Kilmany, Fife, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #437

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

History
KILMANY, a parish, in the district of Cupar, county of Fife; containing the village of Rathillet, 5 miles (N. by E.) from Cupar. This parish, of which the name is supposed by some writers to signify "the church of the monks," and by others "the church of the valley," is situated in the north of the county. The church, situated on rising ground overlooking the river Motray, is a plain edifice erected in 1768, in good repair, and adapted for a congregation of about 350 persons. There is a place of worship for the United Associate Synod.

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 http://edina.ac.uk/stat-acc-scot/. Click on ‘Browse scanned pages’ then search the parish reports for Kilmany. Also available at the.

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 Scotland 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 www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk. 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 indexes through the library.

Church Records
The Established Church of Scotland was Presbyterian. Read more about Scotland Church Records.

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

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 Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Some records may also be indexed in other FamilySearch collections for Scotland. Births: Births are intermixed with marriages until June 1777. There are no entries July 1710–November 1711, October 1718–November 1721, and 1727–January 1730. Births are separately recorded after 1777. Mother's names are not listed until January 1730. Marriages: There are no entries June 1777–March 1817. There is, however, a separate record of contract dues 1749–1819 which is blank January 1778–November 1780. The fact of marriage is frequently omitted from the entries of contract after 1754 in the regular record. Deaths: Record is of Morthcloth Dues and there are no entries February 1819–1837, after which date deaths are recorded. Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. Family History Library British Book.

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 1696–1774, 1792–1803, 1813–1821, 1831–1840, 1837–1846, 1853–1934 Note: Available at St. Andrews University Library, St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, record CH2/1546.

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 Lists.

Rathillet Associate Presbyterian Church
History— When a new parish minister was settled at Kilmany in 1761, some of the parishioners objected to him and they withdrew and applied to the Associate Burgher Presbytery of Perth to be taken under its inspection as a forming congregation, which was granted. The church was built in 1762; a new church was built in 1859. Source: Annals and Statistics of the United Presbyterian Church, by Rev. William MacKelvie, D.D., pub. 1873. Film #. More details may be given in the source including ministers.

Records— Baptisms 1781–1884 Marriages 1764–1800 Burials 1783–1836 Session Minutes 1763–1934 Collections and Disbursements 1764–1771 Other post-1855 records Note: Available at St. Andrews University Library, St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, record CH3/1565.

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
Kilmany was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of St. Andrews until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Fife at Cupar. 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 &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' of Fife and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Fife.

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

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.