Loth, Sutherland, Scotland Genealogy: Difference between revisions

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'''Parish #54'''  

Guide to '''Loth''' ancestry, family history, and genealogy: parish registers, transcripts, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

 

== History  ==

'''Source:''' ''New Statistical Account of Scotland'' for Loth, FS Library book 941 B4sa, series 2, vol. 15.<br>  

For more information about Loth's geography, economy, history, education, and people, see the parish reports in [https://stataccscot.edina.ac.uk/static/statacc/dist/home The First and Second Statistical Accounts of Scotland], or the Third Statistical Account for Sutherland {{FSC|941 B4sa 3rd ser. v. 19B|disp=941 B4sa 3rd}}.

Scottish Censuses were taken every 10 years beginning in 1801. Beginning with the 1841 Census, each individual in the nation was enumerated at the location they slept on a particular day. For more information, including which day each census was taken, read about [[Scotland_Census|Scottish Census Records]].

Here is a list of the FS Library microfilm numbers for the {{FSC|649723|title-id|disp=census records of Loth}} as well as the library numbers for any surname indexes available: <br>  

| <u>FS Library Film Number</u><br>  

| {{FSC|734153|title-id|disp=6086688 (1fiche)}}<br>

Indexes and images for the 1901, 1911, and 1921 censuses of Scotland are found on [https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk ScotlandsPeople] ($). Registration is required and there is a small access fee per image. All available censuses, 1841-1921, are indexed on this website.

 

The Established Church in Scotland is the Church of Scotland, a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity. Church of Scotland records generally cover the period of time prior to 1855, when Civil Registration began. Unlike in England, Scottish law never mandated that vital events be registered with the established church. For more information, read about [[Scotland_Church_Records|Scottish Church Records]].

Here are the pre-1855 records that exist for this parish.  

=== Established Church—Old Parochial Register ===

| <u>FS Library Film Number</u><br>

===== Condition of Original Registers— =====

'''Index: '''For an index to these records, see [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ Scotland’s People] website, a pay-for-view website. The Scottish Church Records Index is also still available at the [https://www.familysearch.org/en/library/ FamilySearch Library] in Salt Lake City.  Some records may also be indexed in other [https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/location/1986318?region=Scotland FamilySearch collections] for Scotland.  

'''Births:''' There are only three entries prior to 1803. The first page of record contains irregular entries between 1795 and 1844. <br>'''Source:''' V. Ben Bloxham, ''Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland'' (Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 1970), {{FSC|941 K23b|disp=941 K23b}}.

The kirk session was the court of the parish. The session was made up of the minister and the land owners and businessmen of the parish, chosen to serve on the session. It dealt with moral issues, minor criminal cases, matters of the poor and education, matters of discipline, and the general concerns of the parish. Kirk session records may also mention births, marriages, and deaths.  

=== Nonconformist Church Records ===

A nonconformist church is any church that is not the established church (the Church of Scotland). For more information, read about [[Scotland_Church_Records_Union_Lists#Historical_Background|Scottish Nonconformity]].

==== Helmsdale Loth Free Church ====

'''History—'''<br>The adherents of the Free Church at Helmsdale were at first under the care of a missionary who was called and settled in July 1843. For a time no site could be obtained so the congregation worshiped in a fish curing yard by the river. The church and manse were erected in 1845. A new church was built in 1892. <br>'''Membership:''' 1855, 1119; 1900, 400. <br>'''Source: '''''Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900'', ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., pub. 1914. Film #918572. More details may be given in the source, including ministers.<br>'''Records—'''<br>'''Marriages: '''1843-1855  <u>FS Library Film Number </u>  1068242 item 8.  

== Civil Registration Records ==

Government or civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths is called Statutory Registers in Scotland. The system began 1 January 1855, and each parish had a registrar's office, with large cities having several. Over time, districts merged and split due to changing populations and technological advancements. The system has largely stayed the same over time, with records being created by local registrars and copies sent to the General Register Office in Edinburgh. Initially annual indexes were published, but now these indexes are available online as soon as an event is registered. Many of these records are only available on [https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk ScotlandsPeople] ($), however the years 1855-1875, 1881, and 1891 are {{FSC|79310|item|disp=available through FamilySearch}}(*). For more information, read about [[Scotland_Civil_Registration|Scottish Statutory Registers]].

== Probate Records ==

Loth was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Caithness until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dornoch. Probate records for 1513-1901 are indexed online at [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/?gclid=CLKJyYGQ4ZUCFQQCagod1gp0Ww www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk.] You must register on the website but use of the index to probate records, called 'Wills & Testaments,' is free. You may then purchase a copy of the document or, if the document is before 1823, it will be on microfilm at the FamilySearch Library. To find the microfilm numbers, search in the library [https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog catalog] for the 'Place-names' of Sutherland and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Caithness.<br>The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Sutherland. Look in the library [https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog catalog] for the 'Place-names' of Sutherland and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.' <br><br>Read more about [[Scotland Probate Records|Scotland Probate Records .]]  

== References ==

Return to Sutherland [[Sutherland, Scotland Parishes|parish list.]]

[[Category:Sutherland Parishes]]