Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae

Introduction
In 2010, the Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae collection was added to Ancestry. These records deal with the succession of ministers in the parish churches of Scotland.

There are six parts covering the years of 1560-1866. The Presbyterian church has been the established state church of Scotland since 1690. There are four governing sections within the organization of the Church of Scotland:


 * General Assembly (governs over the whole church)
 * Synods (governs over a region)
 * Presbytery (governs over a few parish kirks)
 * Parish Kirk (local governing body – courts handled at this level are known as ‘kirk sessions’)

The collection added comes from the ‘synods’ which were abolished in 1990s. Synods covered larger areas of presbyteries. Each Synod had individuals responsible for the governing of all in their region. According to Ancestry.com, “The Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae provides details on more than 2,000 Scottish ministers and often their families.”

Content and Coverage
This collection covers synods from Aberdeen to Zetland and contains historical family information for genealogists if an ancestor was a Scottish minister. Some of the possible information:

While this collection is not indexed, it is searchable by name. This collection has been used in the past to prove pedigrees back to the 1600s.

Accessing the Records
The main place to access the Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae is on Ancestry.com.

These records are also available on FamilySearch and at the Family History Library. FamilySearch has indexed the genealogies of those listed in each volume. The volumes are also available in book form (941 D3s) and on microfiche (6026402) covering volumes 1-10. It is worth noting that this collection is larger than the one online at Ancestry. Click to see the whole collection on the FamilySearch Catalog. The records in this collection go up to 1975!

Some of the volumes are also available on Archive.org.

Example
A ‘partial’ sample of an entry on p. 8 of Synod of Lothian and Tweedale states the following:


 * 1607. Patrick Galloway, Minister of Chaplain to his Majesty, who had been on the leet, 11 Aug 1588, was supplicated for by the Town Council to the King, 3d June 1606, …accepted a general ministery…he died before 10th Feb. 1626, in 50th Min., when his son James (founder of the noble family of Dunkeld) was adm. a burges in right of his father. …He married May 1583, Matillo Guthrie, who died June 1592, and had two sons and two daugh., James, already noticed, Williame, Dorathie and Cristiane.