Sprouston, Roxburghshire, Scotland Genealogy

Sprouston (#807)

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

History
SPROUSTON, a parish, in the district of Kelso, county of Roxburgh; containing the village of Lempitlaw, 2 miles (E. N. E.) from Kelso. This place, of which the name is of uncertain derivation, is of considerable antiquity, and appears to have formed part of the endowment of the Abbey of Kelso in the year 1128. The church, erected in 1781, and repaired in 1845, is a plain, neat, and substantial edifice situated on an eminence nearly in the centre of the village, and is adapted for a congregation of 500 persons. The members of the Free Church have no place of worship.

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 Sprouston. 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.

Click here for a list of the Family History Library microfilm numbers for the.

Below is information for any known surname indexes:

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
Indexed: 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 be indexed in the [https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/5 International Genealogical Index. ] Births: There are no entries July 1644–December 1713 and May 1720–August 1722. Marriages: There are no marriage entries November 1643–December 1713 and May 1720–June 1728, except a fragment of a page with portions of entries probably for 1722–1723. There are no entries April 1785–February 1845. Deaths: Only two pages, both incomplete. Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. 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 1650–1656, 1662–1673, 1691–1700, 1709–1712, 1722–1769 - with accounts, 1731–1798 - mainly financial, 1770–1816 - with accounts, 1817–1873 Accounts 1753–1788 - few leaves, 1774–1832, 1816–1857, 1851–1885 Poors’ Accounts and Minutes 1752–1771, 1780–1803 - includes Heritors' Minutes Young Communicants, etc. 1836–1876 Certificates 1812–1845 Account of Poor's Mortified Money in the Barony of Haddon 1782–1829 Acts of General Assembly 1709–1717 Communion Roll - post 1850 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/334.

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.

Sprouston or Kelso East Free Church
History— The minister of Sprouston parish, and part of his congregation, "came out" in 1843. They worshiped in the old Original Secession Church in Kelso until their new church, in the outskirts of the town, was opened in 1846. The church was renovated in 1882. In 1883, the name of the congregation was changed from Sprouston to Kelso, East. Membership: 1848, 414; 1900, 221. Source: Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900, ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., 2 vols. pub. 1914. Film #. More details may be given in the source.

Records— Minutes 1843–1906 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH3/1463.

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
Sprouston was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Peebles until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Jedburgh. 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 catalogfor the 'Place-names' of Roxburgh and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Peebles The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Roxburgh. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Roxburgh and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.