GuidedResearch:Why Can't I Find the Record - Scotland Deaths

This page will give you additional guidance and resources to find death information for your ancestor. Use this page after first completing the death section of the Scotland Guided Research page.

Mandatory death registration started in 1855. Before this, deaths and burials can be found in church records (mainly the Church of Scotland or Roman Catholic Church). However, churches recorded deaths and burials less frequently than baptisms and marriages.

Additional Databases and Online Resources

 * 1553-1855: Church Registers - Deaths and Burials at ScotlandsPeople (free to search, $ to view image)
 * 1855-1943: Statutory Register of Deaths at ScotlandsPeople (free to search, $ to view image)
 * 1571-1997: Scotland, Extracted Parish Records, 1571-1997  at Ancestry ($)

ScotlandsPeople ($) is the premiere website for Scotland death records. The site requires the user to register in order to search the index for free. It costs a small fee to view any image. ScotlandsPeople is the only site with the images to Scotland church and vital records; all other sites only have indexes to these records. The FamilySearch Catalog has some these records available online as digital images.

Additional Records with Death Information
Substitute records can contain information about more than one event, and are used when records for an event are not available. Because the substitute records may not be created at the time of the event, it may contain incorrect information. Search for as many substitute records as possible to corroborate information found in substitute records to help improve accuracy.

Tips for finding deaths
Successfully finding death records in online databases depends on a few key points. Try the following search suggestions:
 * Spelling variations. Your ancestor's name may be misspelled. Search with spelling variations for the first and last name of your ancestor.
 * Search given name. Search by given name (leave out the last name) with the approximate date of birth or death.
 * Add information. For common names, add more information to narrow the search such as approximate birth date or parent's names if known.
 * Date range. Expand the date range of the search by 5 years.
 * Search county. Search using the county name only instead of by parish.

Known Record Gaps
Records Start Mandatory death registration started in 1855. Before this, deaths and burials can be found in church records (mainly the Church of Scotland or Roman Catholic Church). However, churches recorded deaths and burials less frequently than baptisms and marriages.

Records Published

Records Destroyed Some church records may have been lost or destroyed, although more specific information is not known. Civil registration records are generally complete.