Fodderty, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland

Parish # 65 

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

History
FODDERTY, a parish, in the county of Ross and Cromarty, 2 miles (W.) from Dingwall; containing the villages of Auchterneed, Keithtown, and Maryburgh, the island of Balblair, and part of the quoad sacra districts of Carnoch and Kinlochluichart. The name is probably derived from two words in the Gaelic language, signifying a meadow along the side of a hill, a description characteristic of the celebrated valley of Strathpeffer, which comprehends part of the parish. The church, a plain but pleasing structure, built in 1807, and enlarged in 1835, accommodates 600 persons with sittings: the service is alternately performed in English and Gaelic. In the village of Maryburgh is a church, recently erected, distant from the parish church about five miles.

The name of this parish is supposed to be derived from two Gaelic words, Foigh and Ritaobh, which signify “a meadow along the side of a hill.” This parish is bounded by Dingwall on the east; Urray on the south; Contin and Kinlochluichart on the west; and Kincardine and Kiltearn on the north.

The ancient history of this parish is involved in much obscurity. Though locally situated in the county of Ross, it has belonged to that of Cromarty, since the time of George Viscount of Tarbat. This parish was formerly divided into three, namely Fodderty, Kinnettas, and Tollie, in Brahan.

The land-owners, none of whom are residents of the parish are; John Hay M’Kenzie, Esq. of Cromartie; James Alexander Stewart of M’Kenzie Esq. of Seaforth, M.P.; Alexander M’Kenzie, Esq. of Hilton; Duncan Davidson, Esq. of Tulloch; The Proprietor of Strathconon; Sir George Stewart Mackenzie of Coul, Bart.; and Sir Colin M’Kenzie of Kilcoy, Bart.

The population of this parish in 1755 was 1483, and by 1831 it was 2232.

The church of the parish was built in 1807 and was originally intended to accommodate 400, but the heritors voluntarily agreed to enlarge it to the extent of about 200 additional sittings. It is still, however, far from sufficient to supply the wants of the parish, and is very inconveniently situated for those who dwell on the south side of Knock Farril, amounting to between 800 and 900, who in the winter are often prevented from attending church by the steepness of the hill, and the depth of the snow. There are no Dissenting or Seceding families in the parish. Hector M’Kenzie, was the first Presbyterian minister of the parish, and was inducted in 1728.

This account was written August 1838.

Source: New Statistical Account of Scotland for Fodderty, FS Library book 941 B4sa, series 2, vol. 14.

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 you are interested in. 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—
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: There are no entries April 1744–January 1759, February 1766–1770, and September 1778–1780. A page of entries for 1769 is recorded with the entries for 1815. Marriages: Entries for 1844–1846 are recorded with the 1796 entries of births. There are no marriage entries July 1743–February 1800. Deaths:There are no entries September 1761–October 1776. A portion of the records are believed to have been burned. 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 1734–1757, 1826–1888 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/676.

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 records.

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