Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Genealogy

Scotland

Midlothian

Edinburgh

Parish #685¹

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

Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland
Arthur's Seat from Edinburgh
Type	Quoad Omnia Parish
Parish Number	6851
Civil Jurisdictions
Historic County	Midlothian
Burgh	Edinburgh
Council Area	City of Edinburgh
Registration District	Dean, Boroughmuirhead & Morningside, Newington & Grange, Castle & Portsburgh, St. Giles, Holyrood & Canongate, Calton & Bonnington, and Heriot & Warriston
Records begin
Parish registers: 1595
Kirk Sessions: 1574
Ecclesiastical Jurisdictions
Presbytery	Edinburgh
Synod	Lothian & Tweeddale
Judicial Jurisdictions
Sheriff Court	Edinburgh and Leith
Commissary Court	St Andrews, Peebles, Glasgow, and Edinburgh

History

EDINBURGH, a city, the seat of a university, and the metropolis of the kingdom of Scotland, situated in longitude 3° 10' 30" (W.), and latitude 55° 57' 29" (N.), about a mile (S. by W.) from Leith, 40 miles (S.S.W.) from Dundee, 42 (E. by N.) from Glasgow, 44 (S. by E.) from Perth, 55 (W. by N.) from Berwick-upon-Tweed, 92½ (N. by W.) from Carlisle, 109 (S. W. by S.) from Aberdeen, 156 (S. by E.) from Inverness, 270 (N. E.) from Dublin, and 392 (N. N. W.) from London; including the suburban parishes of St. Cuthbert and Canongate. The see of Edinburgh, originally founded by Charles I. in 1633, and to which the ancient collegiate church of St. Giles was appropriated as the cathedral, continued till the Revolution, when the city contained only six parishes; it is now the seat of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and of the presbytery of Edinburgh, and comprises seventeen civil parishes, besides which there were until recently twelve quoad sacra or ecclesiastical parishes. The parish of the High Church is wholly within the city, under the pastoral care of two ministers. The church is a portion of the cathedral of St. Giles. There are also places of worship in the city for members of the Free Church, United Secession, and Relief, for Reformed Presbyterians, Original Seceders, the Society of Friends, Baptists, Wesleyans, Independents, Jews, and Unitarians; an Episcopalian chapel, dedicated to St. Peter, and two Roman Catholic chapels.

History of the Cannongate section of the city is available on Royal-Mile.com.

For more information about Edinburgh'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 Edinburgh (FS Catalog book 941 B4sa 3rd ser. v. 15).

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.

The library also has a collection of census surname indexes for different places within Midlothian Click here to see a table listing these other census surname indexes that are available at the library.

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

Pre-1855 records that exist for this parish: Go here to go to the FamilySearch Catalog entry for the Established Church records for the Edinburgh parishes, covering the years 1595-1854.

Known High Churches:

• St Giles Cathedral
  
• The Old Church (South aisle of St. Giles')
  
• Tolbooth Parish
  
• Trinity College Chapel
  
• 1685 Lady Glenorchy Chapel
  
• 1785 New North Church
  
• Tron Church
  
• 1673 Scottish Baptists, and Original Burghers.
  
• Magdalene Chapel Cowgate
  
• New Grey Friars
  
• 1721 Old Grey Friars
  
• 1722 St. Andrew
  
• 1785 St George Episcopal Chapel
  
• St. George - 1814
  
• Lady Yester's Parish - 1647
  
• St. Mary - 1824
  
• St. Stephen - 1828
  
• Canongate - 1688
  
• St. Cuthbert - Gardner's-crescent
  
• Chapel Morningside
  
• Chapel Greenside Leith Walk
  
• St. John
  

Bristo Church of Scotland

• Scotland, Edinburgh & Lothian Birth and Baptism Index - includes Bristo Church of Scotland, index only

Condition of Original Register—

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: From December 1731–January 1759, the record has not been extended, but a draft or scroll record exists, in twelve volumes (18–29, inclusive), embracing the period January 1729–December 1758. Otherwise the register has been very carefully kept throughout. Except in entries of illegitimate births, mothers’ names are not recorded until January 1608. There are indexes to the record from 1759.
Marriages: There are no entries July 1694–January 1696. Prior to the former date, most of the entries contain merely the names of the parties and the trade or profession of the bridegroom. After January 1696, the name and designation of the bride’s father are usually recorded. March 1729–January 1759, the record is only in draft or scroll, in two volumes (47, 48). There is a copy of the portion January 1820–March 1821 and there are indexes to the record from January 1759.
Deaths: The records of the Greyfriars’ Burying Ground for 1658–1854 are in the custody of the recorder of the Ground. The records of Dean Cemetery for 1846–1854 are in the custody of the registrar of St. George’s District. [For the records of the Calton Burying Ground, 1719–1854, see the parish of South Leith in this binder.]
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:

Click here to see a list of the kirk session records for the various Edinburgh parishes.

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.

Click here to see a list of the pre-1855 nonconformist churches and their records.

