Burns

Robert Burns' Burgess Ticket

Period:

18th Century Georgian Period

Date:

4 June 1787

Description:

Robert Burns' first contact with Dumfries came in 1787 during his tour of the Borders with his friend, Robert Ainslie.

 

Following the success of the Kilmarnock edition of his poems his fame travelled before him.  The Town Council of Dumfries resolved to make him an honorary burgess, or freeman, of the town, little knowing at the time that he would one day come to live there.  A burgess ticket was a considerable asset to an inhabitant of the town, allowing merchants and craftsmen to trade and entitling their children to education in the town's academy.

Place of Production:

Dumfries

Materials/Media:

paper, textile, ribbon

Dimensions:

length 218mm, width 279mm

Source:

Robert Burns Centre

Accession Number:

DUMFM:0198.23

Digital Number:

BCBN061a; BCBN061b

Copyright:

Dumfries & Galloway Council