The University of Stirling Archives has received funding from the Wellcome Trust’s Research Resources grant scheme for a project to conserve and catalogue the archives of the Royal Scottish National Hospital, Larbert. Established in 1862 the RSNH (originally known as the Royal Scottish National Institution) was the foremost hospital providing custodial care for mentally impaired children in Scotland in the 19th and 20th centuries. The extensive archives of the institution that survive provide a comprehensive record of the management and operation of the hospital, and the treatment and care of its patients. The historical importance of the collection was recognised last year when it was added to the UNESCO UK Memory of the World Register.
The generous support of the Wellcome Trust will enable us to carry out a comprehensive programme of repair and rebinding of damaged material, along with the organization, arrangement and detailed cataloguing of the collection. We are currently advertising for a Project Archivist and Project Conservator (closing date for applications 15 June 2014). When the project is completed an online catalogue will provide a detailed record of the contents of the collection which can be accessed by researchers in our archives reading room. The archives of the RSN will provide new insights into the history of the treatment and care of children in Scotland and the wider society in which the hospital operated.
