THE WATERFORD SCOUTS’ county log books have been donated to Waterford City and County Archives.

The donation of the books came about during National Heritage Week and were welcomed by the Mayor, Councillor Séamus Ryan. The event was held at Waterford Central Library in Lady Lane.

Dating from 1999, the volumes have been digitised and donated to the library, where they are available for the public to view. They track the meetings, tasks, and events of the scouts throughout the years, and contain photographs of their adventures.

Brian Fanning pictured with Waterford Mayor Councillor Séamus Ryan. Waterford Council Waterford Council

Speaking to The Journal, Ryan commended the efforts of Brian Fanning, who has been collating and documenting Waterford County Scouting in these log books for more than 20 years.

“It was my pleasure to accept them on behalf of Waterford city and county,” Ryan said.

“I think it’s important that we maintain the records of groups such as the scouts who have contributed greatly to life, not just in Waterford but right across the country. This is an opportunity for us as a city and county to maintain these records in public.

“I would hope that this would encourage other voluntary groups maybe to do something similar, and that we can get a collection of digitised records of various voluntary groups here in the city, be it in sporting, be it in the guides, be it in other scouting groups as well.”

In attendance on the night were Chief Scout of Ireland, Eoin Callanan and Waterford County Commissioner Seán Hayes.