Brief biographies of contributors and parish representatives

These biographical details were provided in 2000 – updates were made in the case of some individuals at a later date, as the printed volumes were being prepared for publication. However, many have not been updated since 2000.

David K. Affleck: in 1970 David Affleck joined the new local social work department. His previous experiences were in management in the Civil Service, in social work with young offenders and their families, and in the delivery of childcare services in a rural area. The community structure of East Lothian provided an opportunity to extend a special interest in the creative delivery of strategic social care policies. An interest in the interaction between individuals, groups and organisations extended as he became involved in policy development at both Scottish and regional levels, but with an ongoing remit for management of social welfare services at local community level. After 30 years in social work services, he retired from local government and now pursues a number of other areas of long-standing interest, including social history studies. David consulted a range of residents within the former Prestonkirk parish then completed the process after discussion by a sub-committee involving David Ritchie, David Affleck, Tom Middlemas and Garry Menzies (all members of the history society). (Contributor to the county volume and Prestonkirk parish representative.)
Jim Affleck: the Forestry Commission’s Woodland Officer covering East Lothian, Edinburgh and Berwickshire since 1992. Deals with grants licenses and advice to the private sector. A Borderer with an interest in the local history of land use. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Annemarie Allan: currently a freelance researcher and writer, with a strong interest in the history of Prestonpans – of which she is a resident. Annemarie has worked as a lecturer, managed a school library service, and has been an information officer with the Scottish Arts Council. She has a major interest in special needs education, and served for several years as chair of the school board of Willowpark School for children with physical difficulties. (Contributor to the county volume and parish representative for Prestonpans.) ‘As far as why I agreed to do the parish bit, you could say Sonia Baker twisted my arm till I screamed… or alternatively, you could say that my family history is part of the history of the parish.’
Rab Amos: for many years a miner, Rab was a delegate at Monktonhall Colliery (1980-89); chairman of the southeast area Communist Party of Great Britain (1982-92); and Chairman of the Midlothian Trades Council (1981-92). He is currently the Scottish Director of Industrial Diseases Compensations Ltd. (Contributor to the county volume.)
The Rt. Hon. Michael Ancram QC MP: Conservative MP; MP for East Lothian for 7 months in 1974. Became Marquis of Lothian in 2004. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Carol Anderson: Carol is a freelance landscape architect, based in Edinburgh. She has a particular interest in landscape character assessment and the historical development of landscapes, having undertaken assessments of the Cairngorms and Moray and Nairn, amongst others, as part of the Scottish Natural Heritage programme of landscape character assessment throughout Scotland. (Contributor to the county volume.)
David M. Anderson: brought up in Dunbar, David’s family roots go back many generations. After working as a research chemist for several years, he switched careers to develop an interest in museums and history. For the past fourteen years he has been associated with East Lothian’s museum service, working at several sites in the county, and managing the service’s major contributions to SCRAN – Scotland’s on-line museum. (Contributor to the county volume and parish representative for Dunbar.)
Irene Anderson MBE MA Hons Geography: Headmistress Aburi Girls’ Secondary School, Ghana 1953-70. (Parish representative for Garvald.) Irene died 25 Sep 2010. ‘I bought the beehive in Garvald in an uninhabitable state in 1960, and having modernised it, lived in it as a ‘leave’ cottage until I retired to it in 1970. I had been so impressed how knowledgeable Ghanaians were about their families and background, that I was determined to find out as much as possible for myself, when I came home. I have collected as much information as I can about Garvald, and visitors are sent to knock on my door if they have any queries!’
Professor Michael Anderson: Professor of Economic History, University of Edinburgh, since 1979; he has written extensively on Scottish population history, especially relating to the past 150 years; Longniddry resident, 1973-90. (Contributor to the county volume.)
