Scotland Record Finder
The table below can help you decide which type of Scottish records to search.
Step 1. In column 1 select a research goal. Choose an ancestor you would like to know more about. What new information would you like to learn about that person?
Step 2. In column 2 find the types of records most likely to have the information you need.
- > Read the FamilySearch Wiki articles about those types of records. They explain what the records might tell you, how to search them, and how to find them in the Family History Library Catalog. Some records are not at the library.
Step 3. In column 3 find additional record types that may be useful.
- > Records of previous research (such as Genealogy, Biography, History, Periodicals, and Societies) are useful for most goals but are not listed unless they are especially helpful.
| 1. If You Need | 2. Look First In | 3. Then Search |
| Age | Census, Civil Registration, Church Records | Cemeteries, Military Records, Biography |
| Birth date | Civil Registration, Church Records | Cemeteries, Genealogy, Military Records, Newspapers, Occupations, Biography |
| Birthplace | Census, Church Records, Civil Registration, | Cemeteries, Genealogy, Newspapers, Military Records, Occupations, Biography |
| Boundaries of parishes, districts, and counties | Gazetteers | History, Maps |
| Death | Cemeteries, Church Records, Civil Registration, Newspapers | Court Records, Probate Records, Land and Property, Biography |
| Historical background | Genealogy, History | Church History |
| Emigration date | Emigration and Immigration, | Church Records |
| Language helps | Language and Languages | |
| Living relatives | Civil Registration, Directories, Census | Newspapers, Periodicals, Societies, Biography |
| Maiden name | Civil Registration, Church Records | Cemeteries, Census, Land and Property, Probate Records, Biography |
| Marriage | Church Records, Civil Registration, | Biography, Genealogy, Newspapers, Nobility |
| Occupation | Church Records, Census, Directories, Civil Registration, Occupations, Probate Records | Court Records; Poorhouses, Poor Law, Etc.; Land and Property, Biography |
| Parents, children, and other family members | Census, Church Records, Civil Registration, Probate Records | Cemeteries, Land and Property, Schools, Biography |
| Physical description | Military Records, Court Records | Biography, Newspapers, Occupations |
| Place-finding aids | Gazetteers, Maps | Directories, History, Historical Geography, Land and Property, Periodicals |
| Places of residence | Census, Church Records, Civil Registration, Directories | Land and Property, Probate Records, Biography |
| Place of residence when you know only the county | Civil Registration, Church Records, Land and Property, Probate Records, Taxation, Census | Cemeteries |
| Previous research (compiled genealogy) | Biography, Genealogy, Societies | Nobility, Periodicals |
| Record-finding aids | Archives and Libraries, Genealogy | Periodicals, Societies |
| Religion | Biography, Church Records, Civil Registration | Census, Cemeteries, Genealogy, History |
| Understanding names | Names (Personal) |
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