Wednesday 31 August 2011

Make good use of the NAS catalogue


The National Archives of Scotland, which has recently merged with the General Register Office for Scotland to form the National Records of Scotland (NRS), holds some wonderful material; most of which is not accessible online. What is accessible online is their catalogue. It is vital to serious genealogy that we make use of this catalogue and the interesting records it relates to.

Graham and I are publishing some of the most useful and interesting records that we have found. We are starting with parish records of births, marriages and deaths that are not in the OPR’s for various reasons, but this is the tip of the iceberg.

We are in Edinburgh regularly and are familiar with all sorts of different types of records found in the NRS. Deeds, wills, court records, sasines (land records), valuation rolls, prison registers, church records and company records to name but a few.

If you search the catalogue and find an interesting document that you would like searched for your ancestors (or a client’s ancestors) email me for a free no obligation quote. The NRS can supply copies but do not conduct lengthy research, we can and we have the expertise to carry it out.

If you want a job done quickly you may have to pay a little more but if you’re happy to wait until I have a full days work a typical search based on a reference found in the online catalogue costs just twenty five pounds including copies.

Email me at info@maxwellancestry.com for more information.



Monday 22 August 2011

Census database updated - Kirkcowan 1851


We are continuing to transcribe the Wigtownshire census, and make it available both online and in book form. We have now added the parish of Kirkcowan for 1851 to our database - Search for free here!

Here's a list of the surnames found in the parish:

Adair; Agnew; Aillison; Aitken; Alexander; Alison; Allison; Anderson; Ball; Barr; Black; Blacky; Blain; Boyd; Bradley; Brodie; Brown; Burnie; Burns; Byron; Cameron; Campbell; Carson; Cavan; Charles; Christie; Clanachan; Clement; Clenachan; Clumphy; Colm; Colter; Connell; Cosbie; Cosby; Coskrie; Court; Cowper; Craford; Crawford; Croack; Croley; Cruthers; Cubbin; Cubison; Culloch; Culter; Cumby; Cummerford; Cumming; Dally; Dalrymple; Davelin; Davidson; Davison; Dickson; Digney; Dimon; Dixon; Doak; Doarns; Donnelly; Dougall; Dougan; Douglas; Dowall; Doyle; Duff; Dunlavey; Dunlavie; Dunlop; Dunlope; Eide; Elliot; Ewing; Faggot; Fegan; Feggans; Ferguson; Findlay; Finlay; Fleming; Flynn; Forsyth; Fularton; Fulton; Galloway; Gellispie; Gellyland; George; Gibson; Gifford; Gillespie; Givan; Glen; Gollacher; Gordon; Gown; Gray; Green; Grier; Hamilton; Hammond; Hanlon; Hannah; Hannay; Harries; Hart; Hartley; Harvie; Hathorn; Haugh; Hedger; Hemphill; Henry; Herron; Hill; Hinds; Horner; Houston; Hunter; Hutcheson; Hutchison; Irvine; Jamieson; Jervis; Johnson; Johnston; Johnstone; Jones; Karr; Keachnie; Kealry; Kelly; Kennedy; Kevan; Kid; Lagan; Leeas; Leitch; Lindsay; Linwood; Lockhart; Logan; Love; Mackie; Macpherson; Mark; Marr; Marshall; Martin; Matthews; Matthieson; Maxwell; McAvery; McAwen; McBratney; McBratnie; McBryde; McCaa; McCadden; McCafferty; McCaig; McCamlie; McCauley; McCaull; McCaw; McClellan; McClelland; McCloud; McClure; McClymont; McColm; McConchie; McCormick; McCornack; McCornick; McCornock; McCrackan; McCracken; McCrae; McCraith; McCready; McCredie; McCubbin; McCulloch; McCutcheon; McDill; McDonald; McDonnald; McDowall; McEwen; McFadden; McFadyean; McGaul; McGaw; McGee; McGeoch; McGill; McHallam; McHarg; McIlwraith; McIlwrick; McIntyre; McIvers; McJorrow; McKeachie; McKeand; McKechnie; McKee; McKenna; McKie; McKinna; McKinnon; McLachlan; McLauchlan; McLean; McMaster; McMeekan; McMeiking; McMillan; McNaight; McNalie; McNally; McNarin; McNaughton; McNeal; McNeil; McNiel; McNillie; McQuaker; McQueen; McReady; McTaggart; McTier; McWhirter; McWilliam; Mean; Michael; Millar; Milligan; Milroy; Milvie; Mitchell; Moan; Monaghan; Morrison; Morrow; Morton; Muir; Murphy; Murray; Murry; Neilson; Nichol; Nicholson; Nicolson; Nimmo; Nish; Niven; Nivison; O'Hair; O'Neil; Orr; Packer; Parker; Paterson; Pebbles; Peddley; Perry; Pickar; Pollan; Rae; Read; Redeltie; Reid; Riens; Ritchie; Robb; Robison; Ross; Ruddel; Saunders; Saunderson; Scott; Shaw; Sheradon; Shirer; Simpson; Skimming; Sloane; Smail; Smith; Southar; Spence; Stewart; Stitt; Stott; Strachan; Stroyan; Sweeten; Sword; Swords; Telfer; Telford; Tempelton; Templeton; Thompson; Thomson; Tilly; Toanner; Tonner; Tully; Turner; Tweedie; Walker; Wallace; Weir; Williamson; Wilson; Young

