Salton, East Lothian, Scotland Genealogy

Parish #719

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

History
SALTON, a parish, in the county of Haddington; containing the villages of East and West Salton, 6 miles (S. W. by S.) and 7 (S. W.) from Haddington. This place, which is of considerable antiquity, is supposed to have derived its name from Nicholas de Soulis, who was proprietor of some land here in the 13th century. The Salton water skirts the parish for nearly three miles. The church, situated in the village of East Salton, is an ancient structure enlarged and almost rebuilt in 1805; it is in the later English style, with a square embattled tower surmounted by a handsome spire and is adapted for a congregation of 400 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 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.

is a list of the Family History Library microfilm numbers for the census records of Salton, as well as the library numbers for any 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: The first few leaves are considerably wasted by dampness, etc., rendering the entries imperfect. Records are blank March 1637–February 1641, excluding fragments of a leaf at 1640, which are almost illegible. Records are blank August 1647–June 1663, January–December 1674, and August 1713–April 1714. There is a duplicate of the portion April 1714–July 1718. Records are blank February 1725–August 1734. Marriages: The first few leaves are slightly imperfect. They are blank August 1647–June 1663. Several leaves after 1700 are imperfect and they are Blank October 1713–December 1714, May 1736–October 1737, June 1739–November 1740, and October 1747–June 1750. Records are chiefly proclamations after the latter date. Deaths: Only a few entries of “Mortcloth Dues” 1644–1645, prior to June 1663, after which burials are recorded. Records are blank March 1696–October 1740, and March 1750–December 1776. 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 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 and Accounts, etc. 1635–1646, 1663–1748, 1760–1886 Scroll Minutes 1852–1874 Accounts 1795–1847 Parish Bible Society: Minute Book 1830–1876 Bishop Burnet’s Fund: Receipt Book 1795–1822 Church Door Collections 1823–1902 - with gaps Note: Available at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh, record CH2/322.

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.

Salton and Bolton Free Church
History— The minister of Salton Parish and many of his people adhered to the Free Church in 1843. At first they worshiped in a large barn at Samuelston Mains. Church and manse were soon erected. The minister of the neighboring parish of Bolton also “came out,” but owing to illness was unable for duty. Some of his people attended worship at Gifford, but most of them went to Samuelston Mains, and became identified with the congregation there. Membership: 1848, 255; 1900, 78. 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— 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
Salton 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 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 East Lothian and the subject of 'Probate records.' Then click on the link to the records of the Commissariat of Edinburgh. The library also has some post-1823 probate records for East Lothian. Look in the library catalogfor the 'Place-names' of East Lothian and the subjects of 'Probate Records' and 'Probate Records - Indexes.'

Read more about Scotland Probate Records.