George Archibald: George was employed in coal mining for 43 years, starting as a mine surveyor, then subsidence engineer for Scotland, and finished as NCB chief surveyor and minerals manager for Scotland. He now deals with mining inquiries as a volunteer in the library of the Scottish Mining Museum. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Sonia Baker: project editor of the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account; Cert. Ed. (FE) (1991); freelance writer and researcher; author of Prestongrange House (2000); she holds a First Class MA (Hons)Scottish Historical Studies, University of Edinburgh, winning a joint award of a share of Elliott Prize; also awarded the Dobson Morpeth Senior Prize (1999) for Paradox in Grenada: a Study of Slave-owning Scots of the Enlightened Age; winner of the Fraser Mackintosh Prize (1988) for Mull in the later 19th Century: Population Change, Landlord Coercion and the Decline of Traditional Land Use; East Lothian resident since 1993. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Ralph W Barker: an amateur botanist who helped on The Atlas of British Flora (1962) and also on A Field Flora of the British Isles (1999), both of which are relevant to Pencaitland. (Parish representative for Pencaitland.) ‘I became session clerk of Pencaitland Parish Church in 1961, and held the post for over 30 years. I am a member of the local history group, and have a particular interest in the carving and some of the tombstones in the parish church. I was a founder member of the Pencaitland Amenity Society, formed in the mid 1960s, and am still a member.’
George Barton: Senior Area Agricultural Adviser with the Scottish Agricultural College. The last 20 years of his career have been spent advising farmers in East Lothian on all aspects of agriculture. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Joan Bassett BMus Edin., Dip Ed: worked at the music department at Napier and taught at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh. Joan has worked in music all her life and is delighted that East Lothian has so much to offer; resident of Athelstaneford for 18 years. Died 21 Feb 2008. (Contributor to the county volume)
Dr Margaret Batty MA. BD. PhD: Methodist local preacher and historian. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Raymond Binnie FHCIMA: Chairman of the East Lothian Tourist Board, 1986-94. (Contributor to the county volume.)
John P Bolton MA (Cantab) MICE: retired chartered engineer, formerly lecturer in civil engineering and history of civil engineering at Napier University, Edinburgh; Humbie resident since 1970; member of the Fala and District History and Heritage Society. (Parish representative for Humbie.)
Jane Bonnar: history teacher, PGCE. MA (Hons) Scottish Historical Studies, University of Edinburgh. Publications include Prestonpans Pottery(2000) and a range of teachers’ support materials for the Prestoungrange Arts Festival Society, for which she is Project Director. Jane was an assistant at Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum (1997-99). She has worked on many local history projects, including the Tranent Digitisation Project. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Ian K. Brash: architect; from 1996, chairman of Elphinstone environment campaign, fighting the Harry’s Burn opencast proposals – through two planning applications and a Public Inquiry and over six years. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Ian Brown: military historian and author; currently employed by the National Museums of Scotland. Co-author of East Lothian at War (2 vols), published by East Lothian Council Library Service. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Denise Brydon: Parish representative for Ormiston.) ‘I am a wife and mother of three boys and own the village newsagentsin Main Street, Ormiston. My interest in the history of Ormiston was sparked by moving into Kinghorn House at the age of eight. The house had been largely untouched for years and as my parents renovated it, more history was uncovered. Today I have a strong interest in genealogy and was asked to help with the account by Annie Lyell, who wrote the Ormiston book’You See it A’. David Fleming has been the unofficial village historian for many years and is my hero!’
Stephen A. Bunyan: chairman of the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account Society; retired principal teacher of history, Dunbar Grammar School (1966-90); wide range of interests including (in 2000) president of East Lothian Antiquarian and Field Naturalists’ Society; chairman of Dunbar Community Council; deputy commandant of Lothian & Borders Battalion ACF, Dunbar; Deputy Lieutenant of East Lothian; Dunbar resident since 1968. (Contributor to the county and other volumes.)
