Papers of George Neilson, 1858-1923, legal historian

Press cuttings, scrapbooks and letters, mainly relating to Neilson's academic work and discussiong topics such as philology and early Scottish Literature. Also included are a small number of historical documents from earlier centuries, such as documents connected with Mary Queen of Scots and Mary of Guise.

George Neilson was born in 1858  and was educated at King William's College on the Isle of Man. He passed as a law-agent in 1881  an in 1889 became a Fellow of the Scottish Academy as well as President of the Glasgow Juridical Society. From 1891-1910  he was Procurator Fiscal of Police of Glasgow, and then from 1910-1923  he was Stipendiary Magistrate of Glasgow. He obtained an honorary LLD from the University of Glasgow in 1903 . Neilson held a number of offices in public life. He was President of the Glasgow Archaeological Society from 1907-1911 , President of the Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow 1913-1915  and of the Walter Scott Club 1914-1918 , as well as Rhind Lecturer in Archaeology in 1912 . He published several books during his life, including: Trial by Combat in 1890, Annals of Solway in 1899 and the Alliterative Poet in 1902.

The arrangement of this material reflects the original order in which it was received

Open

Presented by T.S. Ferguson, one of the executors of George Neilson, through E L G Stones. Received by Professor Stones, April 1965; transferred to University Library, 6 January 1970.

Most of the historical and literary manuscripts purchased by Neilson were sold shortly after his death and are now in the National Library of Scotland.

Item level descriptions are available via the department's online manuscripts catalogue available at the University of Glasgow Library, Department of Special Collections http://special.lib.gla.ac.uk/manuscripts/, searching by the call number MS Gen 1114, 510/9, 522/45.

No known copies

Applications for permission to quote should be sent to the Keeper of Special Collections.

Reproduction subject to usual conditions: educational use and condition of documents.

This material has been appraised in line with standard GB 247 procedures

Formerly in the custody of T S Ferguson, one of the executors of George Neilson

None expected

Inventory, compiled by T W Graham from a preliminary list by E L G Stones, in box 6; E L G Stones, George Neilson (1858-1923): a memoir, Miscellany One, Stair Society (Edinburgh, 1971), pp1-10.

This material is original

No known publications using this material

Fonds level description compiled by Andrew Thomson, Hub Project Archivist, 11 March 2005