Ormiston, East Lothian, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #715

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

History
ORMISTON, a parish, in the county of Haddington; 7 miles (W. S. W.) from Haddington. This place, which is situated on the western borders of the county, derives its name from the family of Orme. The church, about a mile and a half from the village, is a very plain edifice with a small belfry, erected in 1696, and adapted for a congregation of 345 persons. The members of the Free Church have a place of worship.

The New Statistical Account of Scotland (pub. 1834-45), written by the parish ministers, 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. Online at:, Internet Archive.

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.

is a list of the FS Library microfilm numbers for the census records of Ormiston, as well as the library numbers for any available.

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 the separate indexes through the library.

Established Church—Old Parochial Registers
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 ScotlandsPeople website, a pay-for-view website. The Scottish Church Records Index is also still available at the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City. Some records may also be indexed in other FamilySearch collections for Scotland.

Births: Records are blank November 1649–December 1706. Ink lines have been drawn down the pages or through the entries from latter date until 1730. There is a copy of the portion 1637–1649, at the beginning of the volume. Entries out of the order of time frequent after 1792. Mothers’ names are not recorded until December 1706. Marriages: Records are blank July 1649–September 1705. There is a duplicate of records 1637–1649. Deaths: Three entries of burials for 1642 are on a page after marriages for 1819. Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. British Book 941 K23b. Note: The New Statistical Account of Scotland for Ormiston 1835 states the parochial registers are very imperfect. Some of them, according to tradition, being in the possession of one of the elders, were consumed when his house was burnt. The earliest date of those that remain is April 30, 1637.

Established Church—Kirk Session Records
The Kirk session was the court of the parish. The session was made up of he 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 1648–1649, 1683–1702, 1730–1841 Accounts 1643–1649, 1660–1689, 1730–1846 Communion Roll 1834–1842 Population Roll 1811, 1821, 1831 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/292.

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.

The New Statistical Account of Scotland for Ormiston 1835 states that at that time there were no Dissenting meeting houses in the parish. Nineteen families and some house servants belonged to the Secession or other Dissenters.

Ormiston Pathhead and Ormiston Free Church
History— The minister and congregation at Ormiston “came out” in 1843. The church was erected in 1843–1844. The minister of Heriot, Midlothian and some of his people adhered to the Free Church at the Disruption. No site could be obtained at Heriot, so he was transferred to Pathhead, in the parish of Crichton, Midlothian, where he formed a congregation and a church was built. When he retired in 1861, Pathhead was reduced to a station. In 1866 the minister of Ormiston also retired, and the two congregations were united under one minister. Membership: 1848, 151; 1900, 149. Source: Annals of the Free Church of Scotland, 1843–1900, ed. Rev. William Ewing, D.D., 2 vols. pub. 1914. Film #918572. More details may be given in the source including a list of ministers.

Records—                                                          FS Library Film Number  Session Minutes              1843–1865     1886232 item 4–5 Deacons’ Court Minutes    1844–1862     1886232 item 4–5 Baptismal Register           1843–1936      1886233 item 1–2 Communion Roll               1844–1865      1886233 item 1–2

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
Ormiston was under the probate jurisdiction of the Commissary Court of Edinburgh until 1823, and since then has been under the Sheriff's Court of Haddington. 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 FamilySearch Library. To find the microfilm numbers, search in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of East Lothian and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Edingburgh. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for East Lothian. Look in the library catalog for the 'Place-names' of East Lothian and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'

Read more about Scotland Probate Records

Tax Records
In the late 18th century Scotland conducted a series of taxation processes to support the Naploleanic War. Online images for these tax rolls are available for Ormiston on ScotlandsPlaces. Various taxation categories include: Cart, Farm Horse, Female and Male Servant, Hearth, Horse, and Watch and Clock tax rolls.