Airlie, Angus, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #270

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

History
AIRLIE, a parish, in the county of Forfar, 4 miles (W. S. W.) from Kirriemuir. The name of this place, written in ancient records Errolly, Erolly, Irolly, and Airlie, is altogether of uncertain derivation, but is supposed, by some, to come from the Gaelic term Aird, signifying the "extremity of a ridge," which description is applicable to the locality of Airlie Castle. The church is a very neat edifice, rebuilt in 1781, and repaired in 1844. A Free Church place of worship has been erected.

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: There are no records for May 1713–June 1717 and April 1721–September 1723. Mothers' names are not recorded until May 1762. Marriages: Besides a register of proclamations from 1682 on, there is a separate register of marriages November 1700–March 1794, with three entries for 1817, one for 1842, and one for 1848. It is, however, blank for August 1744–February 1747 and January 1763–November 1783. There are two entries for 1842 and 1848 found after 1817. Deaths: Mortcloth Dues for 1706–1819 are mixed in with proclamation of marriages, etc. Separate burial record after February 1748 however, it is blank July 1756–October 1783, and October 1793–March 1817. 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 1678–1706, 1710–1943 Accounts 1769–1804 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/270

Airlie North
Register of Baptisms 1851–1889 Cash Book 1757–1813 List of Male Heads of Families 1834 Session Minutes 1847—1933 Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/1443.

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.

Airlie Free Church
History— The minister of Airlie and many of his congregation "came out" in 1843. The church was built at once and the manse a little later. The population, as in other country districts, tended to decrease. Membership: 1848, 150; 1900, 1882. 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.

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