Redgorton, Perthshire, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #390

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

History
REDGORTON, a parish, in the county of Perth, 4 miles (W. by N.) from Perth; containing the villages of Bridgetown, Luncarty, Craighead, Cromwell-Park, and Pitcairn-Green, and part of the late quoad sacra district of Stanley. This parish comprehends the three ancient, and now united, parishes of Redgorton, Luncarty, and St. Serf's, which are supposed to have been formed into one about the period of the Reformation. The parish is divided into two detached parts, the lower of which lies at the confluence of the Tay and the Almond, and the upper beyond the parish of Moneydie, at the foot of the Grampians. The church, built in 1776, is situated nearly in the middle of the lower part of the parish, and contains 700 sittings; it is well fitted up, but is very inconveniently placed for the population in the upper district, being from seven to eight miles distant from some of the inhabitants. A very handsome chapel of ease has been erected at Stanley. There are places of worship for members of the United Secession and Original Seceders.

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 your parish of interest. 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 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 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 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. The records may be indexed in the Genealogical Index. Births: No birth entries September 1709–June 1715. There is one birth entry for May 1743–April 1744. Incomplete records for 1746 and 1772, record prior to 1815 is not carefully kept. Mothers' names are not recorded until about 1803, and sometimes omitted after that date. Marriages: The marriages are only entries of contract of proclamation fees until 1815. No entries September 1791–June 1804. Proclamations recorded after 1815. One entry of marriages November 1742 and six for October 1763–March 1765, recorded among the births for same period. Deaths: The burials are Mortcloth Dues. 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 1826–1940 Baptismal Register 1706–1819 Proclamation Registers 1815–1819 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/883.

Roll of Male Heads of Families
1834 and 1835 lists of male heads of families in this parish can be found here.

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.

Pitcairn United Presbyterian Church
History— Pitcairn is a village in the parish of Redgorton. At the Secession, several parishioners withdrew from the parish church. "The Breach" divided these Seceders in Redgorton and they formed two weak congregations. When the congregation of Scone was organized, several of the Associate Burgher Seceders in Redgorton connected themselves with it, while others remained in connection with the South congregation of Perth. When the congregations of Methven and Logiealmond arose, several of the General Associate Anti-burgher Seceders in Redgorton connected themselves with them while others remained in connection with the congregation of Kinclaven, and the North congregation in Perth. A Relief congregation was formed in Perth in 1785 and several persons, previously members of the Established Church connected themselves with it. In 1796, the Burgher and Relief church groups decided to unite so that they could have a place of worship in their own locality. Supply of sermon was then applied for and granted by the Associate Burgher Presbytery of Perth. The church was built in 1797, sittings 450. The further procedure of the Antiburghers is described below. Source: Annals and Statistics of the United Presbyterian Church, by Rev. William MacKelvie, D.D., pub. 1873. Film #477618. More details are given in the source.

Records— The extent of records is unknown.

Pitcairngreen General Associate Anti-burgher, extinct by 1873
History— Those persons who belonged to the General Associate Anti-burgher branch of the Secession resident in the parish of Redgorton declined cooperating with the Associate Burgher Seceders and members of the Relief Church when they united in the formation of a congregation in that locality, and therefore proceeded to organize one by themselves. In June 1797 several members were disjoined from Perth North for this purpose. The church was built in 1797. When the union of the two great branches of the Secession took place in 1820, the minister protested against it and with his congregation refused to join in it. After his death in 1827, the congregation joined the Original General Associate Anti-burgher Synod, but protested again when that Synod formed a union with the Original Associate Burgher Synod, and remained apart. Source: Annals and Statistics of the United Presbyterian Church, by Rev. William MacKelvie, D.D., pub. 1873. Film #477618. More details are given in the source.  Records— The extent of records is unknown.

Redgorton Parish Church
The existing parish church is a T-shaped structure dating in its present form largely from 1839 and 1869. It is possible, however, that its main body embodies a substantial part of its medieval predecessor.There are a number of internal and external photographs of this church at this website.

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
Redgorton was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Dunkeld until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dunblane. 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-names' of Perthshire and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Dunblane. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Perthshire. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Perthshire and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'  Read more about Scotland Probate Records.