Auchterhouse, Angus, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #273

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

History
AUCHTERHOUSE, a parish, in the county of Forfar, 7 miles (N. W. by N.) from Dundee; containing the villages of Dronley and Kirkton. This parish, the name of which is of uncertain derivation, is nearly of triangular form, and includes the southern range of the hill of Sidlaw, that eminence separating it from Strathmore; and along its southern boundary runs the Dighty water, which falls into the Tay, near the influx of the latter into the German Ocean. The church was built in 1775, and consists of portions both old and modern; it has, on the west, a steeple with a bell, and on the east a cemetery, very ancient, but in good condition.

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

"An Angus Parish in the Eighteenth Century" by William Mason Inglis | He was a minister at Auchterhouse.

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 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 census and 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. Some records may also be indexed in other FamilySearch collections for Scotland. Births: Births are intermixed with marriages and other matters prior to 1656. Early pages of records are damaged, and the record is defective 1653–1655. The record is blank from April 1698–January 1703, after which the record is intermixed with marriages until August 1729. There are only two entries August 1729–September 1732. Mothers’ names are not recorded until 1703. Marriages: Marriages are intermixed with births and other matters prior to 1656. The record is blank September 1656–July 1661 and July 1680–June 1685, from which date to 1692 the record is intermixed with other matters. The record is blank May 1692–April 1703 and August 1729–November 1783, except for five entries 1742–1745. Records are intermixed with births April 1703–August 1729. Burials: There is one entry for 1839 recorded after January 1791. 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 1656–1663, 1667–1677, 1740–1804, 1818–1910 Accounts 1834–1916 Note: Available at the Dundee City Archive and Record Centre, Dundee, Scotland, record CH2/23.

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.

There are no known pre-1855 nonconformist churches or records for this parish.

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