Our ‘Document of the Month’ for March is a fantastic recent donation to Stirling Council Archives. It is the scrapbook of John Clink, Stirling Town Clerk from 1938 – 1949. The scrapbook was donated along with two photographs and a biography of his father Stuart Clink.
John Clink was born in Bentheads, Bannockburn in 1887 with his family moving to Stirling in 1892. Educated at the High School of Stirling, he qualified as a law agent in January 1910. His scrapbook contains letters of congratulations when he passed his exams.
After gaining experience with law firms in Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh, he was appointed as second assistant to David B. Morris, the Town Clerk of Stirling at the time. Correspondence and testimonials from all of the law firms and David B. Morris appear within his scrapbook.
In March 1918, he was appointed Clerk and Treasurer to the Burgh National Health Insurance Committee and assisted the Town Clerk with additional duties for the National Register and the Military Service Tribunal during the First World War.
When David B. Morris retired as Town Clerk in 1939, John Clink applied for the position and was appointed Town Clerk in June of that year. Letters of congratulations are present within his scrapbook with some received as far afield as Canada.
Outwith public service, John Clink took an active community roll. He was an elder of St Andrew’s church and was the secretary and of the Boy’s Brigade Company attached to that congregation.
One of his favourite hobbies, however, was bowling. He was a member of the Stirling Amateur Bowling Club and was President of the Albert Place Club. He even received a poem about his bowling exploits which is contained within the scrapbook.
It reads:
A wee toon clerk from Stirling came
(A braw wee man, Clink was his name)
To the Auld Burgh Toon O’Crail
On the green he played, but no like a snail
A bowler keen and so was his wife
His happy ways kept away all strife
As secretary keen he saw the rinks well drawn
Maybe noo and then a wee bit thrawn
But a willing horse if ever there was one
And with aid of Meikle, the pairs he won
So now near the end of a good July
We wish him and his a happy goodbye
As Town Clerk, John was present at several significant events. One such event was when Princess Elizabeth received Freedom of Stirling in 1947 at an event at Stirling Castle. This photograph was also part of the donation.
John Clink retired as Town Clerk in 1948 and worked for thirty five years in public service. In 1962 he celebrated his golden wedding anniversary with his wife Mary. John Clink died aged 83 in 1970 with his obituary appearing in the Stirling Observer.
