Collection: West Lothian Council Museums Service

Collection-level records:

• Collection history (Collection development policy)

  Name of Museums:

  • Armadale Community Museum
  • Blackridge Community Museum
  • Broxburn Community Museum
  • Whitburn Community Museum

  The Museums Service was established in 1994 under the auspices of West Lothian District Council. It inherited a number of items which had been accumulated by the Libraries service, as well as becoming responsible for the Council’s corporate collections. Since then the collection has grown by donations from the public and businesses, as well as items transferred from other Council departments. This has resulted in a collection which has significant strengths in areas such as social history and working life, as well as community organisations and art. Proactive collecting, often resulting from the exhibition programme, has allowed gaps to be filled, and contemporary collecting has also played an important part in ensuring that political organisations and popular culture are better represented.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2022

  Licence: CC BY-NC

• Collection overview (Collection development policy)

  The existing collections of West Lothian Council Museums consist principally of items relating to the social and industrial history of West Lothian from the late 19^th century to the present day. Particular themes include:

  • The history of West Lothian Council and its predecessors, including civic collections of the former Burghs
  • The history of the self-help movement, in particular Friendly Societies, including banners, regalia and memorabilia
  • The social, domestic and industrial history of areas served by community museums, namely Whitburn, Armadale, Broxburn and Blackridge,
  • Objects associated with individuals native to, or closely associated with these areas.

  In addition the collections include:

  • Geological specimens from the carboniferous period relating to the later coal and shale mining industries
  • Archaeological finds illustrating human activity in the West Lothian area from the Bronze Age to the Medieval period.
  • Photographic prints, negatives and slides, both original and copied from loans, illustrating West Lothian history in relation to the object collections.

  Source: Collection development policy

  Date: 2022

  Licence: CC BY-NC