Wilton, Roxburghshire, Scotland Genealogy

Wilton (#810)

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

History
WILTON, a parish, in the district of Hawick, county of Roxburgh; containing the hamlets of Appletree-Hall and Dean, and a small portion of the town of Hawick. This place, of which the name in ancient records is written Walltown and Willistown, is of uncertain origin; and little worthy of historical notice occurs with respect to the parish, which may be regarded as a suburban district to the town of Hawick. The church, built in 1762, and to which, in 1801, a new aisle was added is conveniently situated nearly in the centre of the parish, and affords accommodation to 460 persons.

 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 Wilton. 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 here for a list of the FS Library microfilm numbers for the

Below is information for any known surname indexes:

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 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
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 FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City. Some records may be indexed in the [https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/5 International Genealogical Index. ] Births: There are no entries June 1699–February 1702 and irregular entries are frequent about 1790–1799. There is a draft of the record December 1756–February 1783. Marriages: Proclamation fees are intermixed with Mortcloth Dues. There are no entries December 1788–December 1792. There is a draft or duplicate of portion 1757–1819, the latter, however, having no entries 1782–1794. Deaths: Mortcloth Dues intermixed with proclamation fees. No entries December 1788–December 1792, except for a few entries of Mortcloth Dues. There is a draft or duplicate of portion 1757–1819, the latter, however, having no entries 1782–1894. Source: Key to the Parochial Registers of Scotland, by V. Ben Bloxham, pub. 1970. British 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 1694–1734 - with Poor's Accounts Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/375.

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.

No known nonconformist groups.

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

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.