New Spynie, Moray, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #136

This is a guide to the history and major genealogical records of Scotland as they pertain to the parish of Spynie. To learn more about how to use these records to search for your ancestors, go to the Scotland: Research Strategies.

= History =

Spynie, the ancient name of this parish, is derived from the Loch known by that name, which, before it was drained, bounded the parish along it north side. The parish is bounded on the south by the river Lossie, excepting a fine field of about 50 acres called Burrough-bridge. It is bounded on the west by the parish of Alves; on the east by the parish of St. Andrews; and on the north by the parishes of Duffus and Drainie, or in other words, by the ground anciently covered by the loch of Spynie.

There is only one village in the parish, that of Bishopmill. It is almost close to Elgin, the market-town, and by the late Reform Act is included in that burgh.

The only land-owners are the Crown, the Earl of Fife, the Trustees of the late Earl of Fife, the Earl of Seafield, Mr. Sellar of Westfield, and the Heirs of the late Colonel Grant of Findrassie.

The palace of Spynie, the ancient residence of the Bishops of Moray, is situated in the eastern extremity of the parish, on the south bank of the ancient lake where the water had been deepest. The palace had been a magnificent and spacious building, and now the ruins are in a very dilapidated state and so rent, as to be incapable of repair.

There is, near the summit of Quarrywood-hill, a free-stone quarry, very hard and durable, which supplies a large extent of country with mill-stones, and the town of Elgin and neighborhood with stone for building.

The population in 1801 was 843 persons, and by 1831 there were 1121 inhabitants. The population has evidently been increased by the building of the village of Bishopmill, which contains 621 inhabitants; while the rest of the parish contains only 500.

There are now few sheep in the parish, the former pasture for them being either planted with wood, or cultivated and brought into tillage. The most approved breeds of cattle have been gradually introduced by some of the farmers; and much attention paid to their improvement.

The church and manse were originally most pleasantly situated at the eastern extremity of the parish, in the vicinity of the Bishop’s Palace; but in the year 1736, they were removed to Quarrywood, a more centrical, though much more bleak situation, nearly under the highest part of the north side of the hill. The church affords accommodation for about 400 persons, and all the sittings are free.

There is no Dissenting or Seceding chapel in the parish; but about 36 persons, chiefly inhabitants of Bishopmill, are Dissenters, and 10 of them Episcopalians. There are no Roman Catholics in the parish. Divine service at the Established Church is generally well attended, and the average number of communicants is about 100.

The earliest entry in the parochial register of baptism was made in 1708; and since that period the register has been pretty regularly kept.

This account was written October 1835. Source: The New Statistical Account of Scotland for New Spynie, FHL book 941 B4sa, 2nd series, vol. 13

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 edina.($) Click on ‘Browse scanned pages’ then search the parish you are interested in. Also available at the

History of the Parish of Spynie. This is a brief background history of the parish of Spynie. A hand-drawn map is included of Elgin, Spynie and surrounding areas for early seventeenth century, covers years 1208-1861. Article in The Land and People of Moray pt. 2 2001, pages 1-8, Family History Library Ref. 941.23 H2 H2b pt.2.

= Census Records =

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

Here is a list of the Family History Library microfilm numbers for the, as well as the library numbers for any surname indexes available:

The 1901 census of Scotland is indexed on scotlandspeople.($) 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.

= Church Records =

The Established Church of Scotland was Presbyterian. Read more about church records.

Here are the pre-1855 records that exist for this parish.

Condition of Original Registers—
Indexed: For an index to these records, see the Scottish Church Records Index available on computers at the Family History Library and family history centers. Some of these records may be indexed and searchable on familysearch.org.

Births: Pages 1 to 14 of the birth record, which probably began in 1708, are now lost. One page at July 1719 and five pages after November 1724 were partially destroyed. From the year 1733, the pages are generally super-scribed by the minister and subscribed by the session clerk. Numerous entries dated 1779 downwards occur in the record 1799–1819. Marriages: No marriage entries exist for December 1717–April 1724, only three exist for November 1750–July 1753, and none exist for May 1756– July 1766, July 1769–August 1774, and December 1776–February 1792. Pages attested from 1733. 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 business men of the parish, chosen to serve on the session. The Kirk session 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 1721–1818, 1846–1958 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/746.

Nonconformist Church Records
A nonconformist church is any church that is not the Established church. Read more about nonconformity in Scotland in the article on the Scotland Church Records Union List.

There are no known nonconformist groups.

= Civil Registration Records =

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.

See the article on Scotland Civil Registration for more information and to access the records.

= Probate Records =

New Spynie was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Moray until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Elgin. Probate records for 1513- 1901 are indexed online at scotlandspeople.($) 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 Family History Library. To find the microfilm numbers, search in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Moray and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Moray. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Moray. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Moray and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.' Read more about Scotland Probate Records.

Return to Moray parish list.