John Busby ARSA RSW: an ‘East Coast quietist’(Scotsman art critic)artist, who has lived and worked in the county since 1964. He taught at Edinburgh College of Art, where his students included John Bellany RA and James Fairgrieve. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Douglas L. Buttenshaw: retired local government officer, working for Midlothian 1961-74, East Lothian 1975-99; former district secretary of East Lothian District Council. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Ewen A. Cameron: senior lecturer in Scottish History at the University of Edinburgh. He is the author of a number of works on the Scottish Highlands, and is currently engaged in writing a political history of Scotland since 1880. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Ivan Clark: in 1928, aged four years, Ivan went to live at Eastfield Farm at Whittingehame, continuing the family connection with the parish which began in 1907. His career in farming began after leaving school in 1939. (Parish representative for Whittingehame.) ‘This has enabled constant contact and an appreciation of the people and changes within the parish. The opportunity to complete the account on Whittingehame may assist in retaining public interest in rural communities.’
Neil Clark: Neil has been a Countryside Officer with East Lothian Council since 1994. Prior to that, he was a Countryside Ranger with the county’s ranger service. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Michael Cox: originally honorary secretary, then treasurer of the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account Society; he was appointed the East Lothian Industrial Officer in 1973, transferring to Lothian Region Development Authority in 1975; from 1980-87, he developed links with Napier University and small industries; it was Michael who first mooted the idea of the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account; founder member of the Gullane and Dirleton History Society. (Contributor to county volume.)
Dr Andrew Davies:GP at Tranent Health Centre, 1990-2000. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Peter & Hermione de Iongh: after national service in the royal navy and a degree in modern history at Oxford, Peter taught at schools in England and West Africa. He and Hermione met at a conference at Ibadan University, Nigeria in 1965. She, having studied history at the Free University, Amsterdam, was teaching in Freetown, Sierra Leone. They settled in the UK and came to Scotland to run Lathallan school, Kincardineshire in 1975. They retired to Whitekirk in 1992, and were invited to join the Kirk Session of St Mary’s. The task of producing the account of Whitekirk & Tyninghame was handed over by a fellow member of the Kirk Session. (Parish representative for Whitekirk & Tyninghame.)
Fiona Dobson: with her husband, Fiona runs Ruchlaw West Mains farm in Stenton, a mixed farm of beef cattle and arable; she is a native of East Lothian. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Malcolm Duncan: solicitor, local government 1969-95 (Midlothian CC 1969; East Lothian CC 1972; East Lothian District Council 1974-95); Director of Administration 1974; Chief Executive 1986-95; sometime clerk to the Licensing Board, deputy clerk of Court, Clerk of the Peace, Clerk to the Lieutenancy, Justice of the Peace; resident in Athelstaneford since 1973 with two children educated through the village school; Treasurer, Scottish Flag Fund; Chairman, Athelstaneford Community Association. (Contributor to the county volume and parish representative for Athelstaneford.)
Dr Alastair Durie: first known for his work on Scottish linen textiles, in recent years Alastair Durie has been working on the history of tourism in Scotland. His book Scotland for the Holidays has just appeared (2002). Having held posts at the universities of Aberdeen and Glasgow, he is currently teaching at the University of Stirling; a publication on the Scottish hydros and the business of health tourism is in the pipeline. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Ella Egan: from a strong union and mining family, based in the Lothians and Fife, Ella was an employee of the NUM Scottish Area for 30+ years. She was the Chairwoman of the Scottish Area Women’s Support Group, and the vice chairwoman of Women Against Pit Closures during the 1984-5 strike. Ella is now an administrator with the Lothian Trades Union Resource Centre. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Kathy M. Fairweather CBE: Kathy is a former HN Chief Inspector of Schools, who retired in 2000; she is a member of the East Lothian Antiquarian & Field Naturalists’ Society; her first degree was in history at St Andrews University, so she welcomed the opportunity to re-engage with real history. She became familiar with the account through working with Julie Murphy on her home parish of Saltoun. Kathy then stepped into the breach when it became evident that there was no-one available in the locality to both carry out the additional research necessary and to pull together the various contributions for Macmerry and the rural section of Gladsmuir parish.
