Auchtergaven, Perthshire, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #330

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

History
AUCHTERGAVEN, a parish, in the county of Perth, 8½ miles (N. by W.) from Perth; containing the villages of Bankfoot, Carnie-Hill, and Waterloo, and part of Stanley. This place was distinguished, in former times, as the scene of some fierce contentions between the Bishop of Dunkeld and Sir James Crichton, of Strathford. The church, situated on an eminence rising from the road between Dundee and Perth, is a plain substantial edifice, with a western tower, and is adapted for a congregation of 1200 persons. There are places of worship for members of the Free Church, and of the United Seceders and Relief Synods.

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 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—
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: The record prior to December 1771 is tabulated. Mothers' names are not recorded until January 1772. Marriages: Marriages are recorded on occasional pages of the register of births. There are no entries for November 1761–August 1769 and March 1773–1823, except one for 1803. 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 1740–1778, 1808–1855 Cash Books 1773–1902 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/22

Roll of Male Heads of Families
An 1834 list of male heads of families in this parish can be found here.

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.

Bankfoot Associate Secession Later United Church
History— This congregation originated by members of the Secession congregations of Logiealmond and Kinclaven. In order to have a place of worship in their own connection, they united in a petition to the General Associate Anti-burgher Presbytery of Perth for supply of sermon which was granted August 1786. They built a place of worship in 1788. A new church was built in the village of Bankfoot in 1824. Source: Annals and Statistics of the United Presbyterian Church, by Rev. William MacKelvie, D.D., pub. 1873. Film #477618. More details are given in the source.

Records— FHL Film Number Baptisms and Marriages 1807–1810 0304670 item 4 X Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths 1806–1811, 1818–1820 1482995 items 8–9 Session Minutes 1789–1792, 1806–1815, 1818–1820, 1836 1482995 items 8–9 List of Members 1806 1482995 items 8–9 Note: The X means records have been extracted. Other: Managers’ Minutes 1831, 1840–1853, 1858–1909 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH3/31.

Relief Church, extinct
History— Previous to the year 1784, several parishes adjoining that of Auchtergaven were dissatisfied with their ministers. In 1791, a petition was presented to the Relief Presbytery of Perth which was granted. Their place of worship was at Sloganhole. The people broke up into two parties; the one adhering to the Relief Synod at Leadmore in the parish of Auchtergaven, the other met in the town of Little Dunkeld and formed a congregation with the Independents. Neither prospered and supply of sermon was withdrawn from the portion adhering to the Relief Church. A congregation was later formed including persons who had been active in Leadmore and Little Dunkeld, and a church was bought from the Independents. The Union of the Secession and Relief Churches in1847 rendered the need for two congregations of the same denomination in a small village highly inexpedient. The Presbytery attempted to unite those in Bankfoot with this congregation but without success. Supply of sermon was continued until 1853, when it was withdrawn, and the congregation became extinct. Source: Annals and Statistics of the United Presbyterian Church, by Rev. William MacKelvie, D.D., pub. 1873. Film #477618. More details are given in the source.

Records— The extent of records is unknown.

Auchtergaven Free Church
History— This congregation was formed at the Disruption. The church was erected in the village of Bankfoot in 1844. It was renovated and reseated in 1885. The membership declined with decrease of the population. Membership: 1848, 207; 1900, 95. Source: Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900, ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., 2 vols. pub. 1914. Film #918572. More details are given in the source.

Records— The extent of records is unknown.

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
Auchtergaven was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Dunkeld until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dunblane. 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 Perthshire 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 Perthshire. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Perthshire and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.' Read more about Scotland Probate Records.