Mark Smith
Mark Smith is our Archives Assistant and has worked in the archives since 2006.
He did his PhD at the University of Glasgow, writing a thesis about the history of literature in Shetland. His book on the subject came out in 2014.
Articles written by Mark Smith
Old style islands courtships
We’re warming ourselves up to the idea of Valentine’s Day. Some might say Shetlanders are not renowned for being romantics and ...
Read more
National Poetry Day
To celebrate National Poetry Day we asked assistant archivist (and poet) Mark Smith to uncover a hidden gem from the archives. This ...
Read more
Hugh MacDiarmid's poetry - taking inspiration from Shetland's herring industry
In the summer of 1933 a man called Christopher Murray Grieve came to live in Whalsay. Originally from the Scottish borders, he had ...
Read more
Celebrating World Book Day with Shetland's Oldest Known Book - Boece
For anyone who wants to read about Shetland, the archives is a good place to come. Our book collection, we like to think, is perhaps ...
Read more
Origins of the Up Helly Aa Song
A huge procession of torch-carrying guizers is one of the most spectacular sights of the Shetland year. For anyone who heads out in ...
Read more
Northwest Passage
On the 26th of June 1576, three ships anchored near St Ninian’s Isle. These were the Gabriel, a twenty-five tonne barque, the ...
Read more
The Shetland Archives - behind the searchroom
In the Shetland archives, we are lucky to have an enormous collection of our recent-forebears on tape. There are recordings of men and ...
Read more
Social Networking in the 1940s
Anyone reading this blog is used to sharing information and connecting with people online. We take it for granted that, if we want to ...
Read more
One Piece at a Time
From teapots to lepidoptera, there is a place for objects, large or small, in Shetland’s Museum and Archives’ collection. Here, ...
Read more