Searching for Statutory Registers (1855-1990)
- Births: Full Name, Parents Names, Year (+/- 2 years) and Registration District.
- Marriages: Names of Both Parties, Year of Marriage (+/- 5 years), preferably District.
- Deaths: Full Name, approximate Age, District of Death and Year (+/- 5 years)
Searching for OPRs (1700 - 1854)
- Births/baptisms: Full Name of Child and Parents, Year of Event (+/- 5 years), County/Parish.
- Marriages: Full Name of Bride and Groom, Year of Event (+/- 5 years), County.
Searching for Census records
- Surname, Address: Town, Street, Street Number or House Name (or equivalent if property not in a street, such as a farm name).
Our Free Scots Origins Place Search, based on the 1881 census, is very useful for census orders, as it identifies the county and registration district of any place name such as a town or street name. It is accessible from the front page of Scots Origins or by selecting the "Scots Origins" tab within the user area within the user area after you login.
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Old Parish Records
OPR entries may also be difficult to locate as they are sometimes not in chronological order. However, we will provide all the details on an OPR entry.
There are no hard and fast rules about the details given in OPR entries. Record-keeping varied from parish to parish and year to year. Do not expect too much from "sightings" of these as most entries contain relatively little information compared to Statutory Registers.
Registration in the Church of Scotland's registers was in theory compulsory for all denominations but it was costly and unpopular, so members of other churches may not be recorded. Also, as populations shifted and cities started to develop in the 19th century, religion began to lose its hold, and as few as 30% of events may be recorded for some urban parishes.
In the case of baptisms, aside from the name of the child and the date of the baptism, you might hope to obtain the names of both parents, their place or parish of residence, and perhaps the occupation of the father. On some occasions a list of witnesses may be supplied.
For marriages, you might expect to find the date on which the marriage took place or was contracted, the names of the parties and their place or parishes of residence.
Statutory Registers
Births from 1861: name; date, time and place of birth; sex; father's name and profession; mother's name and maiden name; date and place of marriage.
Deaths from 1861: name; rank or profession; marital status; spouse's name; when and where died; sex; age; father's name and rank or profession; mother's name and maiden name; cause of death.
Marriages from 1861: when, where and how married (eg after banns, according to the forms of the Church of Scotland). For both bridegroom and bride are given: name; rank or profession; marital status; age; usual residence; father's name and rank or profession; mother's name and maiden name. In the case of regular marriages, names of witnesses. In the case of irregular marriages, date of conviction, decree of declarator, or sheriff's warrant is given.
Marriages 1855 to 1860: For these years there may be some variation from the above in the information registered.
Births for 1855: name; whether informant present at birth; baptismal name (if different) or name given without baptism; sex; date, and time of birth; where born; father's name and rank, profession or occupation, age and birthplace; when and where married, and any previous issue, both living and deceased; mother's name and maiden name, how many children she has had, age and where born.
Deaths for 1855: name; rank, profession or occupation; sex; age; where born and how long in district; parents' names, and rank, profession or occupation; if married, spouse's name and names and ages of any children; date of death and time; where died; cause of death, length of illness, by whom certified and when they last saw the deceased; burial place.
Marriages for 1855: when, where and how married; (for both bridegroom and bride) signatures; present and usual residences; age; rank and profession; relationship of parties, if related; marital status; children by any previous marriages, whether living or dead; where parties were born; the date and place of registration of birth; parents' names, rank, profession or occupation; if a regular marriage, names of witnesses; if irregular, date of conviction or decree of declarator and court pronounced.
1861 & 1871 Censuses
Full household details provided. For everyone* at that address: Surname & Forenames, Age, Relation to head of household, Occupation, Place of birth
* If more than 15 people are listed at the given address, only the first 15 names will be provided and a price will be quoted for the remaining names.
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