New blog

I spotted a new blog today called Taking Account of our Past and it will document the process of cataloguing accountancy papers.

From the blog:

The Taking Account of our Past project is based at Wolverhampton Archives and Local Studies and its purpose is to catalogue the collection of Smith, Son and Wilkie, a chartered accountancy firm who were based in the city. This project has been funded by a grant from the National Cataloguing Grants Programme for Archives, which is administrated by The National Archives. The grant of £36,000 has enabled the service to appoint Kimberley Benoy as a cataloguing archivist to work exclusively on this 18 month project.

Read more...

Business History Matters: The Modern Corporate Archive

Interesting post from the Business History Matters people about the importance of a corporate archive in today's business climate. In particular the fact that

an archives’ relevance to larger business goals is crucial. Companies should
make sure that users’ needs are met, and that the content derived from archival
materials serves marketing and communications objectives, with mechanisms in
place to support continuous improvement and/or expansion.

Read more about The Modern Corporate Archive

Read more...

Major business accessions to repositories in 2010

The National Archives has published the results of its 2010 annual 'Accessions to Repositories' survey.

In this survey, the National Archives collects information from over two hundred record repositories throughout the British Isles about manuscript accessions received in the previous twelve months.

There is a business category for the results, the results of which can be seen here.  Some of the highlights in Scotland include:

• Joseph Brown, stonemason, Banff: working papers, incl specifications for projects in Banffshire and Nairn 20th cent (DD1485) - Aberdeen City Archives
• Craigenlow Quarries Ltd, Dunecht: minute books, slides and films 1946-1979 (Acc 477) - Aberdeen University, Special Libraries and Archives
• Matthew Wright & Nephew Ltd, timber merchants, Irvine: ledgers and cash books 1854-1912 (10/45) - Ayrshire Archives
• Weir Group plc, pump manufacturers: records from Alloa works incl predecessor companies 1900-1986 (PD 253) - Clackmannanshire Archives
• Uniroyal Ltd (formerly North British Rubber Co Ltd), rubber goods and chemical manufacturers, Newbridge: minutes, share, financial and staff records, etc 1856-1986 (GGD701) - Dumfries and Galloway Archives
• James MacLaren & Sons, architects and surveyors, Dundee: architectural drawings 1862-1896 - Dundee City Archives
• Don Brothers, Buist & Co Ltd, jute and flax spinners and manufacturers, Dundee: Buist family personal and business papers c1806-1945 (2010/398) - Dundee University Archive, Records Management and Museum Services
• Edinburgh and Leith Master Plumbers' Association: records 1911-1970 (Acc 831) - Edinburgh City Archives
• Christian Salvesen Ltd, transport and logistics company, Leith: diaries of Dr IM Macintosh when with the company 1956-1962 (E2010.32) - Edinburgh University Library, Special Collections
• Falkirk & Larbert Water Trust: letter books, accounts, meter survey books 1890-1970 (A1263) - Falkirk Council Archives
• McLay, McAllister & McGibbon, chartered accountants, Glasgow: additional ledgers and cash books 1899-1976 (ACCN 3436) - Glasgow University Archive Servives
• William Wilson & Son, tartan manufacturers, Bannockburn: tartan pattern book c1830 (GH) - Heriot-Watt University Archive, Records Management and Museum Service
• Highland Railway Co: records c1890-1970 (D1212) - Highland Council Archives
• James Fleming, general drapers, Blairgowrie: records c1920-1953 (10/38) - Perth and Kinross Council Archive
• John Baxter (Chemists) Ltd, Cambuslang: records c1920-1989 (Accession 1146) - Strathclyde University Archives

Read more...

Darien Scheme Exhibition

The National Library of Scotland and the Royal Bank of Scotland have engaged in a joint venture to create an exhibition of their material relating to the Darien Scheme. It celebrates the inclusion in 2010 of the archives of 'The Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies' in UNESCO's UK Memory of the World register.
The result of this is an exhibition 'The key of the universe': Scotland and Darien, 1695-1707 which will run from 1 July to 31 August at the National Library of Scotland.

To mark the exhibition opening there was an article in The Scotsman on Wednesday 6th with RBS Archivist Laura Yeoman.

Read more...

The Edible Archive

The Scottish Council on Archives is appearing on Radio Scotland today on the Kitchen Cafe show to discuss the Edible Archive project.

This project is part of the Archives Awareness campaign for 2011 and the SCA "is inviting archives and members of the public across Scotland to contribute recipes from their collections and personal cookbooks. Your contributions will be included in an archival cookbook, The Edible Archive."

So far contributions include examples from business archives in images like this one from the Jackson Elphick & Co. Ltd company who were actually bathfounders, enamellers and sanitary engineers.  But this image of a kitchen range was found in a trade catalogue in their collection held by Glasgow University Archive Services.

Image courtesy of University of Glasgow Archive Services
from Jackson, Elphick & Co Ltd Collection, GB 0248 UGD 122/3/1/10
taken from here

Read more...

Nestlé opens archives facility in York

This weekend Nestlé opened  a new archives facility in York.  Paul Grimwood, Nestlé UK chief executive and chairman said "the archive demonstrated how serious Nestlé UK was about preserving and promoting its history in the UK."

Full details about the archive are available in this news article in the Yorkshire Press.

A tin of Rowntree chocolates sent to soldiers in the Boer War
{image from here}

Read more...