Museum of the Scottish Shale Oil Industry facts for kids

A temporary display at the Museum of the Scottish Shale Oil Industry

The Museum of the Scottish Shale Oil Industry helps us learn about the history of making oil from a special rock called shale. It opened in 1990 in Scotland, near Livingston. The museum is part of the Almond Valley Heritage Centre, which is a fun place with a farm and play area.

What is the Museum?

The museum is located inside the main building of the Almond Valley Heritage Centre. It's where you first arrive! Here, you can explore the story of how people used to get oil from shale rock. This industry was very important in Scotland for many years.

A copy of an old display case from Young's Paraffin Light & Oil Company

What Can You See?

The museum has many interesting items that tell the story of the shale oil industry. These items are grouped into different collections.

Main Collections

• Scottish Shale Oil Collection: This collection started when the museum opened in 1990. It has lots of objects, old photos, and maps. All these items show what life was like for people working in the shale industry.
• Reference Collection: This collection works alongside the main one. It mostly has copies of photos and documents. These are useful for research, even if we don't always know exactly where they came from.
• BP Archive: In 2013, the University of Warwick gave this collection to the museum. It has many documents and photos. These mostly focus on six shale oil companies that were still running in the 1910s. It also includes information about the company that later took them over.

Online Access

The museum is working hard to put almost all of its collection online. This means you will soon be able to see many of the items from home! Volunteers help a lot with this important project.

Exhibitions and Displays

The museum has different displays that you can explore.

Permanent Exhibition

There is a main exhibition that is always there. It tells the full story of the shale industry. You can learn about how the oil was made and what life was like for the workers and their families.

Temporary Exhibitions

The museum also has special exhibitions that change every few months. These temporary displays focus on different topics. In the past, they have shown things about games like Quoiting, the sad Burngrange Disaster, and even pit ponies that worked in the mines.

A special exhibition put together by museum volunteers

Sometimes, museum volunteers create these special exhibitions. They choose objects from the collection that are meaningful to them.

Museum Recognition

The museum's collection is considered very important. It is known as a "Nationally Significant Collection." This means it holds items that are very important to the history of Scotland. The museum is also "Accredited," which means it meets high standards for how it looks after its collections and welcomes visitors.