Saturday 20 August 2011

New book - Lauder Parish Burial Register



This book contains a transcription of burials that are to be found in the Kirk Session records of Lauder Parish, Dumfriesshire, Scotland. These records are held by the National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh, and it is believed they have not been transcribed or indexed before.

The register is in the form of a little notebook, possibly kept by the gravedigger. The spelling is eccentric to say the least, but we have endeavoured to transcribe the entries exactly as they appear in the register. A detailed note has been kept of the Cavers family, of Lauder, recording deaths from 1785 to 1849, but apart from these entries, the main record runs from June 1827 to November 1838, running to 520 entries in total.


The surnames contained in the book are as follows:

Ainslie; Aitchison; Alison; Allan; Allardise; Allen; Anderson; Armestrong; Baillie; Bain; Baird; Ballengton; Ballengtyon; Ballington; Bathgate; Beatie; Bell; Bolton; Brodie; Broomfield; Brotherston; Brown; Bryson; Burnlee; Burrel; Burrrel; Cavers; Claperton; Clapperton; Clark; Clugh; Cockburn; Coldwells; Couper; Cousens; Cow; Craig; Cranston; Craw; Crease; Crightone; Cuningham; Currie; Cuthbertson; Dalglish; Darling; Davedison; Dawson; Deans; Dickson; Donald; Dorbie; Downie; Dudgeon; Eckfoord; Edemonston; Elliot; Fair; Fairbairn; Fairebayrn; Fletcher; Flitcher; Foord; Fortuen; Frame; Frier; Gergueson; Gill; Gillies; Given; Glass; Gordon; Gourlie; Graham; Gray; Greenlaw; Halladay; Hardie; Haswell; Hay; Henderson; Hileburton; Hislope; Hogg; Holand; Home; Hopp; Hughs; Hunter; Ingles; Irvain; Jamieson; Johnston; Karr; Laidlaw; Lauder; Laugh; Laurance; Laurense; Law; Leathhead; Liddel; Lidster; Lindsay; Little; Livingston; Lockie; Logan; Lothian; Lowrie; Man; Mann; McLeoad; McQueen; Mean; Mercel; Merton; Milen; Miller; Mills; Mollagan; Molloy; Moloy; Money; Moneylaws; More; Morrison; Murchieson; Murray; Ness; Nisbet; Ormston; Orr; Patterson; Pecoack; Pendrigh; Penman; Pringle; Purves; Ramage; Rammage; Ramsay; Ranken; Rattrie; Rea; Reed; Renton; Renwick; Richardson; Riddell; Ride; Ridpath; Robertson; Robson; Romaines; Runcieman; Russel; Scott; Shaw; Shiell; Shiels; Shillinglaw; Simpson; Simson; Sligh; Slight; Smeal; Smith; Sommervail; Spears; Spence; Stevingston; Stewart; Stirling; Stivengston; Stobie; Stodart; Stoddart; Swanston; Symington; Tait; Thomson; Torrie; Torries; Trotter; Turnbull; Turner; Tweedhope; Tyson; Unknown; Vallance; Vallence; Waddel; Waddle; Wait; Walker; Waters; Watherston; Watson; Wealsh; White; Whitelaw; Whiteson; Wight; Wilson; Wood; Wright; Yallowlies; Yellowlies; Young