A children’s charity has opened an archive of records on the former Aberlour Orphanage after receiving a donation from a former resident.
The catalogue of records from Aberlour Children’s Charity has been compiled by Stirling University.
Ron Aitchison, who was cared for by Aberlour Orphanage in the 1950s and 60s, donated some of his own records.
The children’s charity originated at the home in the Speyside village before moving to their current base in Stirling.
Mr Aitchison said: “I have been in touch with Aberlour Children’s Charity for many years, however, for one reason or another, I had never reached the stage of handing over my archive.
“When Aberlour said they were giving their archive material to the University of Stirling, I was very keen to be involved in that.”
The project took a year to complete, with experts at the university painstakingly restoring and preserving hundreds of documents, including photographs, case files and annual reports.
Issues of the charity’s magazine are now also accessible.
‘Important and personal documents’
The archive is fully searchable, accessible to those with connections to the town, or the research team.
Born in Edinburgh, Mr Aitchison spent 14 years at the orphanage, moving back to the area in his late 50s with his wife following a successful career in the automotive industry.
He has given many talks about his experiences, and collected a considerable amount of material related to the orphanage.
He added: “When I look at the material that I have, some goes back to the 1920s and one item, goes back to 1871.
“There’s one particular file where you can more or less follow my route through orphanage life, from beginning to end.
“It’s a very important and personal document to me, but it’s something I’m pleased to share with the University.”
Chief executive of Aberlour Children’s Charity, SallyAnn Kelly explained the archive is significant because many who spent time in care have no record of their time there.
She said: “We often speak to people who have been brought up in the care system, or have some experience of care, and they often don’t have much of a written record of what their life was like.
“The archive really provides people looked after at Aberlour with the fullest possible account of their life.”
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