The Linlithgow Embroidery Project

During lockdown, Christine Anderson, owner of the local Patchwork shop and a well-known figure in Linlithgow, took the opportunity to set about capturing Linlithgow High Street as it was when she and her friends were young. The result is The Linlithgow Embroidery, which captures the beauty of our historic buildings.

Linlithgow is renowned for its many historic buildings, and sadly, a number of these buildings have been demolished. Christine wanted to preserve their memory, and has captured them in embroidery form. She used her needle and thread like a paint brush, sewing directly onto calico linen.

There are 6 panels, each measuring 70 x 200cm, are in blockwork using brown embroidery thread to pick out the buildings. She has also included some well-known figures from yesteryear, and some comments on life in the street. The embroideries are a unique and irreplaceable snapshot of Linlithgow life and our stunning local architecture.

The Linlithgow Embroidery Project

Linlithgow Civic Trust and Linlithgow Museum have come together to for a project working group, the Linlithgow Embroidery Project, with the aim of conserving and displaying these unique artworks for the benefit of Linlithgow and its buildings.

We want to ensure that generations to come can view how Linlithgow High Street once looked, and this will involve getting the 6 embroidery panels professionally stretched, mounted, and framed.

The Linlithgow Embroidery Project working group will use the experience of the Linlithgow Museum staff and volunteers to promote and share the history captured by the embroidery, and the project management expertise of Linlithgow Civic Trust to raise the necessary funds to secure the future of the Embroidery.

The Working Group is already collaborating with other local organisations, such as the One Linlithgow BID, and Linlithgow Community Development Trust, as well as local councillors.

We have now secured permission from West Lothian Council to display the Embroidery permanently in the Linlithgow Partnership Centre (Tam Dalyell House), just outside of the Linlithgow Museum. Together with a new oral history project, they form an important retelling of the history of the High Street buildings, and of those who lived, worked and played in the street many years ago.

The oral history project, organised by the Linlithgow Museum, captures local people telling of their memories of the High Street. We have already 9 hours of recording, working with 14 volunteers, with more volunteers wishing to share their reminiscences. The stories are both fascinating and amusing. This will be edited and made into a form suitable to accompany the exhibition.