Dun, Angus, Scotland Genealogy: Difference between revisions

This is a guide to the history and major genealogical records of Scotland as they pertain to the parish of Dun. To learn more about how to use these records to search for your ancestors, go to the [[Scotland: Research Strategies for Locating Births, Marriages and Deaths|Scotland: Research Strategies.]]  

DUN, a '''parish''', in the county of Forfar, 4 miles (N. W. by W.) from Montrose. This place by some antiquaries is supposed to have derived its name from the family of Dun, who were its ancient proprietors, and by others, with apparently greater probability, from its elevation above the level of the river South Esk, which forms its boundary on the south. The chapel formerly attached to the old mansion-house of the family of Dun having fallen into a dilapidated state, a church was erected in lieu in 1834.<ref>Lewis, Samuel A., ''[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=43433#s13 A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland]'' (1846), pp. 499-514. Adapted. Date accessed: 30 May 2014.</ref>  

<br>''The New Statistical Account of Scotland'' (pub. 1834-45) offers uniquely rich and detailed parish reports for the whole of Scotland, covering a vast range of topics including history, agriculture, education, trades, religion and social customs. The reports, written by the parish ministers, are available online at http://edina.ac.uk/stat-acc-scot/. Click on ‘Browse scanned pages’ then search the parish reports for your parish of interest. Also available at the {{FSC|new statistical account of scotland|title|disp=FamilySearch Library}} .  

A census is a count and description of the population, taken by the government, arranged by locality and by household. Read more about [[Scotland Census|census records.]]  

<br>The 1901 census of Scotland is indexed on [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/?gclid=CLKJyYGQ4ZUCFQQCagod1gp0Ww www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk.] To use it, you must register and pay a small access fee. All available censuses, 1841-1901, are indexed on this website. It may be easier for you to pay to use the website rather than access the separate indexes through the library.  

The Established Church of Scotland was Presbyterian. Read more about [[Scotland Church Records|church records]].<br>Here are the pre-1855 records that exist for this parish.<br>  

There are no known nonconformist groups.  

Government or civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths (also called statutory records) began on January 1, 1855 in Scotland. Each parish has a registrar's office and large cities have several. The records are created by the registrars and copies are sent to the General Register Office in Edinburgh. Annual indexes are then created for the records for the whole country. <br>See the article on [[Scotland Civil Registration|Scotland Civil Registration]] for more information and to access the records.  

Dun was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of St.Andrews until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dundee. 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 &amp; 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 Angus and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of St.Andrews.<br><br>The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Angus. Look in the library [https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog catalog] for the 'Place-names' of Angus and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.' <br><br>Read more about [[Scotland Probate Records|Scotland Probate Records.]]