Robert Anderson (i)

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Robert Anderson as Provost of the Lerwick Town Council.
Image kindly supplied by the Shetland Islands Council
Jock Henderson (Clerk of Works), Sheriff MacDonald, John H. Spence (Department of Education), Bingo Johnson, Dr. Hamilton, ?, Charles Brown, ?, ?, ?, Rev. Jim Blair, Robert A. Anderson, Bryan Davidson (County Architect), Peter Scollay

Robert Andrew 'Oily Bob' Anderson (b. 11 April 1903, Burravoe, Yell, d. 26 June 1967, Lerwick) was an oil depot surveyor and a Lerwick Town Councillor, having been Provost between 1950 and 1953.

Town Council Obituary Notes

He was first elected as a Labour Candidate in 1943, and became provost between 1950-3. In 1960, he was appointed honorary treasurer of the Council. It is noted that he "seldom arrived at a meeting without his homework done. It was seldom one could challenge his authority: he always pulled facts from somewhere to prove his point.

In 1965 he was awarded Freeman of the Burgh (and remains the only individual to have had held this title).

Political Career

External Links

Provosts
Preceded by
James Aitken
JJ Aitken Headshot.png
Provost
for Lerwick Town Council

1950-1953
Succeeded by
George Burgess
George Burgess Headshot.png
Leaders of the Lerwick Town Council
Councillors Arthur Edmondston (1818-1823) • Charles Ogilvy Snr (1823-1827) • William Spence (1827-1832) • Charles Ogilvy Jr (1832-1844) • Joseph Leask (1844-1847) • William Sievwright Snr (1847-1856) • Charles Duncan (1856-1862) • Joseph Leask (1862-1865) • Charles Duncan (1865-1874) • William Sievwright Jr (1874-1876) • Thomas Cameron (1876-1883) • John Robertson (1883-1890) • Charles Robertson (1890-1895) • John Leisk (1895-1904) • James Goudie (1904-1907) • Arthur Porteous (1907-1910) • Arthur Laing (1910-1913) • Robert Stout (1913-1915) • Peter Goodlad (1915-1920) • Robert D. Ganson (1920-1924) • James Laing (1924-1927) • John Sinclair (1927-1930) • William Sinclair (1930-1933) • Robert Ollason (1933-1936) • James A. Smith (1936-1941) • Magnus Shearer (1941-1946) • James Aitken (1946-1950) • Robert A. Anderson (1950-1953) • George Burgess (1953-1956) • William Conochie (1956-1959) • Robert Blance (1959-1962) • Harry Gray (1962-1965) • Andrew Nicolson (1965-1967) • Eric Gray (1967-1971) • Bill Smith (1971-1974) • James Taylor (1974-1975)