Kildrummy, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #208

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

History
KILDRUMMY, a parish, in the district of Alford, county of Aberdeen, 6 miles (W. by N.) from Alford. This place, of which the name is of Gaelic origin, and signifies "the little burial mount," was distinguished for its castle, anciently the property of David, Earl of Huntington, and a seat of King Robert Bruce. The church is a plain edifice, erected in 1805.

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 FS Library microfilm numbers for the as well as the library numbers for any surname indexes available:

The 1901 census of Scotland is indexed on [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/?gclid=CLKJyYGQ4ZUCFQQCagod1gp0Ww 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—
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: Records are blank October 1688–November 1697. They are defective December 1698–January 1704 and blank December 1716–April 1718, March 1729–October 1734, June 1737–September 1739. Records are blank also August 1750–February1761, except for even entries. Records are very defective May 1771–January 1796, and there are only three entries December 1810–November 1812. Mothers’ names not recorded until 1812. Marriages: There are no entries March 1697–January 1699. Records are blank July 1704–May 1707, July 1708–December 1711, June 1715–June 1718, November 1719–December 1720, and December 1723–March 1731. They are very defective November 1733–September 1739 and blank November 1752–November 1764. There are only ten entries May 1772–November 1800 and then they are blank until February 1823, after which date there are only five entries. 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 1673–1688, 1692, 1710–1724, with accounts, 1759–1763, 1763–1807 Accounts 1795–1888 Cash Book 1802–1809 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/211.

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.

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
kildrummy was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Aberdeen until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Aberdeen. Probate records for 1513- 1901 are indexed online at [http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/?gclid=CLKJyYGQ4ZUCFQQCagod1gp0Ww 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 Aberdeen and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Aberdeen. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Aberdeen. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Aberdeen and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.' Read more about Scotland Probate Records.