To celebrate the museum’s 50th anniversary, we focus on our local community to illuminate the last 50 years of the fishing industry charting the changes to the fleets, the harbours, the livelihoods and the lives of those who work to put fish on our tables.

4th July 2019 - 12 January 2020

The Scottish Fisheries Museum opened its doors on 4th July 1969. Over 50 years, it has recorded and revealed the changing face of one of Scotland’s national industries, the resource it depends upon and the communities it supports.

Since then, the number employed on Scottish fishing boats has halved. Numerous smaller harbours, including Anstruther, have been converted to use as yachting marinas while fishing has become concentrated on fewer, larger ports. This has, in turn, had an impact on the many businesses that once supported the fishing fleets.

And yet, today, seafood is celebrated as one of Scotland’s finest natural products. As well as the traditional fish and chips, Scottish shellfish is prized the world over. Those who work in the industry have to be adept at navigating complex technology, international politics and environmental issues to do a demanding yet rewarding job.

We draw on our unparalleled collection of information, photographs, objects and oral history to dive beneath the surface of this hidden story of change and renewal.