Fifty years of the Archives: A talk by Shetland archivist, Brian Smith
Thursday, October 22nd 2026 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Shetland Museum and Archives
In the 1970s, following the reform of local government in Scotland, several Councils founded Archives offices. Shetland Islands Council was one of them, in May 1976.
Over the past fifty years, Shetland’s records have been assembled from all sorts of places and have been housed at four different addresses in Lerwick. In this talk, Brian Smith, Shetland’s first archivist, tells the story of Shetland’s record collections: how they were gathered, preserved, made accessible, and how they have been used by historians and other researchers over the years.
Please Note: At the conclusion of Brian’s talk the Archive will be open between 20:00-21:00, for ticket holders to explore. Visitors are warmly invited to view a selection of notable records, documents, and other treasures that have been collected, preserved, and made accessible over the past five decades.
Category: Lectures