Dr Miles Glendinning: an architectural historian and writer with a special interest in mass housing, Dr Glendinning works at the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historic Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinburgh. He has co-authored several books on housing, including Tower Block (1994), Yale, and Home Builders (1999), RCAHMS. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Andrew M. Hajducki: Andrew is an Edinburgh lawyer. Author of The North Berwick & Gullane Branch Lines (1992) and The Haddington , Macmerry & Gifford Branch Lines (1994), both Oakwood Press, Oxford. In addition, he is an East Lothian enthusiast. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Norman Hall: born in Glasgow and educated at Glasgow Academy and Glasgow University, Norman graduated in mechanical engineering. He moved to North Berwick in 1961 and has long been active in local affairs: town treasurer on North Berwick Town Council; member of East Lothian County Council; represented Traprain on Lothian Regional Council. He was also involved in urban regeneration in Wester Hailes and is a past chairman of the Edinburgh Small Business Development Fund and of North Berwick Community Council. He is currently chairman of the North Berwick Trust. Norman has long had an interest in local history, and when no one else would shoulder the responsibility for the North Berwick contribution, he agreed to be the town’s representative for the account.
Diana Hardy: matron and managing director of Hilton Lodge Nursing Home, Haddington 1984-97. After retiring she found time to research the history of Hilton Lodge, and it was while she was working on this in the Local History Centre that she was ‘nobbled’ by a persistent lady who turned out to be Sonia Baker! As an incomer to Spott, Diana had been interested in the history of the parish, but after the time spent on the account, she not only learned a great deal but knew everyone in the parish as well. Diana died 7 March 2010. (Parish representative for Spott.)
Diana Harrow: MA history. Before retirement, Diana was a teacher and librarian who specialised in local history and young people’s interest in history. (Parish representative for Stenton.) ‘As a newcomer to the parish, I enjoyed finding out about the recent history of East Lothian and Stenton in particular’.
Linda Headland, MA Hon Fellow: Director ELCAP (East Lothian Care and Accommodation Project). (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Diana M. Henderson: Hon Research Director of The Scots at War Trust. Military historian, author of a number of publications on 19th and twentieth century military history; served in the army. Grew up in post-war North Berwick. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Sheila Henderson: currently the chairperson of Musselburgh Museum Committee, having served on the committee for 15 years. Now living in Longniddry, she lived in Musselburgh for 26 years. By training she is a PE teacher, and latterly she lectured at Jewel & Esk Valley College in the special needs department. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Martin Higgins: Martin is a research officer in the economic development division at East Lothian Council. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Heather Holmes: Dr Holmes’ work on migrant and seasonal workers stemmed from research for her PhD thesis on the social history of the potato harvest in the Lothians 1870-1995 (University of Edinburgh 1995). That work investigated the harvest technology, harvesting techniques, labour supply, employment conditions (especially of school children, local women and Irish migrant workers), and the adoption of mechanical harvesting methods. (Contributor to the county volume.)
John Home Robertson MSP: East Lothian & Berwickshire MP 1978-83, and East Lothian MP 1983-2001. East Lothian MSP from 1999-2007. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Fraser Hunter: Iron Age and Roman curator at the National Museums of Scotland, where the Traprain finds are housed. He co-directed the most recent excavations on the Law in 1996-7 and 1999-2001, and is working on reassessing the finds from the older excavations. He is particularly interested in the interaction between the Romans and the Iron Age tribes of Scotland, where Traprain plays a pivotal role. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Gordon M. Jamieson: employed in the power industry for 29 years, and lastly at Cockenzie power station, Gordon was born in Edinburgh and has been a Port Seton resident for the past 35 years. Chairman of the Cockenzie & Port Seton Local History Society for the past twelve years, Gordon has had a longstanding interest in Scottish history, in particular the fishing industry. He felt it was important that the parish should be involved in the account and was pleased to assist in this. (Parish representative for Cockenzie & Port Seton.)
Dr Roger Kellett FRCPE: retired physician, Roodland hospital 1975-2000. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr G. Kennedy: GP in Ormiston/Tranent 1967-90. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Alex Kerr: Alex has worked for the Water Authority since 1969. Ex-Provost Fraser Spowage contacted him and asked that he might report on water supplies to the county. ‘Carrying out the research to acquire the facts and figures was thoroughly enjoyable; I am happy to have been involved with the project.’ (Contributor to the county volume.)
