Sketch of Cynicus by Alick P. F. Ritchie

Alick P. F. Ritchie was born in Dundee (1868-1938) and studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, Antwerp before moving to London. He produced cartoons for many magazines, including Vanity Fair and The Sketch. In 1912, he published a book called Zoo-all-awry , and in the 1920s and 30s, he produced posters for the London Underground.

                                                    Sketch of Cynicus by Alick Ritchie

This sketch is on loan to the museum from a private collection for display during our summer exhibition 'Cynicus: The story of martin Anderson'. Martin was working as a staff artist for a Dundee newspaper in the 1880s, so we believe this was sketched during this time.

Alick P. F. Ritchie Profile and Collection

 

Profile of a St Andrean: Elizabeth Woodcock

Elizabeth Woodcock is remembered for her distinctive persona and generosity of spirit. She was the eldest daughter of Beatrice Tullis and William Woodcock, a prominent St Andrews lawyer. In the Scottish tradition, she kept her own name after marriage. During her life-time she was a familiar figure in the town, often remembered riding her bicycle wearing her hat and green visor.

Mrs. Woodcock Bumby was a generous benefactor to the people of St Andrews. The clock on the south corner of the Town Hall was gifted to the town in memory of her father. In 1962, she donated money to erect a canopy over the new entrance to the Town Hall in Queen’s Gardens.

After her death in 1971, Mrs. Woodcock Bumby left over £100,000 in a Trust set up to support unmarried or widowed women, preferably of Scottish origin, who found themselves in ‘straitened or distressed circumstances’.

The Woodcock Bequest, today, manages Rose Park and its surrounding cottages as rented accommodation. The house, on the corner of City Road and Double Dykes Road was her own home. Other beneficiaries included Holy Trinity Church, the Salvation Army and The St Andrews Preservation Trust. Several other properties in the town are also managed by the Woodcock Bequest.

 

 

 

 

 

Recent Donation

A local resident recently gifted a sizable collection of artefacts relating to a Polish soldier who was dispatched to St Andrews during the Second World War to help defend the East coast. The collection includes his military papers, but more intriguingly, a Polish art book and St Johns Ambulance bandage.

The art book contains numerous examples of Polish art from the turn of the twentieth century, and there is a lengthy introduction at the beginning that needs translating. If anyone is willing, please get in touch! It is such a beautiful book that it is a shame to know so little about it.

 

 

The bandage is interesting as it shows the many different ways in which it can be used. It is quite curious that it belonged to a Polish WW2 soldier though, as the bandage dates from the First World War. The plot thickens! Unfortunately the donor couldn’t shed any light on this, so it can only be presumed that our Polish soldier came across this during his time in Scotland in the early 1940’s.

Research Group Display

Come One, Come All!

26th January - 3rd February 2013

Our volunteer research group have been busy putting their displays together for the weekend. Several topics have been thoroughly researched, including the main events in St Andrews in 1902. We have some fascinating objects for you to see, including this Rowantree Chocolate tin box made in celebration of King Edward VII’s Coronation on the 26^th of June 1902, marking the end of the Victorian period. The tin was handed out to local school children to mark the occasion.

 

 

The exhibition will open this Saturday (26th of January 2013) from 10am where we will be having our annual coffee morning, and we will be closing at 4pm. Thereafter, the museum will be open from 1pm - 4pm daily until the 3rd of February 2013.

You think this rain is bad...

We've been having some pretty horrid weather in St Andrews the past couple of days. But take a look at these photos of when the town flooded in July 1916, and we thought this summer was wet! These photos show what happened when the Kinnessburn burst its banks.


Kinn.B 030

 

This photo shows Kinnessburn Road, taken from South Bridge Street (foot of Melbourne Brae).  On the right corner is A P Gracie, Wine Merchant, which is no longer there. The shop on the left is now Adamson Hairdressers.



Kinn.B 030.1

 

Here we can see the flooding at the  rear of the houses at the junction of Kinnessburn Road and Melbourne Brae.

The Great Parasol Challenge

Umbrellas and parasols before repacking

Parasols and umbrellas before repacking

Over the last year, I have been working with two volunteers, Anne and Linda, to entirely repack our costume and textile collection.  This presented a huge challenge, previously there was no order to how the objects were packed - some boxes contained a quilt, a wedding dress, a victorian mourning gown, a pair of trainers and a top hat!

An early plan for parasol storage

One huge puzzle to us was what exactly to do with the parasols and umbrellas.  Previously they have been stored in an umbrella stand which had caused a few of them to deterioriate.  Space was a major consideration, so I was keen to use existing boxes on convert them into a suitable storage solution.

After consultation with the Scottish Conservation Studio at Hopetoun House, I came up with a plan which involved using plastazote to build supports inside acid free boxes. Another good resource for practical tips on packing parasols can be found here

So, on Tuesday the 9th October we set about putting this plan into action.  Thanks to all our careful preparation, the morning went exactly to plan, and the project has been a great success! First we built up two layers of plastazote.  We laid out the objects where we wanted them and drew outlines of them on the plastazote, and cut out the shape.  The umbrellas and parasols were then photographed and  wrapped loosely enough that they were not being forced closed, but tight enough to ensure that there was no strain being put on their spokes.  The wrappings also ensured that they don't touch eachother.  The ends were not sealed to ensure airflow into the interior.   Another two layers of plastazote were put on top, then a third on which we repated the process of drawing round the umbrellas and parasols.  You will notice that the boxes are not completely full to allow for the storage of some new parasols in the future. We do have some smaller and larger parasols, and some broken ones that will be packed into another box in a less standard arrangement.

All the parasols and umbrellas were photographed and await the addition of labels which will include their descriptions and photos, after which they should be safely stored for a longtime to come!

layer 1 pre-wrapping

layer 2 pre-wrapping

all wrapped up!

UPDATE!

Here are the parasols / umbrellas with their labels on:

 

 

 

The plastazote was bought from PEL, and we used their Neutral PH Adhesive to glue the supports together. 

Autumn Fair 2012

 

This Saturday, 1st September, The St Andrews Preservation Trust will be holding its Autumn Fair!   Stall include arts and crafts, cake and candy (yum!), bric a brac, second hand books, plants and vegetables, and lots more. 
Fingers crossed for sunshine, but if the weather is not in our favour, the Fair will be held accross the raod in All Saints Hall.