Lochlee, Angus, Scotland Genealogy

Scotland

Angus

Lochlee

Parish #303

Guide to Lochlee history, family history, and genealogy: parish registers, census records, birth records, marriage records, and death records.

Lochlee, Angus, Scotland
Type	Quoad Omnia Parish
Parish Number	303
Civil Jurisdictions
Historic County	Angus
Council Area	Angus
Registration District	Lochlee
Records begin
Parish registers: 1728
Kirk Sessions: 1775
Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions
Presbytery	Brechin
Synod	Angus & Mearns
Judicial Jurisdictions
Sheriff Court	Arbroath, Dundee, and Forfar
Commissary Court	Brechin

History

LOCHLEE, a parish, in the county of Forfar, 22 miles (N. W.) from Brechin; containing the hamlet of Tarfside. This place derives its name from the river Lee, which passes through a loch of considerable size near its centre. The church, built in 1803, and enlarged in 1824, is adapted for a congregation of nearly 300 persons. There is an episcopal chapel.

The parish was disjoined from Lethnot in 1723. The population in 1831 was 553.

For more information about Lochlee's geography, economy, history, education, and people, see the parish reports in The First and Second Statistical Accounts of Scotland, or the Third Statistical Account for Angus 941 B4sa 3rd.

Census Records

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 Scottish Census Records.

Here is a list of the FS Library microfilm numbers for the census records of Lochlee, as well as the library numbers for any surname indexes available:

Year	FS Library Film Number	Surname Indexes
1841	1042680	6203961
1851	1042226	941.31 X22a 1851 no. 305
1861	0103792	none
1871	0103948	none
1881	0203495	6086580 (12 fiche)
1891	0208723	none

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

Church Records

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 Scottish Church Records.

Established Church—Old Parochial Registers

Record Type	Years Covered	FS Library Film Number
Births:	1731-1854	0993487
Marriages:	1731-1809	0993487
Deaths:	1783-1854	0993487

Condition of Original Registers—

Indexed: For an index to these records, see Scotland’s People website, a pay-for-view website. The Scottish Church Records Index is also still available at the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City. Some records may also be indexed in other FamilySearch collections for Scotland.
Births: There is only one entry for 1771 and one entry December 1773–March 1775. There are irregular entries 1816–1818. Mothers' names are not recorded until October 1783.
Marriages: Record of proclamations and marriages 1731–1809 are mixed with other matters in volume two. Entries December 1783–September 1805 are mixed with births for the same period, and almost every entry for that period is attested by both the minister and session clerk. There is a separate record from October 1809.
Deaths: Entries are burials until 1792. They are blank November 1792–July 1808, after which deaths and burials are recorded. There is no entry for 1809 and there are a few entries of sums paid for burials in the church, Mortcloth Dues and payment for coffins to the poor which occur mixed up with marriages after 1736.
Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. British Book 941 K23b.

Established Church—Kirk Session Records

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.

Here is a list of the surviving Kirk session records for this parish:

Minutes and Accounts 1775–1840, 1842–1932
Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/455

Nonconformist Church Records

A nonconformist church is any church that is not the established church (the Church of Scotland). For more information, read about Scottish Nonconformity.

Lochlee Free Church

History—
This congregation was formed of those who came out of the Parish Church at the Disruption. They met for worship, conducted by preachers and catechists, in the Free Masons Lodge. The charge was sanctioned in 1845. Lord Panmure would grant no site, but advantage was taken of permission to build a shepherd's cottage on the farm of Baillies to make a room in which worship could be held. This was in 1845. In 1857–1858 church and manse were erected.
Membership: 1854, 168; 1900, 119.
Source: Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900, ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., 2 vols. pub. 1914. Film #918572. More details may be given in the source.

Records—
Private Registration Book of Baptisms, Marriages and Burials 1837–1841
Session Minutes 1849–1932
Account Book 1848–1832
Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH3/218

Lochlee Episcopal Church

History—
The New Statistical Account of Scotland, FS Library book 941 B4sa, ser. 2, vol. 11 pt. 1 dated December 1833, states that there was an Episcopalian chapel in Lochlee parish to which 25 families, or about 113 individuals, attended. Steele’s Sources for Scottish Genealogy and Family History indicates that Episcopacy was strong in Angus after the Revolution of 1689, so a chapel may have been in existence for centuries. However, during the 18th century the Episcopalians were persecuted and repressed and many chapels were closed and burned. Today, the chapel is again closed.

Records—
A copy of the Lochlee register from 1727 is available at:
Brechin Diocesan Library
University of Dundee Library
Archive Department
Dundee DD1 4HN
Scotland
The originals have not been traced, and later registers appear to be missing.

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 ScotlandsPeople ($), however the years 1855-1875, 1881, and 1891 are available through FamilySearch(*). For more information, read about Scottish Statutory Registers.

Probate Records

Lochlee was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Brechin until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dundee. Probate records for 1513- 1901 are indexed online at 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 catalog for the 'Place-names' of Angus and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Brechin.

The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Angus. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Angus and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.

References

Return to Angus Parishes.

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