Finding an Irish Ancestor Using Scottish Records

Notes on Immigration
The Irish emigration to Scotland was quite easy. The ports in Ireland are not far from Scottish ports. Trade was quite common between Ireland and Scotland. Liverpool was a magnate for the Irish. Work was available in Scotland. The Presbyterian Church is strong in Northern Ireland as the Church of England. The British Military enlisted Irish. As a result, the Irish did settle in England. Since Ireland was part of the British Isles, it is difficult to trace the leaving of Irish emigrants to Scotland through any passenger lists. It was easy to get on a ship and leave for Scotland or England and not be traced.

Families who were Catholic may show up in Catholic records in Scotland, however, they can be found in the Presbyterian Church Records and after 1854 in the Civil Registration records. Families with Irish Surnames can show up in many different types of records. See records below.

How to Use This Page
This page is designed to help you find information quickly. Links have been put in at the beginning of each source to help you find more indepth information. These links will help you gain an understanding of the record type. On this page, the other information listed in these sources can help you locate information quickly and guide you to websites or where information can be found. The internet is becoming a great resource and help to to those pursuing genealogical research and Irish emigrants. The wiki and these sources should be a useful guide.

British Military
For more indepth information on British Military for Ireland, try our wiki under [England Military Records]

Many Irish have joined the Military and this Military covers many branches.

British Army, Royal Air Force, Royal Marines, Royal Navy

Records of hospitals: Chelsea, Greenwich, Kilmainham

Online records
The National Archives in England is where the British Military Records are located. They can be looked at and copied at their office at Kew, Surrey, England. Their website also contains an index to many of their British Military Records and some can be downloaded for a fee through their catalog. [TNA catalog] The Class Reference WO stands for War Office and can be put into the catalog under Department or Series Code. This will separate out the British Military records from the other records.

Findmypast.co.uk has the following indexes for British Military: [findmypast]

Soldiers Died in the Great War 1914-1919 National Roll of the Great War 1914-1918

De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour 1914-1918 Royal Naval Division 1914-1919

Army Roll of Honour 1939-1945 Armed forces births 1761-1994 Armed forces marriages 1818-1994 Armed forces deaths 1796-1994

Waterloo Medal Roll 1815

Other army lists/roll calls 1656-1888

Ancestry.co.uk has the following: [Ancestry]

Babergh Hundred Military Survey of 1522 British and German Deserters, Dischargees, and POW's Who May Have Remained in Canada and the USA, 1774-1783. Part One and Two British Army WWI Medal Rolls Index Cards, 1914-1920 British Army WWI Pension Records 1914-1920 British Army WWI Service Records, 1914-1920 British Commonwealth War Graves Registers, 1914-1918 British Naval Biographical Dictionary, 1849 Charterhouse Register 1872-1910 Commissioned Sea Officers of the Royal Navy, 1660-1815 England, The National Roll of the Great War, 1914-1918 Great Britain Army War List, January 1893 Great Britain, Royal Naval Division Casualties of The Great War, 1914-1924 Indian Army Quarterly List for 1 January 1912 UK, Army Roll of Honour, 1939-1945 UK, British Army Prisoners of War, 1939-1945 UK, De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour, 1914-1924 UK, Soldiers Died in the Great War, 1914-1919 WWII United News Newsreels, 1942-1946

Books on the British Military: Try this link [In Search of the Fornlorn Hope]

Census
The census records can show Irish by listing their birthplace. All the census records from 1841-1901 will show a birthplace of Ireland or a specific place in Ireland that the person was born.

For more indepth information on Census for Scotland, try our wiki under

The census of Scotland is available online from 1841-1901 at these websites:

www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk The Scottish Government website is terrific!

www.ancestryinstitution.com This index of the census is very useful and worth looking at.

The census of Scotland is not available for the year 1911 until 2012:

Family History Library

The Family History Library has the census of 1841-1891 on microfilm and access of the above websites with many indexes of the census 1841-1891. The Library also has some pre-1841 census records for Scotland that will have Irish listed. Look at www.familysearch.org at the Family History Library Catalog

Church Records
For more indepth information on Church Records for Scotland, try our wiki under Scotland Church Records

Church records are useful in Scotland 1600's-present. The Church of Scotland Records have been extracted, indexed and are available in a number of ways. Other religions are known as Non-Conformists and good records have been kept. Since the higher percentage of the population of Irish were Catholic, the church records of the Catholic Church must be highly considered. The church records for all religions can encompass Births, Baptisms, Confirmations, Marriages, Deaths, Burials, Monumental Inscriptions, Minutes from Meetings, Business Records, Tithing, Poor and Church Rates, Payments, Attendance, Members, Church Histories. Our listing here is to direct to Births, Baptisms, Marriages, Deaths, and Burials.

How do you find the records and access them?

Online: Scotlandspeople
The Scottish Government has porvided indexes and images to original Church Records. These include all Births, Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths pre-1855 for the Church of Scotland. They also include Catholic Parish Registers 1703-1955. The only index for Catholic Records Online. This is a pay website, but is well worth using.

Online: The International Genealogical Index
The IGI has a high percentage of the Births and Marriages of The Church of Scotland Records Indexed pre-1855. Searches can be made by individual, marriage, parent, and specific parishes by Batch Number. The Batch Number for each parish can only be searched by the number beginning with a C (for christening) or M (for Marriage). When you locate an entry on the International Genealogical Index from Scotland. Look for the batch number and if it begins with a C or M click on the batch number and see what happens. Then add the surname to the field and the click search. It may lead to further family names for that specific parish. This is a Free website.

Some of the non-conformist records for Scotland are also indexed on the International Genealogical Index with no images online. This is the only index pre-1855 and in some cases these records cover post-1854.

Images of original Church Records are not available through the International Genealogical Index. However, you can look at Scotlandspeople.gov.uk for these images as the International Genealogical Index will help you determine an entry you are interested in. These are for the Church of Scotland and Catholic Records. These records are also available through the Family History Library and Family History Centers throughout the world on microfilm. The Family History Library Catalog can help you determine film number through the place search Library Catalog. The International Genealogical Index can also provide these film numbers. After you find the person you want, look at the Source Call No.: This Source Call No.: is the microfilm number that is the original church records of baptism and marriage for that specific parish.

Civil Registration
For more indepth information on Civil Registration for Scotland, try our wiki under Scotland Civil Registration

Civil registration for Scotland in available is some way in an index form from 1 January1855 to 2006.

Civil registration is the recording of birth, marriage and deaths in a certificate form.

Certificates can be obtained from:

Scotlandspeople.gov.uk

The cost is five credits for a certificate (for those certificates that have been imaged) and one credit for an index reference up to 25 indexed references. The costs of 6 credits total for a certificate costs about one pound and 25 pence. You can obtain 30 credits for 6 pounds. The certificate image can be obtained within a few minutes after requesting the document and you can copy (copy cost) or download (to a flash drive) or store it on scotlandspeople for free.

Indexes to the certificates can be viewed in many ways:

Occupation
Occupations and finding work was necessary for the Irish to survive or have a better way of life. Many Irish came to Scotland looking for work. The following link provides information on Scotland occupations

Poor Law
There is a database at The Glasgow City Archives at The Mitchell Library that covers 350,000 people from the Glasgow City, Barony and Govan parishes from 1851 to 1910. These records include the influx of the Irish into Glasgow and the West of Scotland. The information in these records can give ages, birth dates, birth places, husband, wife, children.

The Family History Library has these records on microfilm using the following link: Glasgow Poor Law Records

Probate
For a more indepth look at Scottish Probate Records please look at our wiki at the following link: Scotland Probate Reocrds