William Croft Dickinson, CBEMC (28 August 1897 – 22 May 1963) was a leading expert in the history of early modern Scotland and a writer of both children's fiction and adult ghost stories.
Dickinson was born in Leicester. He was raised in Yorkshire and educated at Mill Hill SchoolinLondon. He attended the University of St Andrews before in 1916 volunteering for the Black Watch. In Oct 1916 he was commissioned to the 45 Company Machine Gun Corps and awarded a Military Cross for 'conspicuous gallantry' in action near Ypres on 31 July 1917. He returned to St Andrews in 1919, graduating with a First Class Degree in History in 1921.[1]
In the earlier years of his academic career Dickinson was influenced by his St Andrews's supervisor, J. D. Mackie. Dickinson's published scholarship focused on editing the court books of early modern sheriff courts (on which his PhD research was based).[2]
In 1923, at the invitation of William Beveridge, Dickinson moved to the London School of Economics (LSE) to take up the post of assistant secretary. His career in university administration saw him appointed in 1933 to the position of joint - and then two years later sole - librarian of the British Library of Political and Economical Sciences at the LSE.[1]
During the 1930s, Dickinson continued to publish on the records of Scotland and in 1943 he was appointed Sir William Fraser Professor of Scottish History and Palaeography at the University of Edinburgh, the oldest and most distinguished Scottish history professorship in the world. Dickinson - the first English-born occupant of the Chair - held the post longer than anyone before or since.[3]
In this phase of his career, the focus of Dickinson's work shifted in the direction of the Scottish Reformation and general works for students, but he continued to pursue major editorial projects, including the writings of John Knox and the records of the medievalburghofAberdeen.[2]
In addition to his personal scholarship, Dickinson was a long-standing member of the committee which oversaw the running of Edinburgh University Press and worked to build up and raise the profile of The Scottish Historical Review, widely regarded today as the world's leading periodical for current research on Scottish history. His successor in the Fraser Chair, Gordon Donaldson, considered Dickinson's efforts with the Scottish Historical Review, to be his most important contribution to Scottish history.[4]
Dickinson was also a key member of the Scottish Records Advisory Council from 1944 onwards. The Council has been hailed for its important role in helping to pave the way for the Public Registers and Records (Scotland) Act of 1948, which created an independent Scottish Records Office.[2]
Alongside his academic writings, Dickinson was an accomplished author of children's fantasy stories as well as traditional ghost stories for readers of all ages, publishing a number of books during his time in the Fraser Chair.[5]
In 2017, Dickinson's collection Dark Encounters: A Collection of Ghost Stories was republished by Birlinn Books.[6]
Dickinson was conferred with a honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the University of St Andrews in 1952. He was made a CBE in the 1963 New Year honours list, just months before his sudden death.[7]
