Kilrenny and Anstruther Burgh Collection

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Kilrenny and Anstruther Burgh Collection

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Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Kilrenny and Anstruther Burgh Collection, Nonprofit Organization, East Neuk Centre, Ladywalk, Anstruther.

The Burgh Collection is a local heritage society and community archive - we collect, store, publish and exhibit material related to Anstruther, Cellardyke and Kilrenny, past and present.

21/10/2026

Alistair Moffat spoke about his new book at Toppings, St Andrews last night. The Assassins in the title refer to the Auxiliary Units which, in the event of German invasion in 1940-41 would go to ground and then carry out sabotage and assassination behind enemy lines. Underground bunkers were filled with guns, silencers ,grenades and explosives. Although not mentioned in this book, we know about the East Neuk patrols through the fascinating recollections of Bob Cathcart, builder, Anstruther who not only became Area Commander for Fife , but travelled all over the north of Scotland to oversee the building of Observational Bases. Given how little was ever reported about this invisible army we should be grateful that his story was put into print by his daughter some years ago, and deserves to be even more widely known.

13/10/2026

A reminder that we have two talks coming up this week and next. Kevin Dunion is giving the AIA Anster Nicht Talk, this Thursday 15th, 7.30 pm Dreel Halls on the contrasting fortunes of Brodie family, as it helped make Anstruther famous for the best hand -forged golf clubs in the world. Then next week, Wednesday 21st, Anstruther Lower Town Hall, Malcolm MacDonald's talk on Old Anstruther takes us through familiar streets, uncovering their past history. (Malcolm is well-known for giving many similar talks on old Cellardyke, and is now moving west!)

05/10/2026

A date for your diary- a talk by our Chair Kevin Dunion
AIA Anster Nicht: Battling Brodies
Thursday 15th October, 7.30pm, Dreel Halls
Robert Brodie set up his blacksmith's forge in Anstruther in the early 1860s. His son, Robert Jnr, and later grandson, David, made the name Brodie synonymous with one of the most famous hand-forged cleek foundries in the world. Whilst Robert Jnr later became the last Provost of Anstruther Wester, other members of the family gained notoriety, which for some ultimately ended in tragedy. This talk by Kevin Dunion, author, historian and Chair of the Kilrenny and Anstruther Burgh Collection, follows the fortunes of the Brodie family- intertwined with their role in the development of golf in Anstruther.
(AIA Members - free and non-members £3).

31/08/2026

We attracted a lot of interested visitors to our stall at the community event in Anstruther Town Hall on Saturday, as part of the programme for the Harbour Festival. We were happy to chat about our local history activities. And thank you to those who bought our books. ( If you could not make it you can order books online from our website https://anstrutherburghcollection.org/shop/ )

24/06/2026

Sharing Our Stories

Attention all groups/clubs/societies in the East Neuk

Are you planning a programme of meetings for 2026-27?

With our outreach sessions we can visit your meeting to share pictures and objects from our Collection with your group. We can bring themed or general items to share their stories, and we invite your members to bring items and photographs from their own family history, or historic items associated with your group or activity. Contact us for more information. [email protected]

01/05/2026

Today is the 35th anniversary of the blaze which destroyed Chalmers Church. So many photographs in our collection can be roughly dated as to whether the Anstruther skyline is dominated by the massive building and spire. Almost nothing from the interior could be saved (although we do have a gas bracket!). The stained glass roundels had been removed and installed in St Ayle/ St Adrians East Neuk Church.

13/04/2026

We were pleased to share our resources and recollection of the Regal cinema with Isabella and Willa, students in the Dept. of Film Studies , Univ. of St. Andrews. One thing we were strangely hazy about was whether smoking was allowed and if the kiosk sold ci******es?
(PS the red item in the foreground is not a royal robe but the curtains rescued from the Empire Cinema !)

09/04/2026

Mary Latto, Robert Moncrieff's wife had her photo taken with her two surviving children, Euphemia and William (who is Alex Watson's. grandfather) at J.S. Ireland's studio on Shore Street. The bill for '9 small photos' was 5/-, which was paid on 4 Nov. 1893.

(See previous posts about J.S Ireland, who operated from the studio from 1889 until it burnt down in 1906.)

09/04/2026

Alex Watson found a stash of old bills and invoices, from Cellardyke and Anstruther businesses, in the bottom of his Moncrieff family's grandfather clock This one, from J. Butters , 7-11 John Street, Cellardyke covering the period Sept-Dec 1904 is typical, detailing each item and giving confirmation that the bill is paid. This was done by the shopkeeper signing over a penny stamp (in this case with the image of Edward VII , which first went on sale in 1902, after he succeeded Queen Victoria. Note that the bill is made out to Robert Moncrieff Latto - Mary Latto was his wife, and the use of a maiden name was used to distinguish between other customers of the same name.

09/04/2026

Spent a fascinating hour with Alex Watson going through a collection of family photos and documents. His great - grandfather was Robert Moncrieff, Skipper of the White Queen. (Robert is 5th from left below ) . The boat was originally built as a yacht in 1897 for Mr J Gordon Stewart, Calcutta. It is thought that the name refers to the Scottish missionary Mary Slessor who was sometimes referred to as the 'White Queen of Calabar' (or 'of Okoyong')

Address

East Neuk Centre, Ladywalk
Anstruther
KY103EX

Website

http://www.anstrutherburghcollection.org/

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