The records of Edinburgh’s Dean of Guild Court provide a remarkable collection of drawings, reports and correspondence tracing the development of the capital, site by site. These provide fascinating insights, not least on the construction of the New Town.
The Old Edinburgh Club has funded research by Dr Joe Rock to create an Annotated Catalogue of Petitions to the Dean of Guild Court (like planning and building control applications) covering 1700 to 1824 and is supporting work to make these records searchable online, by property address, year and applicant.
Dr Rock has now completed his mammoth task and we are very grateful for his efforts. The Catalogue contains details of 9,012 petitions accompanied by 3,932 drawings!
Exploring Edinburgh's progress
This is a great resource not only for built environment professionals who need access to the records for buildings still standing but also for many others.
The Catalogue covers a period of great development of the city, including the development of the New Town.
It is rich in social history and family historians will be able to find details of a wide range of individuals, not just property owners, but tenants, neighbours and other people associated with particular locations.
Should you wish, you will be able to view the individual records by arrangement with the Edinburgh City Archives in the City Chambers on the High Street when the service re-opens early in 2026.
PDF copies of Dr Rock’s catalogue are available for download. Please beware that the file sizes are large. There are three parts:
Dean of Guild Catalogue: part one – Introduction and records from 1700 to 1769;
Dean of Guild Catalogue: part two – 1770 to 1799; and
Dean of Guild Catalogue: part three – 1800 to 1824.
More recent records
Dean of Guild drawings and Building Warrant plans submitted since 1880 can be accessed directly through the City Council Building Standards Store.