Identity of thief who stole thousands of historic documents revealed

A Scottish thief who stole thousands of historical documents has been identified decades after his crimes took place.

National Records of Scotland archivists believe Professor David Macmillan’s spree took place between 1949 and 1980.

The academic had worked for the Scottish Record Office in Edinburgh from 1949 to 1950 but continued to make annual visits to the to the NRS archives as a user from 1969 until 1980.

Suspicions arose when he was caught taking a single item in an NRS building and his access was immediately revoked.

A number of items were recovered through a private sale in 1994 following the deaths of Macmillan and his wife, however, the full scale of the thefts became apparent in 2012.

A researcher saw a reference in an online catalogue at Trent University in Canada to an item which he thought may have belonged in Scotland and raised concerns. Subsequent research by NRS archivists, working with colleagues in Trent, uncovered around 2900 items which had been stolen by Macmillan.

Letter from Alex Robson, Funchall, Madeira to his friend George Waldie, Newcastle, regarding safe arrival at Funchall and news and gossip from there.<br>”/><cite class=cite>Email</cite></div><figcaption aria-hidden=true> Letter from Alex Robson, Funchall, Madeira to his friend George Waldie, Newcastle, regarding safe arrival at Funchall and news and gossip from there.<br> <cite class=hidden>Email</cite></figcaption></figure><p>These documents had been gifted to Trent University Archives after Macmillan’s death.</p><p>Through collaboration between NRS and Trent University, the documents were successfully repatriated to Scotland in 2015. Since then, NRS archivists have been working to return the thousands of items to the archives, as well as carrying out an extremely detailed audit of the collections held which were accessed by Macmillan.</p><p>Archivists believe the professor stole at least 3,330 individual items.</p><p>Around 3,100 items have been returned to the NRS. Around 500 of the documents had been stolen directly from other institutions across the UK. These organisations included The National Archives, the University of Aberdeen, Glasgow City Archives, the University of Glasgow, the University of Edinburgh and the National Library of Scotland.</p><p>Alison Byrne, chief executive of NRS, said: “These historical thefts were on an unprecedented scale and carried out we believe by one individual who was a regular visitor to the institutions he stole from.</p><p>“Thanks to the highly detailed and painstaking work of NRS archivists, we have been able to restore these records to their original collections and ensure they are available for study once again.</p><p>“We have also been working closely with the other institutions affected by these thefts to ensure their items are also returned to their rightful collections.”</p><figure class=wp-block-image><div class=relative><img loading=lazy decoding=async src=https://prod.news.stv.tv/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/becf544ea35ecd2794fc31a0d00af8f6-1742892629.jpg width=1920 height=1080 srcset= — Letter from Ninian Jeffrey [Factor on Coigach], New Kelso to Henry Barclay, Secretary to the Commission for Annexed Estates, Edinburgh, concerning building a school and schoolhouse . National Records of Scotland

Karen Suurtamm, university archivist and head of special collections at Trent University added: “The successful repatriation of these items is a testament to the productive collaboration between Trent University and NRS over many years and to the dedication and expertise of archivists who carefully steward these collections.

“This is meticulous work that ensures valued historical and cultural materials are preserved and properly documented, so they can return to their rightful homes. Archives play a critical role in supporting researchers, and maintaining the integrity and security of our vast collections ensures the integrity of academic study and discovery.”