Stromness Museum

Stromness Museum, one of Scotland’s oldest independent museums was founded in 1837 as part of the Orkney Natural History Society Museum. It holds a fascinating collection of objects and photographs that tell the story of how Orkney's communities have sourced and used energy over the centuries.

The museum's whaling gallery and large minke whale skull connect to the once-thriving whale oil industry that provided light and heat across Britain. The Sea Stories exhibition, open until April 2027 which was informed by the TRANSECTS project, explores how Orkney communities were part of this industry. Paraffin lamps used by Orkney’s lighthouse keepers show how kerosene later tookover from whale oil in lighthouses, keeping mariners safe along Orkney's coastline.

Coal was the backbone of domestic energy for generations, and the museum's collection of artefacts and photographs reflect the important role of coal ships and Stromness coal merchants in keeping the islands supplied through the long winter months. 

Historical photographs in the George Ellison collection show earlywind turbines used to pump water on Orkney farms. These are a reminder that harnessing the archipelago's wind power is not a recent idea, while the Thornley Binders smokeless fuel briquette represents a Stromness innovation in a semi-sustainable energy source, using seaweed, which resulted in the current Northlink ferry pier being constructed.

Together, these objects and stories trace Orkney's energy history from whale oil and coal to the wind power the islands are famous for today.