Middlebie, Dumfriesshire, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #841

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

History
MIDDLEBIE, a parish, in the district of Annandale, county of Dumfries, 2½ miles (N. E. by E.) from Ecclesfechan containing the villages of Eaglesfield, Kirtlebridge, and Waterbeck. This place, which consists of the united parishes of Middlebie, Pennersaughs, and Carruthers, derives its name from a Roman station in the old parish of Middlebie, which formed the central post between the stations of Overbie or Upperbie, in Eskdalemuir, and Netherbie, in the county of Cumberland. The parish is partly bounded on the south-east by the Kirtle water. The church, erected in 1821, is a neat plain structure, containing 700 sittings; and there is a place of worship in the village of Waterbeck for members of the Relief Church.

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 edina.($)  Click on ‘Browse scanned pages’ then search the parish reports for Middlebie. 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 Scotland Census Records.

Click for a list of the Family History Library microfilm numbers for the census records of Middlebie.

Below is information for any known surname indexes:

The 1901 census of Scotland is indexed on scotlandspeople.($) 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 indexes through the library.

Church Records
The Established Church of Scotland was Presbyterian. Read more about Scotland 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: Births are intermixed with marriages. Many years are out of order of time 1767–1799. There are five entries, 1732–1743 after 1763 and eight entries 1757–1775 at 1786. Mothers' names are seldom recorded in the regular entries until about 1786. Marriages: Marriages are intermixed with births. Except for one entry 1787 and one for 1853, there is no record after 1767. Deaths: There are two entries for ministers, dated 1809–1819 and these are recorded among the births. 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 1699–1743 Separate Register 1703–1843 Note: Available at the Scottish National Archives, Edinburgh, record CH2/267.

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.

Waterbeck United Presbyterian Church
History— The congregation of Waterbeck originated in the general dissatisfaction felt in the district, both with the doctrine taught and the deportment maintained by the minister of the parish of Middlebie. Application was made, by the dissatisfied parties, to the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries for supply of sermon, the 18th of March 1790, which was granted. Sermon was continued at Craigs until the following year, after which it was at Waterbeck. Congregation organized in 1790. Church built 1792. Membership: 1835, 129 families numbering 645 persons. 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.

Record— 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
Middlebie was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Dumfries until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Dumfries. Probate records for 1513- 1901 are indexed online at scotlandspeople.($) 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 Dumfries and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Dumfries. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for Dumfries. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of Dumfries and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.