Scottish Larder - Hunting Scottish Life Events
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Picture"Porridge" by William Helmsley Wikimedia Commons
Professionally, I specialise in both Irish and Scottish family history.  I give talks on both topics and offer research advice at family history fairs, where I often recommend particular websites for further research.  Just as the rest of this website is littered with all my favourite Irish links, I've also accumulated a veritable Scottish larder of links, most of which are mentioned in the pages that precede this one, especially my ​Scotland Records & Resources page.  You can also find many of them listed out alphabetically in my Scottish Tuckbox if you know what you're looking for and want to find it quickly.

However, for my benefit as well as yours, I've also decided to list some of them more specifically on this page in the style of larder shelves i.e. when you are hunting for specific types of ingredients (records.)  This also allows you to see more clearly the choices you have for accessing what appear to be the same resources, both via subscriptions and for free.  Equally, you can also see how some collection names are very opaque and you should check any information supplied carefully for context. 


​By the way, don't you just love this picture?! I can't decide if he's blowing on his porridge because it's hot or he has paused with spoon mid-way to have words with that cat!
Births & Baptisms

​The important year to remember is 1855, when Scotland brought in Statutory Registration.  Church of Scotland (CoS) records prior to that year will predominantly be baptisms but you may learn birth dates too.  As this was the established church in Scotland, these were considered to be records of state and as such the registers up to this date were deposited with what became the National Records of Scotland.  They do not have any post 1855 CoS parish registers.  Several collections appear to extend beyond 1855, but it is often not really clear from any of the catalogue descriptions what the original sources are, particularly with those that extend into the 20th century.


Here are some more unusual indexes which might shed some light on illegitimate births.
Banns & Marriages

​Again, 1855 is the watershed year between church and statutory records.  Records prior to that year will be a combination of banns and marriages, so look out for what might appear to be multiple records in different parishes - his and hers banns probably.  Statutory births after 1860 also noted the date and place of the parents marriage, so be sure to consult any candidate birth records for children born to the couple from this year on as this might help you find their marriage.

Deaths, Burials & Monumental Inscriptions

You've guessed it, 1855 is the watershed year between church and statutory records.  Records prior to that year will be burials where you may or may not learn of an actual death date.  However, brace yourself, as there may be very little other than a scribbled note that a parish mort cloth was hired for the funeral (read Chris Paton's Scottish burial traditions if you want to learn more about this custom.)  Statutory deaths registered between 1855-1860 also helpfully noted the date and place of any burial.  Before the advent of municipal cemeteries, many churches did not have their own graveyards, so be sure to check the records of the local Church of Scotland parish church as the churchyard may have been the only available consecrated ground.

Wills

The legal procedures that exist in Scotland to deal with the estates and possessions of the deceased are slightly different to those in the rest of the United Kingdom and use different terms.  However, they still produce similar reams of paperwork that can be genealogical pay dirt.

  • Wills and Testaments on Scotland's People   (SP=Pay-per-view)  Records span 1513 to 1925.  Set price to buy images no matter how many pages there are.  Index results are free and can give you a lot of information to help make sure you chose the right person.  You may get a will with details of beneficiaries or perhaps just an inventory of the deceased's goods and chattels.
  • Scotland, National Probate Index (Calendar of Confirmations and Inventories), 1876-1936  (Anc=£)  c.655k records. If you have access to Ancestry, this printed index can be very helpful for narrowing down candidates on Scotland's People.  You can also browse by confirmation year which can be useful if you suspect a transcription error might be hiding your ancestor from you.
Censuses

Having recently worked with the Scottish censuses across a number of different websites, I thought I would add some words of wisdom from those experiences and in particular take the opportunity to vent at Ancestry!  Since 1841, Scotland has been included in the same national census events as the rest of the UK.  Transcripts of the records are available on both the major commercial websites but, crucially, only Scotland's People has images.  They are also the only site with details of the 1911 and 1921 Scottish censuses.

          Transcripts only, and in my opinion, they are pretty appalling.  Seriously, I've searched them a lot and they are consistently poor.  Take care!           UK wide collection of transcripts but better quality.  Results can be sorted and the household layout is more informative in one view.           Indexes and images.  1881 census also available as free transcripts.  Very useful Census Returns information page.
(c) Irish Geneaography - 2024