Bob McCutcheon
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Bob McCutcheon | |
|---|---|
 McCutcheon in his bookstore in 1999 | |
| Born | 21 October 1939 |
| Died | 31 August 2002 (aged 62) |
| Occupation | Author, historian, publisher |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Years active | 1960s–2000 |
| Spouse | Barbara |
Robert McCutcheon (21 October 1939 – 31 August 2002) was an author, publisher and historian from Stirling, Scotland. He wrote and had published several books on the history of Stirling, including Notes for a New History of Stirling (1985), Stirling's Neebour Villages (1986) and Pictures from the Past (1989). In 1986, he wrote a history of Stirling which was published in the Stirling Observer for its 150th anniversary.
He was also a book dealer, and owned an antiquarian bookshop.
Selected bibliography
Known as "an oracle for the history of Stirling", McCutcheon opened an antiquarian bookshop in the city in the 1960s. Its first location was in the Craigs, then in Spittal Street and, finally, at 55 Baker Street. In July 1999, he was interviewed in its final location, The Bookshop, for A Stirling Performance, a documentary which followed the city's preparation for R.E.M.'s three-night stand at Stirling Castle. The documentary was included on the band's 2004 DVD Perfect Square. "My interest in music tended to stop when Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper were killed. And when Eddie Cochran went, that was it; I'm strictly kind of a '50s person." He also noted that shows at the castle adversely affected businesses such as his because locals tend to "shy away" from the top of the town, the area near the castle, and shop in the city centre or outlying areas. "People going to a pop concert, even if they've got an interest, are not going to come in to buy a book and then carry it to the concert with them."[1]
The shops included local memorabilia, prints, paintings, rare chapbooks and a bust of Sir Walter Scott.[2] He also loaned items, including photographs, from his personal collection to local museums and historical societies.[2] The photographs were sourced from publications such as Vues Pittoresques de l'Ecosse (F. A. Pernot), 1827; Pictorial History of Scotland (James Taylor), 1859; Border Antiquities of England and Scotland (Walter Scott), 1814; and Scotland Illustrated (Dr William Beattie, T. Alcom, W. H. Bartlett and H. McCulloch), 1838.[3]