Jennifer Lamont: (Joint parish representative for Inveresk excluding Musselburgh.) ‘At a chance meeting over coffee, following my History of Art class, Sonia (the account editor) discovered I lived in Inveresk and immediately ‘volunteered’ me to prepare the Inveresk Village section. Protestations about a lack of any post-school ‘historical’ qualifications were deemed hysterical, so I just had to get on with the task. Fortunately, my fellow parishioners, many with great knowledge of local history, responded to my pleas for help and the seemingly daunting task became a pleasure.’
Professor Fred Last: now retired from Edinburgh University, where he was Professor of Forestry & Natural Resources, Professor Last combines long-term interests in agriculture, horticulture, forestry and nature conservation to observe, in his Longniddry garden, indicators of climate change. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Caroline Lawrie: a graduate in philosophy (St Andrews University), Caroline grew up on the family farm near Haddington. Spending most of her married life in Glasgow, she took the Certificate in Scottish Historical Studies at Glasgow University, basing most of the projects in East Lothian. Since she and her husband retired to Haddington in the early 1990s, she has been indexing The Haddingtonshire Courier/East Lothian Courier from its beginning in 1859. She became involved with the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account as the representative of Haddington’s History Society. (Parish representative for Haddington.)
Iain Macaskill MBE MA Dip Ed.: Iain is an honours graduate in classics (Edinburgh University). After teaching in Stirlingshire and Glasgow, he was appointed principal teacher of classics at Knox Academy (1965). He was made MBE for services to teaching, and is a co-author of the Ecce Romani series of Latin textbooks. A longstanding member of East Lothian Antiquarian & Field Naturalists’ Society, and of the Old Edinburgh Club, he considers himself fortunate to have lived in Aberlady for over 30 years, and was glad to acknowledge this good fortune by acting as its representative. (Parish representative for Aberlady.)
Sister Maggie Jane MacDonald SRN RFN: retired sister, Roodlands hospital 1947-75. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Margaret Maslowski: very much a ‘local’, Margaret married a Polish serviceman in 1945 and, but for a brief foray to France (1947-50), she has been a Gifford resident all her life. (Parish representative for Yester.) ‘My mother’s family had lived in Gifford since the 1800s, so I feel very much part of the village. Much information from 1900 onwards was gained from my mother, and this aroused my interest in village history. I am a member of Gifford Community Council and Gifford Community Association, and for the Millennium, along with Andrew Gilmour. I organised an exhibition of photographs entitled ‘The Last 100 Years’. This was probably the reason why I was approached to be the Yester parish representative. The account involved quite a bit of work, but was very rewarding, feeling I had done my bit to put Yester in the picture’.
Ian J.S. McAlpine: Operations Manager (Scotland), The Coal Industry Social & Welfare Organisation (CISWO), based at Bathgate. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Bob McArthur: employee of East Lothian Co-operative Society 1950-91. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Anne McCarthy: while librarian at Gullane, Anne was involved in the initial stages of Gullane and Dirleton History Society, editing its millennium booklet Snapshot 2000 which provided the basis for the Dirleton parish entry. (Parish representative for Dirleton (with Gullane.)
Edward McMillan: retired police sergeant. Eddie joined Lothian & Borders Constabulary in 1969; after 14 years as constable, in 1984, he was promoted to sergeant, working from Haddington. After a short spell at Dalkeith, he moved to Musselburgh in 1989, and later to Edinburgh. He now works as an information centre assistant at the police base on the Royal Mile. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Frazer McNaughton: landscape architect and former East Lothian resident. He currently works as an adviser on landscape matters for Scottish Natural Heritage, the Government’s agency for environmental matters. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Mr Graeme Meikle FRCS (Ed): retired surgeon, Roodlands hospital (part-time from 1970; 1972-91). (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr J.S, Milne: GP working from Ormiston 1946-66; in 1976, he established the geriatric service at East Fortune hospital. ‘General practice – care of a group – proved fascinating and I worked as a GP for 21 years. Despite subsequent work on the epidemiology of ageing, cytogenetics, psychogeriatrics and geriatrics. I always thought like a GP and was pleased to write something about it.’ (Contributor to the county volume.)
