We have had an enquiry from a project to study and record local lock-ups. The team write:

Your Local Lock-Up; a public engagement project that aims to compile data on any place or structure used for temporary imprisonment between the 16th and early 20th centuries.  These structures could include purpose-built lock-ups, police stations, cells in town halls or courthouses, workhouses, stocks and even rooms in pubs where prisoners were guarded overnight.  The accused might have been held there until they appeared before a magistrate, or the structures could even have been used by the community to punish anyone misbehaving in the parish.

For further information or to contribute, see the more detailed information attached.

This volume has just been published. Some copies will be available for sale (£12 each which includes free membership of Forth Naturalist and Historian) at the meeting on 28 Nov.
The volume includes the usual bird and weather reports and several 'naturalist' articles. More specifically historical are the following:
Roy Sexton on the historical and modern vegetation around Stirling Castle

John Harrison on the Stirling Field and Archaeological Society [1879-1939]

S Black on Pathfoot, the lost village of shoemakers

Cook, M. The Cotter in the King's Park: observations on Stirling's Royal Park Dyke

Dickie, M, The Development and Decline of the Craigrie Lade [Clackmannan]

Wood A. and Dingwall R., Stone Blocks and Iron Rails [remains of railways around Clackmannan/ Alloa].

If you would like one of the limited number of copies we will have at the meeting, it would be good if you could contact use in advance at enquire@stirling-lhs.org. Otherwise, they are also on sale at the Smith bookstall or via the Forth Naturalist and Historian website.

Our last meeting of 2019 will be at 7.30pm on Thursday 29 Nov. The speaker will be Dr Lachlan Munro on “The Scenery of Dreams: The true story of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped".
Few literary figures are more closely tied to Stirling and the area than RLS. And in this case, not only the author but the hero and the tale are crucially tied.  Dr Munro has recently published a book about this topic and we are confident of an authorative and interesting presentation - with the option to purchase a copy of the book, too!
As usual, all are welcome though we ask visitors to pay £2.50 towards costs; members and students free.
Download the flyer here.

New and old members and guests are all welcome at the first meeting of the new season at 7.30pm on Thursday 26th September in the Smith Museum and Art Gallery.
The speaker will be John Harrison, the title 'New Light on Old Houses; Stirling's Broad Street'.
Until the early 20th century Broad Street presented a truly impressive streetscapes with the north side recently argued to be the most important in Scotland. This talk will try to penetrate behind the facades the well-known photographs to examine the interiors of the houses (where, after all, the people actually lived) It will look at the evonution of the street and the house styles.
Yu can join on the night or download the form from the website. We ask visitors for a modest contribution.
Download further details from the flyer here.

This annual conference is always one to look out for and this year's event looks particulary interesting, with its theme of Natives and Incomers and its time span from the pre-historic to the contemporary. It covers aspects of human and non-human ecology, change and diversity.
One of the great attractions of the day is to allow non-specialusts to hear about current work by experts . Consistent with that, this year's speakers include some very accomplished and knowledgeable people, working in suerpficially unconnected areas. The Forth Naturalist and Historian annual journal will also be launched at the meeting.

The flyer and booking form are attached. SLHS is affiliated to FNH and the event is highly recommended.
booking_form_draft_3.pdf

Channel 4 will be showing a programme in this series (with Professor Alice Roberts) on Saturday 22 June at 8pm. And it will feature Stirling (and some faces which may be familiar to some readers!). It is an hour programme and will cover a range of issues, though the focus  is on the Stewarts prior to 1603. it gets a whole hour and I gather that it covers quite a range of aspects of local life.
https://www.channel4.com/tv-guide/2019/06/22

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We have a few events coming up at the Battle of Bannockburn over the next few months. We will be celebrating the 705th anniversary of the Battle of Bannockburn on the 15th and 16th June with a battle camp re-enactment. There will be family friendly activities including hobby-horse jousting and storytelling as well as timed re-enactment performances of the events of the Battle of Bannockburn.
 
We also have an Archaeology Lecture Series coming up which will start on the 4th June with Maya Hoole who will be talking about the Ava Beaker Burial Project.  You may have heard about this project in the news: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-36923891

You can find more about the lectures by clicking here.

And for the other events by clicking here.

Amongst the most important royal rituals to take place at Stirling Castle was the baptism of Mary, Queen of Scots infant son, the future James VI, on 17 Dec 1566.
Our speaker for the meeting on Thursday 25 April will be Peter Pearson. As usual the meeting begins at 7.30pm in the Smith Art Gallery and Museum. We ask visitors to pay £2.50 towards costs. You can download the flier for the meeting here.

The talk will be preceded by a short AGM to tie up the year's activities.

Bannockburn House is one of the most important historic mansions in the Stirling area. For many years it has been in a somewhat parlous state. Now, however, a group are working to save it and find viable uses.
At our meeting on 28 March at 7.30 pm , in the Smith Art Gallery and Museum, Alan Clater will talk about Bannockburn House - past, present and future.
All are welcome. We ask visitors for a donation of £2.50 to cover costs. The meetings usually finish by 9pm and are illustrated.
Find further details on the flyer.