Eddrachillis, Sutherland, Scotland Genealogy

Scotland

Sutherland

Eddrachillis

Parish #49

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

Eddrachillis, Sutherland, Scotland
Type	Quoad Omnia Parish
Parish Number	49
Civil Jurisdictions
Historic County	Sutherland
Council Area	Highland
Registration District	Kinlochbervie and Scourie
Records begin
Parish registers: 1808
Kirk Sessions: 1871
Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions
Presbytery	Tongue
Synod	Sutherland & Caithness
Judicial Jurisdictions
Sheriff Court	Dornoch
Commissary Court	Caithness

History

EDDRACHILLIS, a parish, in the county of Sutherland, 15 miles (N. N. W.) from Assynt; including the islands of Handa and Scourie, and the late quoad sacra district of Keanlochbervie. The Celtic name of this place, Eadarda-chaolas, signifies "between two kyles or arms of the sea," and is descriptive of the situation of the main part of the parish between the kyle of Scow, which separates Eddrachillis from Assynt on the south, and the kyle of Laxford. The church is a plain edifice, built upwards of a century ago, and thoroughly repaired in the nineteenth century; it is a commodious edifice in very excellent condition, and contains 275 sittings. There is also a good church at Keanlochbervie, to which a quoad sacra district was annexed by act of parliament in the 5th of George IV. The members of the Free Church have a place of worship.

The name is Celtic, being Eadar-da-chaolus, literally signifying between two friths or inlets of the sea. The parish of Edderachillis is situated on the north-west coast of the county of Sutherland, along the shores of the Atlantic, being a portion of the Reay country, commonly called “Duthaich-mhio-Aoidh”. It is bounded on the south, by Kylesku, Loch Glencoul, parish of Assynt, and some of Creich; on the west by the Atlantic ocean; on the south, by the parish of Durness; and on the east, partly by Durness, and partly by the parish of Lairg.

Edderachillis was part of the barony of Skelbo. It was disposed by Hugo Freskyn de Moravia, ancestor of the Duke of Sutherland, 1186-1203, to his brother, Bishop Gilbert Moray, who in 1235 disposed it to his brother Richard Moray of Culbyn, the property changed hands two or three times more and finally in 1829 it was restored to the Sutherland family.

Nothing is known of Edderachillis as a parish, earlier than 1726, the date of its erection, except that, before that time, it formed part of the parish of Durness, and was disjoined on an application to the General Assembly by the heritor, Lord Reay, and Mr. John Mackay, minister of Durness, and endowed by a fund arising from the tithes, and a general subscription over Scotland.

A native of this parish that is noteworthy is Lieutenant-General Hugh Mackay of Scourie, the famous Commander-in-Chief of the time of King William and Mary. He was born in 1640, fought against Dundee at the battle of Killicrankie, and fought in Ireland in the battle of Shannon.

The Duke of Sutherland is sole proprietor of the parish since 1829.

The population in 1792 was 1024, and the last census of 1831, showed 1965.

Crops raised in the parish consist of potatoes, bear or big, and oats. The breed of sheep on the large farms is a pure Cheviot, to which great attention is paid. The sheep in the hands of small tenants is a cross between the native breed of small black-faced sheep and the Cheviot.

There are no traces of a parochial record having been kept prior to 1819. From that period, births and marriages have been carefully recorded.

The whole of the population is of the Church of Scotland, and there are no Dissenting or Seceding families in the parish. There are two churches; one at Badcall, and another at Keanlochbervie, both commodious, and in excellent repair.

This account was written August 1840.

Source: New Statistical Account of Scotland for Eddrachillis, FS Library book 941 B4sa, series 2, vol. 15.

For more information about Eddrachillis'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 Sutherland 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.

Click here to go to the FamilySearch Catalog entry for the census records of Eddrachillis. The FamilySearch Library has a surname index for the 1881 census of the whole of the county of Sutherland.

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	Family Histoy Library Film Number
Births:	1808-1854	0990562 Item 2
Marriages:	1808-1854	0990562Item 2
Deaths:	No entries	none

Condition of Original Registers—

Index: 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 are only seven entries from June 1816–1820. From 1820–1854 the record is kept with reference to the various localities where the parents resided.
Marriages: There are only eleven entries prior to 1820.
Source: V. Ben Bloxham, Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland (Provo, UT: Brigham Young University Press, 1970), 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:

The extent of records is unknown.

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.

Eddrachillis Free Church

History—
George Tulloch, minister of the parish, and all the people save four families, adhered to the Free Church in 1843. For several years they worshiped in a hollow near the seashore. Church and manse were completed at Scourie in 1846. A number seceded to the Free Presbyterians in 1893, and in 1900 a few remained outside the Union.
Membership: 1855, 272; 1900, 17.
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
Records—

The extent of records is unknown.

Kinlochbervie Free Church

History—
A large majority of the population adhered to the Free Church in 1843, although the minister of the Parliamentary Church stayed in the Establishment. Regular supply was given. Church and manse were built in 1846. Both were renovated in 1882. A minister was settled in 1848. A small section seceded in 1892 because of the Declaratory Act. Fishermen and crofters formed the bulk of the congregation. The population tended to decrease.
Membership: 1855, 350; 1900, 22.
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.

Records—
No known pre–1855 records.

Civil Registration

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

Eddrachillis 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 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 Sutherland and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Caithness.

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

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.

References

Return to Sutherland parish list.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access. Some subscription websites are available for free at your local FamilySearch Center or Affiliate Library.

Due to contractual agreements, some images and/or databases on FamilySearch.org may only be viewed at a FamilySearch Center or FamilySearch Affiliate Library.