Professor Rosalind Mitchison: Professor Mitchison was an East Lothian resident from the early 1970s to her death in 2002. Professor Emeritus of Social History, Edinburgh University; President of East Lothian Antiquarian and Field Naturalists’ Society (1991-2000); editor of the Society’s Transactions (1977-1991). Author of (amongst other works) Agricultural Sir John; a life of Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster, 1745-1835, the driving force behind the first Statistical Account of Scotland in the 1790s. (Dr Mitchison wrote the foreword to the county volume.)
David Moody: David was the treasurer and project manager of the East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account Society, and was for many years (1990-2003) editor of the East Lothian Antiquarian & Field Naturalists’ Society transactions. He was Principal Libraries Officer with East Lothian Council until early 2004. He is the author of three books in the Batsford Local History series, on Scottish Local History, Scottish Family History and Scottish Towns, and has contributed to Oxford Companions and The New Dictionary of National Biography. David now lives in France. (Joint parish representative for Tranent.)
Margaret E. Morrison: the Federation Secretary of the East Lothian SWRI December 1999-December 2002. She is a member of the Prestonkirk SWRI and she has lived in East Linton since 1988. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Graeme Morton MA PhD (Edinburgh): a lecturer in Economic and Social history at Edinburgh University. His special area of interest remains Scottish national identity. His books are: William Wallace: man & myth (Sutton 2002); Unionist-National: governing urban Scotland 1830-1860 (Tuckwell Press 1999); Locality, Community and Nation with A. Morris (Hodder & Stoughton 1998). Dr Morton is the author of many essays. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Julie Murphy: has lived in the Pencaitland and Saltoun area for over 30 years and has always had an interest in local history. As a member of the Pencaitland Amenity Society, she was co-author of a book on Pencaitland village school and has been active in recording tombstone inscriptions in several local churchyards. Prior to retirement she worked in adult education. (Parish representative for Saltoun.)
Gerald O’Brien: was JP Mackintosh’s constituency agent 1966-78. A native of East Lothian, Gerald died in 2002. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Olwyn Owen: Principal Inspector of Ancient Monuments with Historic Scotland. She has lived in east Lothian for seven years and has a particular interest in the Vikings, medieval Scotland and the archaeology of historic towns and cities. Among other duties, she is presently the inspector for Edinburgh and all the Lothians, and sits on the East Lothian Heritage Strategy Steering Group. Olwyn has published widely on a range of subjects, including excavation reports and popular books. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Professor HD Patterson: now retired after 40 years as a statistician in the Scientific Civil Service, Desmond worked first on the measurement of atmospheric pollution in London, and later on the design and analysis of field trials of agricultural crops. He was based in a research unit at the University of Edinburgh 1967-85. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Adrian Roberts: Adrian is a statistician working on agriculture and biological research problems. Via a contract with Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), he collaborated with Professor Fred Last on a study of the effects of climate change on flowering patterns. (Contributor to the county volume.)
David Robertson: has lived all his life in Longniddry. He pursued a successful career in education, and took very early retirement in 1996 to embrace a more congenial lifestyle. He has published a local history of Longniddry, and has a passionate interest in Scots traditional culture. He was not at first inclined to take on the job of writing up Longniddry for the account, but decided on reflection that it was better that the village he remembered should be described by a ‘native’ rather than by an incomer, which would have been the most likely alternative had he declined the invitation.
Kate Shilton: raised in Wallyford, Kate attended Wallyford and Crookston primary schools, and Musselburgh Grammar School. She spent her working life in the Civil Service, and has worked at Wallyford library since 2000. She has a long-term interest in local history. (Joint parish representative for Inveresk (excl. Musselburgh.)
