Issue 26, Spring 2009

Issue No 26 An Eighteenth Century Master Weaver and his Apprentices © The Trustees of the British Museum. Licensor www.scran.ac.uk CONTENTS Page Notes from the Chair — News from the Archive 2 The Handloom Weavers of Perth 4 Review – Perth: A Century of Change 8 The Authors’ view - How probably not to write a local history ! 10 concluding The Battle for the North 12 The Joy of Extracting Oral History 16 Notes from the Chair Belated New Year Greetings! Although, sadly, we had to cancel our planned meeting in January, we still have much, including four talks, to look forward to for the remainder of the 2008-2009 season. As I write, our first Oral History project is getting under way. A small team of in- terviewers, equipped with tape recorders, will soon be at work in Alyth encouraging people to share their wartime memories. These re- cordings of personal recollections will supplement the written records already held in the Archive, on which the Mosaic of Wartime Alyth was based. It’s an exciting thought that oral history projects not only bring the Archive to the community, but also add to it. Last year the Archive acquired records, in poor condition, of early Perthshire car registration numbers dat- ing from the early years of the twentieth century. The Friends have paid for the repairs to the papers, which are now available to the general public, smartly bound and, more importantly, legible. As 2009 is officially designated as the Year of the Homecoming, I suspect that the Archive will be kept very busy as the year progresses and that many of the Friends may find themselves in various related activities. Watch this space! Increased in- terest in the Archive and additional related activities during this Year of the Home- coming offer an ideal opportunity for recruitment to the Friends. Even with the slight increase in fees and the “credit crunch”, I believe that membership represents tremendous value for money. Membership subscriptions also make very useful pre- sents. Margaret Borland-Stroyan News from the Archive We’ve been immersing ourselves in culture since the new year – artists and film makers have been descending on us! The Council is planning a cultural policy for Perth and gather- ing in opinions and ideas from across all the communities who live, work or visit the city – and the Archive has been playing its part. Steve has been interviewed and filmed in the 2 searchroom, as have one or two of the Friends volunteers, and I believe that a couple of our regular users have been approached as well. I think the edited highlights will be shown somewhere, so when I find out the when and the where, I’ll let all the Friends know. Even more exciting is that we have our very own Artist in the Archive. Local artist, Kyra Clegg, has been funded to create an artwork that shows how the collections are stories that link the past to the present and to the future – that through the archives we can travel in time! Kyra has been spending lots of time in the strong room and been finding some fascinating material – much of which I’d never seen before. At the end of March, she’ll be presenting her preliminary ideas and we should have complete artwork by the end of the year, ready to display to the world. The Artist in the Archive presenta- tion will be in the AK Bell Library Theatre on the eve- ning of 23 March – we’ll be sending out invitations to Friends members and others, so keep an eye on your email and post box. Meanwhile, you can see samples of Kyra’s work at www.kyclegg.co.uk. It seems we haven’t stopped since the new year, for not only have we been involved in these projects, but we’ve been focused on a major Preservation Survey. At the end of January, we spent nearly two weeks sampling 800 records from all the collections to help us assess the condition of our holdings. We had specialist help in the form of NAS Conservator, Hazel van Hoff, and much- appreciated muscle lugging items backwards and forwards by our work experience student, John Watson. All the sample data will be sent to the National Preservation Office, who will produce a re- port for us highlighting areas that need some work. However, the sample was immediately useful, in that it showed that many of our enclosures need replacing – doing this and the other work that the NPO will recommend is going to be a long-term and huge undertaking, and it’s very likely that we’ll be looking for volunteer help from the Friends. Re-boxing, wrapping and cleaning items isn’t the most exciting work in the world – but if we want to make sure that our collections last as long as possible, it’s vital work. Finally, despite these projects, we’ve been continuing with our daily work as usual, answer- ing enquiries, helping researchers and accepting accessions – although shamefully, there’s not been any cataloguing done recently. Have a look at the website at www.pkc.gov.uk/ archives for details about our new accessions. Jan Merchant 3 The Handloom Weavers of Perth The weaving industry of the old Scottish burgh of Perth can be traced back to the 13th century at least. In 1210, William the Lion forbade anybody to make or dye cloth who was not a burgess within the town’s Merchant Guild. Essentially the town council of the time, the Guild protected the financial interests of both merchants and craftsmen, and as a trading body, it jeal- ously guarded its monopoly, keeping the weavers very much at arms’ length. In 1424 an Act allowed for the creation of trade corporations in Scotland. The Weavers Incorpo- ration was duly formed in Perth, to provide mutual support and protection for its members. Known as ‘the Calling’ to its members, it was not until May 1556 that it gained a seat on the council, when Mary Queen of Scots decided that there should be equal numbers of craftsmen and merchants represented on the body. However, this was soon lost prior to the accession of James VI in 1567, the reason for which remains hidden in the past. Apprentices and Journeymen The apprenticeship registers of the Weavers Incorporation date back to 1593. A weaver’s apprenticeship could last from three to nine years, with most appointments made at Martinmas (November 11th), though also on the other quarter days. A typical example is that of Peter Dow. The son of James Dow, a tailor at Drum, Peter signed up to serve as an apprentice to William The Weavers’ Incorporation owned several cottages which were rented to freeman weavers and widows 4 (photo courtesy of the Author) Henderson, a Deacon weaver of the Incorporation, at Whitsunday (March 15th) 1782. The stipend payable to the apprentice was ten pounds and ten shillings, and to make sure the full indenture was served, both gentlemen had ‘cautioners’ to stand guarantor. An apprentice typically resided with his master for an agreed duration, from whom he would learn the necessary skills of the trade. Whilst most were men, occasionally, records of women do turn up, such as one from 1746 in which James Deu from Kintillo was booked apprentice to Katherine Adam in Houghfield. Apprentices occasionally broke their indentures, whilst some indentures ended early by mutual consent. As boisterous youths they also got into trouble, as the following Incorporation act shows from 1705: The haill Generall meiting of the said traid Statutes and Ordaines that no journeyman or printeises shall in any time heirafter be found Drunk or shall be out of thair Chalmers after nine aclock at night unless they have ane sufficient Excuse And to shune all Idle company under the paine of ffourty shilling Scots money by and Attour Impris- onment of thair persones On successful completion of an apprenticeship, a weaver became a journeyman in the trade, seeking employment with many different master craftsmen to accumulate experience. By now, he could live in private accommodation with his own family, and earn a decent wage. Freemen Weavers Freemen within the Calling had the right to vote in its elections, but also had to adhere to certain stipulations. They had to obey the Acts of the Calling, and to share all financial burdens with their brethren. If they took up residence in the countryside, they had to pay half-a-crown annually for the privilege, and they were strongly dissuaded from defecting to the Merchant Guild, which could in- cur a fine of 100 merks Scots*. There were four main routes to becoming a freeman: i) The most common method was to marry a freeman weaver’s daughter. A freeman’s apprentice was charged 40 merks for the privilege, other apprentices were charged 100 merks, whilst a stranger was charged 50 merks. ii) A person could serve an apprenticeship with a freeman and gain the right to join upon completion of his indenture. In this case, the payment to the Calling was higher, such as that of John Owr, who in 1726 who had to pay 100 merks Scots. iii) A third method was through hereditary right, with a son following in his weaver father’s foot- steps. For sons in the town, the fee was 20 merks; for a country freeman’s son, it was £20 Scots. iv) One could also simply purchase the right to join, though this was extremely expensive, normally charged at £100 Scots.

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