Marian Elizabeth Denoon, Cashier and Book-keeper with the AET (1915-1980)
DD1157 Additional Papers of James Hendry and his daughter Annabella Lobban Hendry, 1880 - 1984
The majority of Robert Gordon's College's archive are held at the College (see https://www.rgc.aberdeen.sch.uk/about/history/archives) and Robert Gordon's University (see https://www.rgu.ac.uk/about/art-heritage-collection).
Subjects
Charity records