Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives houses the records of Aberdeen City Council and its predecessors dating back to the twelfth century. In addition, the Archives currently administers the records inherited by Aberdeenshire Council.

The holdings also include the records of local businesses, churches, charities, voluntary organisations and individuals, and the Assessor’s records for the Grampian Joint Valuation Board. Some records are held under the Charge and Superintendence of the Keeper of the Records of Scotland. Public access to the archive's collections is facilitated in our Town House and Old Aberdeen search rooms.

Our major holdings are:

• Local authority records for the City, including those relating to the burghs of Aberdeen, Old Aberdeen and Woodside (Town House)
• The surviving records of local government administration in the former counties of Aberdeen, Banff & Kincardine and 19 burghs across Aberdeenshire (Old Aberdeen House)
• School and education records (Old Aberdeen House)
• Poor relief records (Old Aberdeen House)
• Burial records for City cemeteries (Town House)
• Architectural drawings and papers relating to many City buildings (Old Aberdeen House)
• Registers of shipping and sea fishing vessels for the Port of Aberdeen (Town House)
• Burgh Register of Sasines (including Town Clerk’s Protocol Books) from 1484 - 1809 (Town House)
• Church records for the ‘City churches’ of the Church of Scotland, many of the congregational churches and a number of Episcopalian and Methodist congregations in both the City and Shire (Town House/Old Aberdeen House)
• Private records of individuals and businesses including Richards Limited, NORCO and Hall Russell
• Tax Lists listing inhabitants of the Burgh of Aberdeen from 1795-1860 (Town House) and Assessed Tax rolls for Aberdeen County 1799-1831 (Old Aberdeen House)
• Valuation Rolls and Registers of Electors (mostly Old Aberdeen House)

The Old Aberdeen House address is:

Dunbar Street
Aberdeen
AB24 3UJ