At the John Gray Centre, the East Lothian Council Archives service and the Local History Centre join up.

The Archives aim to inform, delight and engage. It is our responsibility to collect, care for and make accessible the historical records of East Lothian. As a result we hold a large collection of original source material going back almost 700 years. The collection includes manuscripts, minute books and images relating to many aspects of East Lothian’s history. We are also the repository for records of East Lothian Council and its predecessors. Looking to the future as well as the past, we are always looking to expand our collections and welcome digital as well as physical deposits.

The Local History Centre, previously based in Newton Port, continues at the John Gray Centre with a lovely large reading and study area, free wifi and computers as well as our team always on hand to help. We can assist with genealogy and local history enquiries from our collection of Old Parish Registers, Censuses, Monumental Inscriptions, Valuation Rolls, Sasines and newspapers.

Archives and Local History will be an excellent starting point for all your needs relating to the history and culture of East Lothian and provides many exciting opportunities for research. If you want to find out about your community, your house, your family or a particular organisation in East Lothian, the Archives and Local History service is the place to come. We can also do some research for you, and post or email our findings, though there is a small fee for this to cover our costs.