Collection: Historylinks Museum

Collection-level records:

• Collection history (Collection development policy)

  The collection was started in 1984 by Dornoch Heritage Society and with community funding a purpose built museum to house the collection was constructed in 1997.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2024

  Licence: CC BY-NC

• Collection overview (Collection development policy)

  Physical collection

  The collection contains 15,129 objects, with the main components, photographs and archive material relating to the following themes:

  • Agriculture and crofting
  • Archaeology, brochs, earth houses and hut circles
  • Craft and industry
  • Commerce
  • Communications
  • Dornoch Burgh
  • Dornoch Cathedral
  • Dornoch Firth
  • Family history and genealogy
  • Fishing
  • Golf
  • Military history
  • Natural history
  • Railways, transport and communications
  • Skibo Castle and Andrew Carnegie
  • Social history
  • Young Curators

  The period covered by the collection extends from the earliest evidence ofhuman activity in the area, approximately 6,000 years ago, to the present day and fulfils the mission of the museum.

  Digital collection

  In some cases, objects forming part of the collection have been given to and are held by the museum in digital form only. This applies primarily to images but also to some documents and audio or video recordings. Documents acquired in paper format have been scanned to portable document format (pdf) for ease of reference by researchers. The past papers of the Dornoch Council form a significant collection in paper and pdf format. With the closure of the Dornoch Courthouse in 2014, the Court Service agreed to the scanning of Sassines to permit pdf copies to be included in the collection. When necessary, audio acquisitions are converted to MP3 and videos to MP4 formats as well as the Cataloguing Computer and back-up hard drive held remotely.

  Areas of strength and significance

  Golf, with an ever growing collection of historical photographs and documents acquired from the Royal Dornoch Golf Club and its members past and present.

  A significant collection of golf photographs and documents from Elizabeth Shapiro, daughter of Donald Ross, native of Dornoch and notable golf course designer in North America.

  The golf / Donald Ross collection is to be strengthened by new links with Tufts Archive in Pinehurst, North Carolina.A significant collection of military uniform and accoutrements, photograph albums, documents and the WW1 personal War Diary (29 July – 16 Oct 1914) from the descendants of Captain Ronald Hugh Waldron Rose, The Cameronians. The transcribed war diary, with additions of photographs and maps, has been a widely appreciated feature of the Historylinks Museum Website since 2008.

  Since the introduction of the Historylinks online archive in June 2008, which provides public access to an image, catalogue description and other basic details of all objects in the collection, the museum has benefited by interactive comments, providing factual detail or social history context. To date 1,400 comments have been vetted by the museum, approved and published, with relevant amendments or additions to the catalogue records.

  The Dornoch Provost Robes and regalia together with the 1628 Dornoch Royal Charter are held at the museum and, in April 2024, were put on public display for the first time.

  In overview, the current collection provides coverage of the architectural, archaeological, commercial, domestic, social, recreational, transportation, education, law, militia, clan, and local government heritage of the Dornoch area. With a constant, steady stream of acquisitions from various local sources, there can be consolidation in the breadth and timespan of the collection. The museum is keen to embrace all forms of technology to enhance the consolidation procedures.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2024

  Licence: CC BY-NC