Aberdeen Outport and District Records

Scope and Content

CE87/4/41, Register of Wreck Depositions and Casualty Returns 1930-1973

CE87/4/42-44, Schedule Book of Receipt on account of wreck and salvage and fees, 1887-1973

CE87/4/45 Register of Casualties Reported and Papers Received, 1945-1973

CE87/11/1-22 Registers of Shipping, 1824-1927

CE87/11/23-24 Indexes to Registers of Shipping

CE87/11/25-29 Register of transactions relating to ships registered, 1855-1929

CE87/11/30 Abstract of Ships Registered at Aberdeen, 1844-1857

CE87/11/31 Appropriation Book for official numbers of British Registered Ships, 1853-1977

CE87/11/32-44 Register of Sea Fishing Vessels, 1818-1964

CE87/11/45-46 Annual Return of Fishing Boats, 1953-1982

CE87/11/47-51 Register of Sea Fishing Boats, Port of Aberdeen, 1930-1989

CE87/4/38-40 Fees and Deeds Books, 1944-1984

Administrative / Biographical History

Ships and fishing boats must be registered in a port of registry before they can be navigated. Local customs officers frequently maintained shipping registers and sea fishing boat registers on behalf of the Registrar-General of Seamen from 1786, and surviving registers of these ports are included among the Customs and Excise records. Though the information contained in shipping registers can vary, they usually record the names of ships, their owners and changes in ownership, the ship's master and a basic description of the vessel, including the year it was built and its size and tonnage.

Access Information

Open

Open for consultation at our Town House site, open Wed-Fri 9:30-12:30 and 13:30-16:30. It is advisable to make an appointment.

Other Finding Aids

Please see the Aberdeen City & Aberdeenshire Archives catalogue at https://archives.aberdeencity.gov.uk/CalmView/

Archivist's Note

Aberdeen customs district originally covered not only the area immediately off Aberdeen City's coast, but also the creeks of Catterline, Crawton, Dunnottar, Stonehaven, Skateraw, Findon Cove, Newburgh, Slains, Boddam, Peterhead, Rattray Head, Cairnbulg, Fraserburgh, Rosehearty, Banff, Portsoy and Cullen.

Custodial History

The records are retained under Charge and Superintendence from the National Records of Scotland.

Related Material

Only items CE87/4/38-43 and CE87/11/1-51 are held here in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives. Other Aberdeen Outport and District records have been retained by the National Records of Scotland. Customs records prior to 1830 are to be found in the Exchequer records under the reference GB/234/E501-E515.