About Us
In The Beginning
The late 1970s and early 1980s had seen a build-up of vehicles for preservation in Scotland, which were generally stored in places like farms and bus depots. An initial approach to preservationists about a combined storage/museum set-up was met with a favourable response - until then they had been working in small groups or on their own - and the hunt was on for suitable premises.
Premises were found in Whitburn - mid-way between Glasgow and Edinburgh - in the shape of a shed large enough to accommodate forty buses and we moved in during the summer of 1986. The museum's neighbour was an expanding dairy business, and in 1994 they bought the museum site. Once again, we were on the hunt for new premises.
Our Home
Lathalmond, an ex-Royal Navy stores depot, came on the market and seemed an ideal site. We bought the East side of the site (approximately 45 acres) and the Scottish Vintage Bus Museum, as we know it, was born on 1st March 1995. Within three months the move from Whitburn was complete, and in September the first Open Day was a great success. - there are now around 190 vehicles housed at the museum.
The SVBM is run on a purely voluntary basis. Management is undertaken by the Management Group which consists of the trustees (the museum is a registered charity) plus a few invited members. On Sundays, the main 'work-days' at the museum, the place is a hive of industry, with people working on their own buses, helping others, carrying out site maintenance, etc. They also help out with any specific tasks pre-planned by the Management Group. For special occasions, the total membership is contacted with requests for volunteers.
Join the SVBM
Why not become a museum member? Membership entitles you to become involved in Museum activities from restoration of vehicles to meeting and greeting the visiting public, plus assisting in the many varied jobs required to keep the Museum operational.
You are also guaranteed free entry to all Museum events and at other reasonable times and to take part in various Museum trips, etc. You will also receive a quarterly magazine ‘Duplicate’.
To join, download the Membership Application and send it to the Membership Secretary, either at the address shown on the form, or to info@svbm.org.uk