Cluny, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Genealogy

Scotland

Aberdeenshire

Cluny

Parish #181

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

Cluny, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
Type	Quoad Omnia Parish
Parish Number	181
Civil Jurisdictions
Historic County	Aberdeenshire
Council Area	Aberdeenshire
Registration District	Cluny
Records begin
Parish registers: 1751
Kirk Sessions: 1771
Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions
Presbytery	Kincardine O'Neil
Synod	Aberdeen
Judicial Jurisdictions
Sheriff Court	Aberdeen and Peterhead
Commissary Court	Aberdeen and Edinburgh

History

CLUNY, a parish, in the district of Kincardine O'Neil, county of Aberdeen, 15 miles (W. by N.) from Aberdeen. The name of this place, signifying, in Gaelic, meadows interspersed with rising grounds, is descriptive of the appearance of the locality. The church is a plain substantial edifice, erected in lieu of the former building, which had become ruinous, in 1789. There is a place of worship for members of the Free Church.

For more information about Cluny'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 Aberdeenshire 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.

• Census returns for Cluny (parish 181), 1841-1891; index and images.
• 1881 census of Scotland [transcription and indexes : Aberdeen](*).

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:	1751-1854	0993176
Marriages:	1772-1854	0993176
Deaths:	1772-1819, 1836-1853	0993176

Condition of Original Registers

Index: For an index to these records, see ScotlandsPeople, 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: The record is defective for October 1765–March 1772. In the original record, previous to 1795, many out-of-order entries occur, but from about that date a copy, in which the entries are chronologically arranged, was made, and continued afterwards as the principal record.
Marriages: The record is very defective for 1787–1794.
Deaths: Mortcloth Dues, the record is blank for July 1793–December 1811 and October 1819–1836, after which date burials are recorded.
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 1773–1913
Poor Accounts 1793–1818
Collections and Disbursements 1771–1793, 1818–1832, 1845–1911
Communion Roll 1851–1900
Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/441.

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.

Cluny Free Church

History—
A congregation was formed here at the Disruption in 1843 and a probationary minister was placed in charge. The church stood in a rural district, with a United Presbyterian church less than a mile distant.
Membership: 1848, 160; 1900, 141
Source: Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900, ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., 2 vols. pub. 1914. Film #918572. More details are given in the source.

Records—
Various Minutes 1844–1933
Seat Rent Books 1853–1883
Other post–1855 records
Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH3/369.

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

Cluny was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Aberdeen until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Aberdeen. Probate records for 1513- 1901 are indexed online at ScotlandsPeople ($). Registration is required, but use of the index to probate records, called 'Wills & Testaments,' is free. Copies of documents may be purchased, or if the document is before 1823, it will be on microfilm at the FamilySearch Library. To find the microfilm numbers, search in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Aberdeen and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Aberdeen. See also England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995 at Ancestry ($).

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

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.

References

Return to Aberdeenshire parish list.

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