Jean Shirlaw: (Parish representative for Gladsmuir excluding Longniddry.) ‘My interest in Gladsmuir parish was stimulated by the fact that my husband , Robert Shirlaw, had been minister of Gladsmuir from 1955-84. My research included church session minutes and heritors’ records, also the Lamington and Elvingston records held by the NAS. When asked to help with the account, I felt a bit daunted, as I had left the district for some years. However, having retained contacts in the parish, I agreed and was gladly given information of any changes that had occurred in the intervening years, which were relevant to the project.’
Sally Smith: from 1970, Sally was employed as funding administrator by the Small Industries Council for Rural Areas od Scotland; from 1978-89, she was Crafts Manager for the Scottish Development Agency. In retirement, she wrote and published Cockburnspath – a history of a people and a place, 1999 (Dunglass Mill Press). Resident at Dunglass since 1985. (Contributor to county volume and parish representative for Oldhamstocks.) ‘Moving to Dunglass Mill in 1985 sparked an intense curiosity about its surroundings and I became hooked on historical research. Scanning dusty records became obsessive but I was rescued and given a different perspective by interviewing local people. Many have died since the book on Cockburnspath (and Oldhamstocks) was published in 1999, but what a joy it is to know that their stories live on amongst the drier elements of factual text. All who contribute to historical accounts of this kind are but stepping stones, preparing the way for the next generation of the curious.’
Mary Stenhouse: (Parish representative for Morham.) ‘I was born at Millknowe farm (Stenton parish) in 1933, and attended Kingside Primary School (Whittingehame parish)half a mile from the farm. Later, my sister and I had to cycle to Gifford and stay in lodgings to go to Knox Academy in Haddington. We cycled to Gifford on Sunday and cycled back to Millknowe on Friday evening. The education committee helped with the cost of my bicycle, which cost £10 5s 4d. After attending agricultural college (AuchinCruive), I worked for five years for the Milk Records Association, and a further five years on the farm at Millknowe. I married in 1962, and lived with my husband at Leaston farm (Humbie parish), until we were allocated a council house in Morham. I have been a community councillor here for 27 years. Interest in local history started when I helped to write the history of Humbie parish while a member of the WRI. When I came to Morham, I discovered only Mrs Drysdale of Mainshill had written anything on Morham parish. After a few years of research, in 1977 I wrote a small booklet of the history of Morham.’
Dr Gavin Strang MP: MP for Edinburgh East 1970-97; MP for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh 1997-2010. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Michael TRB Turnbull: writer and historian, author of Cardinal Gordon Joseph Gray (1994) St Andrew Press. East Lothian resident. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Lindsay Waddell FRCPE MRCPsych: retired physician superintendant , Herdmanflat hospital, Haddington. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Bruce Walker: FormerDirector of Social Work and Housing, East Lothian Council, from 1995. (Contributor to the county volume.)
The Rev Dr KDF Walker MA BD PhD: former Church of Scotland parish minister of Athelstaneford linked with Tyninghame & Whitekirk, from 1976. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Michael Williams: retired army officer turned farmer. He farms at Eaglescairnie Mains near Gifford (mainly arable). An enthusiastic conservationist, he practises a system of ‘sympathetic’ farming which tries to fit modern farming into the countryside. (Contributor to the county volume and parish representative for Bolton.)
Emeritus Professor J. Williamson CBE FRCPE DSc: formerly assistant physician, East Fortune hospital and sanatorium (1951-1954). (Contributor to the county volume.)
Dr Isobel M Wilson BSc MB ChB: general practitioner, Morningside medical practice, Edinburgh. (Contributor to the county volume.)
Pearl Young; as chairperson for the Innerwick Parish Welfare Association, Pearl was involved with the committee and residents in the parish in staging a photographic exhibition as a Millennium project. This proved extremely popular and was shown both in the village hall and in the Gibb Room in Dunbar library. ‘Material from the exhibition has proved useful for this account’.
Dr Helen Zealley OBE MD FRCPE FHPHM: retired Director of Public Health, London Health Board. (Contributor to the county volume.)