Stirling’s Agricultural Shows
Agricultural shows were formed throughout Scotland as a way to spread knowledge about new farming equipment and techniques, and Stirling was no different. Initially formed as societies to discuss technological […]
Document of the Month
Robert MacLuckie, Election Agent, 1880 – 1886
On his death in 1909, the Stirling Observer remarked that Robert MacLuckie was one Stirling’s ‘best known men’, ‘one of the most likeable of gentlemen’ and an ‘excellent type of […]
Militia and Volunteers Records
May’s Document of the Month looks at the records of local Volunteer Militias held at the Council Archives. The raising of a militia force in Scotland was outlawed by statute […]
Feuing plan of Bridge of Allan, c. 1850
Post by James Marshall, Archives Volunteer This mid-19th century map of the Bridge of Allan and Sunnylaw areas immediately grabs any onlooker with its pageantry and detail. Dated to around […]
Stirling 900 – The Dean of Guild Court and Building Regulations
For our final post to celebrate the 900th anniversary of the Royal Burgh of Stirling, we are taking a look at the background to one of our most used, and […]
Central Regional Council at the last Grand Match, 7th February 1979
On 6th February 1979, curlers were on alert as news outlets in Scotland announced that the Grand Match was to take place the following morning. The winter had been particularly […]
Stirling 900 – People
The Document of the Month for January 2025 celebrates the people of the Stirling area. There is a tendency to focus on notable events when commemorating historical anniversaries, and these […]
Ice Skating in Victorian Stirling, 1853 – 1899
Ice skating was a common winter pastime in Victorian Stirling. Residents, however, lamented that the town did not have its own skating pond. A letter in the Stirling Observer in […]
Stirling 900 – The Stirling Guildry and Incorporated Trades
The Stirling merchants’ guild, known as the Stirling Guildry, has very ancient origins. It is known to have been in existence in the early twelfth century, although it did not […]
Jailbreak at the Tolbooth and the execution of John Campbell, 1824
On 5th April 1824, Stirling Town Council authorised its office-bearers to ‘examine the accounts relative to the escape of Campbell and other prisoners from the jail’. A reward was offered […]