Papers of Jeannie Robertson
Scope and Contents
The collection is largely composed of circa 160 letters from Robertson to the poet Hamish Henderson (1919-2002). It also contains her equity card and a recording contract.
Dates
- Creation: 1954-1956
Language of Materials
Scots, English.
Conditions Governing Access
Generally open for consultation to bona fide researchers, but please contact repository for details in advance.
Biographical / Historical
The Scottish traditional folk singer Jeanie Robertson was born in 1908. She was from a travelling family from the North East of Scotland. Robertson sang in the old style having learned most of her songs through the oral tradition of her family. Her singing was featured on the 1959 LPJeanie Robertson, The Great Traditional Ballad Singer.Her mother was Marie Stewart from Ballater a small town on rural Deeside, Aberdeenshire, and with the Robertsons on her fathers side she was part of two old travelling dynasties. Widely regarded as a seminal figure in music culture of Scotland's travelling people Jeanie was a contemporary of Jimmy McBeth, Belle Stewart and Flora MacNeil. In recognition of her services to traditional music she was awarded the MBE in 1968. Jeanie Robertson died on 13 March 1975.
Extent
160 letters (1 folder)
Physical Location
E89.92
Other Finding Aids
Important finding aids generally are: the alphabetical Index to Manuscripts held at Edinburgh University Library, Special Collections and Archives, consisting of typed slips in sheaf binders and to which additions were made until 1987; and the Index to Accessions Since 1987.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Material acquired from H. Henderson, School of Scottish Studies, Edinburgh University, December 1989, Accession no. E89.92
Accruals
Check the local Indexes for details of any additions.
- Title
- Letters of Jeanie Robertson (1908-1975)
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the University of Edinburgh Library Heritage Collections Repository
Centre for Research Collections
University of Edinburgh Main Library
George Square
Edinburgh EH8 9LJ Scotland
+44(0)131 650 8379
heritagecollections@ed.ac.uk