How do I find wills and/or mortcloth records

jen wilson · Post by **jen wilson** » Sun Feb 25, 2007 11:28 pm

So, no mortcloth records in Nairn huh? Typical!

Next question - Where do I look for Kirk sessions records or is there somewhere I might find a register of elders of the kirk? I may have chance to be in Edinburgh this coming weekend - should I be hot-footing it to the main records office?

I have tried contacting the museum in Nairn but I have had no luck whatsoever with that. Is it only open in the summer months?

I am also wanting to find kirk sessions for Old Machar in 1870 as I have an illegitimate great grandfather and the only possible way of tracking down his father is to see whether he was given a telling off by the church, as some of my other ancestors were. Is this a trip to Aberdeen or can I do it in Edinburgh?

Thanks again,

Jen

Post by **AndrewP** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 1:03 am

jen wilson wrote:Next question - Where do I look for Kirk sessions records or is there somewhere I might find a register of elders of the kirk? I may have chance to be in Edinburgh this coming weekend - should I be hot-footing it to the main records office?

jen wilson wrote:I am also wanting to find kirk sessions for Old Machar in 1870 as I have an illegitimate great grandfather and the only possible way of tracking down his father is to see whether he was given a telling off by the church, as some of my other ancestors were. Is this a trip to Aberdeen or can I do it in Edinburgh?

Hi Jen,

I hope your visit to Edinburgh is for a long weekend. The Kirk Session records are in General Register House (east end of Princes Street, behind the statue of Wellington on his horse). General Register House, like its neighbour New Register House is only open Monday to Friday, daytime only, no evenings.

http://www.nas.gov.uk/

http://www.dswebhosting.info/NAS/dserve ... Search.tcl

CH2/1020 Old Machar Kirk Session 1383-1952
Originals held in Aberdeen City Archives
Microfilm copy available in General Register House (may now also be available as onscreen digital images).

All the best,

AndrewP

jen wilson · Post by **jen wilson** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 1:15 am

Thanks,

I can't think why these places don't understand that weekends are for research!

I might be able to get into Edinburgh on friday afternoon but if not, I'm going to be back a-begging before too long.

Cheers,

Jen

Post by **AndrewP** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 1:21 am

Hi Jen,

One other important detail for your visit to NAS, have some formal identification with you. You will need it to be issued with a reader's ticket.

I too wish these facilities were open at weekends.

All the best,

AndrewP

jen wilson · Post by **jen wilson** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 11:15 am

I have a reader's ticket and have been before so am familiar with where it is, though I have to confess that I found the amount of available information faintly daunting and the staff not as helpful as they might have been to someone on a first visit. Maybe I just hit a bad day.

Failing all else, I shall just have to hope that I am able to get to Aberdeen and Nairn sometime later in the year but you know how it is when something is almost within your grasp - I am so close to knowing things about this particular William Smith and yet so far....

I have queries on two completely different forums at the moment, both looking for William Smith ( one from Yorkshire, one from somewhere unspecified) and both of them provided me with great grandfathers named John Smith. It's enough to turn a preson to strong drink.

At least my Scottish Smith line ended with a daughter whose name mercifully changed to a marginally less common one.

Cheers,

Jen

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 4:41 pm

The kirk session records for the CH2 and CH3 series of NAS records have now been digitised, and can be readily accessed on the NAS internal computer system. But it will most probably be a few years before these images can be accessed online.

But note that there are around 70 churches who have opted to retain their kirk session records, i.e. not place their records with NAS.

"CH2" = the kirk session records of congregations of the Established Church of Scotland (the "Auld Kirk").

"CH3" = the kirk session records of Free Kirk congregations who split from the Established Church in 1843, but came back into the "Auld Kirk" in the amalgamation of 1929. Note that these records may include those of earlier secession churches, parts of which later were involved in the formation in the 1900 formation of the United Free Church, involving the amalgamation of the Free Kirk and the United Presbyterian Church, - itself the result of an amalgamation in 1847 between the United Secession Church and the Relief Church (aka Second Secession).

David

jen wilson · Post by **jen wilson** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 4:51 pm

Thanks,

If I find anything you'll be able to hear the cheers for many miles around but it would be just my luck to find that the churches I need are amongst those which haven't handed over their records.

Best wishes, very grateful for your help, but not too optimistic,

Jen

Post by **AndrewP** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 6:09 pm

DavidWW wrote:The kirk session records for the CH2 and CH3 series of NAS records have now been digitised, and can be readily accessed on the NAS internal computer system. But it will most probably be a few years before these images can be accessed online.

But note that there are around 70 churches who have opted to retain their kirk session records, i.e. not place their records with NAS.

When I visited NAS's imaging room last year they said that the records which were being held by various churches or archive units around the country were being called in for imaging and returned to their keepers. NAS has a statutory right that they could invoke to compel the keepers of such archives to hand them over for imaging, but this has not been necessary so far. They have had full co-operation from the various keepers of the archives.

So upon completion of this project it will be the first time that all of these records have been available in one place, and hopefully eventually online.

All the best,

AndrewP

Post by **SarahND** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 6:14 pm

AndrewP wrote:So upon completion of this project it will be the first time that all of these records have been available in one place, and hopefully eventually online.

That is very good news indeed! Any idea of the projected date of completion?
Regards,
Sarah

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 8:32 pm

Hi all
I have come across several CH2 Kirk Sessions in the last two weeks at NAS which are not yet digitised. It seems there are still some areas to be completed. One of these was stored at NAS, so they did have access to it - it just seemed it had not been digitised yet. Another had been away, but is now back in Edinburgh.

Best wishes
Lesley