The following are post 1855 nonconformist Christian churches:

• Carrubers Christian Center
  
• Chinese Evangelical Church
  
• Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
  
• Greek Orthodox
  
• Jehovah's Witness
  
• Marthoma Congregation of Scotland
  
• Methodists
  
• Presbyterian
  
• Roman Catholic
  
• Seventh Day Adventist
  

Non Christian groups include:

• Buddhist
  
• Muslim
  
• Sikh
  

Edinburgh Lothian Road Associate Congregation Church

• 1827-1855 Scotland, Edinburgh & Lothian Birth and Baptism Index - includes Edinburgh Lothian Road Associate Congregation baptisms 1827-1855, index only

Edinburgh Gaelic Church

• 1852-1855 Scotland, Edinburgh & Lothian Birth and Baptism Index - includes Gaelic Church Edinburgh baptisms 1852-1855, index only

Roslin Free Church

• 1852-1855 Scotland, Edinburgh & Lothian Birth and Baptism Index - includes Roslin Free Church baptisms 1843-1854, index only

Cemetery Records

• Edinburgh cemeteries and crematoria
• Edinburgh cemeteries
• Find a grave in Edinburgh
• find Edinburgh graves
• Seafield Cemetery and Crematorium, Edinburgh City, Edinburgh, Scotland
• Ellery, Craig. Dean (Edgehill) Cemetery & Dean Parish Church, Edinburgh: monumental inscriptions. Edinburgh: Scottish Genealogy Society, 2011. Indexed. (FS Library book 941.445/E1 V3e)
• Scotland, Edinburgh & Lothian Death and Burial Index at Findmypast.com - index ($)

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.

Directories

Courtesy of the National Library of Scotland, Post Office Directories are avilable online. The directories available for Portobello are: 1889-1895: These are available in either PDF format or viewable online.

Edinburgh: 1773-1912: These are available in either PDF format or viewable online. (Some years are missing)

Poorhouse Records

There are six poorhouses in Midlothian:

• Edinburgh Edinburgh/
• Dalkeith Combination Dalkeith/
• Inveresk Combination Inveresk/
• North Leith /Leith/
• South Leith Leith/
• St. Cuthbert's Combination (Edinburgh) StCuthberts/

Local Histories

• Edinburgh History
  
• Local Histories; Edinburgh
  

Probate Records

Edinburgh was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Edinburgh until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Edinburgh. 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 Midlothian and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Edinburgh.

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

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.

Maps

• 1885 Scottish Burgh Maps
  • Edinburgh Eastern Section
  • Edinburgh Western Section
• Ordnance Survey Maps of Edinburgh for 1893-1894 available at National LIbrary of Scotland.
• Google One World map of Edinburgh
  
• Old Maps of Edinburgh
  
• Edinburgh street map
  
• National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh Gazetteer
  
• Scottish Places Gazetteer
  

Newspapers

• 1759-1760 - The Edinburgh Chronicle at Google News - free.
• 1772-1829 - The Edinburgh Advertiser at Google News - free.
• 1801-1808 - Edinburgh Weekly Journal at Google News - free.
• 1867-1869 - The Edinburgh Evening Courant at Google News - free.
• 1884 - Edinburgh Courant at Google News - free.

Current day newspapers:

• Edinburgh Evening News
  
• The Scotsman
  
• Edinburgh Daily Record
  
• Edinburgh Gazette
  

Voting

• 1832-1966 Edinburgh, Scotland, Electoral Registers, 1832-1966 at Ancestry, index & images ($)

Occupations

Edinburgh has the strongest economy of any city in the United Kingdom outside London and the highest percentage of professionals in the UK with 43% of the population holding a degree-level or professional qualification.

As the Capital of Scotland, a large part of the economy is made up of government services and bureaucracies. This has increased considerably since the close vote on exiting the United Kingdom in 2013. The Government in London made many concessions to keep Scotland in the Kingdom, and these added many economic and educational benefits for Scotland that the rest of the UK does not have. Obviously this has added a considerable number of positions in Government.

In the 19th century, Edinburgh's economy was known for banking, publishing and brewing. Today, its economy is based mainly on financial services, scientific research, higher education, and tourism. Banking accounts for about 21,000 positions, Insurance and Pensions about 8,000 positions, and Asset Management and Servicing, close to 8,500 positions. The digital economy has increased tremendously in recent years, contributing about 17,500 jobs to the economy.

Tourism is also an important element in the city's economy. As a World Heritage Site, tourists visit historical sites such as Edinburgh Castle, the Palace of Holyrood house and the Old and New Towns. Their numbers are augmented in August each year during the Edinburgh Festivals, which attracts 4.4 million visitors.

Repositories

Societies

• Scots Genealogy
  
• Midlothian Genealogy
  
• Scottish Genealogy
  
• Edinburgh Genuki
  
• Ancestry.com; Edinburgh
  

Archives

• National Archives of Scotland
  
• Edinburgh City Archives
  
• University of Edinburgh Archives
  

The National Records of Scotland
H.M. General Register House
2 Princes Street
Edinburgh, EH1 3YY

Websites

• Wikipedia: Edinburgh
  
• The City of Edinburgh Council
  
• East Lothian County Council
  
• West Lothian County Council
  

References

Return to Midlothian Parishes.

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