Lochrutton, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland Genealogy

Lochrutton #875

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

History
LOCHRUTTON, a parish, in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, 4 miles (W. S. W.) from Dumfries containing the village of Lochfoot. This place, which is situated in the eastern portion of the stewartry, takes its name from a lake on what was formerly the great road to Ireland, called in the Gaelic language Rutton, or "the straight road." The church, a neat plain structure erected in 1819, contains 300 sittings.

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 Lochrutton. Also available at the

Condition of Original Registers

 * Births: There are no entries October 1700–May 1728. The register appears to have been discontinued 1783–1806 on account of the government tax on entries. At the latter date, a record for the period in question was made from notes kept by the minister of the births, and the best information that could be found. After 1819, there are two pages of entries, one family 1796–1811. Mothers' names are not recorded. There are five entries of Dissenters' children 1823–1841 after marriages for November 1783.
 * Marriages: There are no entries October 1699–November 1736, June 1741–June 1749 and June 1752–April 1766. Record for 1736–1752 appears to be chiefly proclamations. After November 1783, there are entries of proclamation fees, embracing only the name of the bridegroom. There are no entries 1790–1841.
 * Deaths: Morthcloth Dues until 1790, then there are no entries until 1841. Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. FS Library 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 and Accounts 1697–1703, 1723–1724 Minutes 1783–1810, 1812–1813, 1819–1823 Collections 1742–1797 Disbursements 1737–1788, 1841–1879 Poors’ Fund Distributions 1845–1847 Register of Inhabitants 1763, 1766–1777 New Communicants 1759–1764 Catechismal Roll 1771–1774, 1789–1790 Population Roll 1821, 1831, 1841 Communion Roll 1835–1842 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/231.

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 Lists.

There are no known nonconformist groups. Any dissenters would have attended church in neighboring parishes.

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