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Inverness-shire is Scotland's largest county, stretching from the Moray Firth down the Great Glen to Fort William then north-west. The Isle of Skye, and most of what are now designated the Western Isles, also fell within the County. It includes Ben Nevis, Loch Ness and the River Spey. The western coast is heavily indented with sea lochs. The main occupations were crofting and fishing. Inverness, recently created a "city", was the county town and is now the administrative capital for Highland Region. Close to Inverness lies Culloden the site of the last battle on British soil where the Jacobite Army under Prince Charles Edward Stuart was defeated by the Hanoverian Army led by the Duke of Cumberland.
You can get a feel for the lives your ancestors lived by visiting the area they came from. These are areas where, for centuries, families lived together in a tightly-knit community. In the Highlands they are linked to clan heartlands, whereas, in the rest of Scotland the names are often those of the local landed families. Although it is unlikely that family historians can link their ancestry to clan chiefs or family dynasties, it can still be a moving experience to tour the clan and family heartlands.
Here is a selection of the most common names in this area.
McLeod: Especially in Skye
Cameron: Centred in Lochaber
McPherson: Especially in and around Badenoch
McKinnon: Prevalent in eastern Skye
The Parish Church can unlock many secrets for ancestral researchers. Not only was it the place where children were baptised, proclamations of marriage announced and the dead buried, it was also the centre of most social activity within the Parish. There is, however, no such thing as a definitive list of parishes. Over the decades they have merged, divided, been renamed and had changes made to their spelling. The following list is based largely on the situation at the time of publication of the New Statistical Account (1834-1845).
Alvie,
Ardersier,
Barray,
Bokeskine and Abertarff (Bokeskine),
Bracadale,
Cromdale (and Inverallan),
Croy and Dalcross,
Daviot,
Dores,
Duirinish,
Glenelg,
Harris,
Inverness,
Kilmalie,
Kilmonivaig,
Kilmorack,
Kilmuir,
Kiltarlity,
Kingussie (and Insh),
Kirkhill,
Laggan,
Moy and Dalarossie,
North Uist,
Pettie (Petty),
Portree,
Sleat,
Small Isles,
Snizort,
South Uist,
Strath Urquhart and Glen(Urquhart and Glenmoriston)
* subsequently divided into seperate parishes, ( ) denotes alternative name or spelling
Detailed information on life and work within each of these parishes can be found in the Old (1791-99) and the New (1834-45) Statistical Account of Scotland. These are freely accessible on http://edina.ed.ac.uk/statacc. Part of their charm is the individual views of the minister, which can include some fascinating accounts of a parish's history, topography, employment, landowners, communications, agriculture and even the morality of the parishioners.
Almost every municipal authority in Scotland has a collection of local history publications, maps and archives. Although most of these libraries are prepared to undertake a limited amount of searching on your behalf, it is far more fulfilling to visit them yourself. You could lose yourself for hours, pouring over old newspapers and photographs.
The following is a list of the libraries in your chosen area:
Highland Council Genealogy Centre
Inverness Library
Farraline Park
Inverness
IV1 1NH
Tel: +44 1463 236463 Ext 9
Fax: +44 1463 711128
E-mail:
genealogy@highland.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Fri, 09:00 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:00.
Personal consultations with the genealogist are provided.
Highland Photographic Archive
Service Point
Church Street
Inverness
IV1 1DY
Tel: +44 1463 703912
Fax: +44 1463 703918
E-mail:
lesley.junor@highland.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Fri, 09:00 - 17:00.
Most of the 150,000 images relate to Inverness itself, many of them produced by the old Whyte Photographic Studio.
Local Studies Collection
Stornoway Library
19 Cromwell Street
Stornoway
Isle of Lewis
HS1 2DA
Tel: +44 1851 708631
Fax: +44 1851 708676
E-mail:
dfowler@cne-siar.gov.uk
www.cne-siar.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Thu & Sat, 10:00 - 17:00 & Fri 10:00 - 19:00.
Newspapers include The Stornoway Gazette (1917-date) and several others. There is a collection of Isle of Lewis croft histories and a Lewis marriage index compiled by Bill Lawson of Co Leis Thu. In addition to Church of Scotland Registers, records are maintained of Roman Catholic baptisms and marriages.
Almost every municipal authority in Scotland has a collection of local history publications, maps and archives. Although most of these libraries are prepared to undertake a limited amount of searching on your behalf, it is far more fulfilling to visit them yourself. You could lose yourself for hours, pouring over old newspapers and photographs.
The following is a list of the archive offices in your chosen area:
Highland Council Archive
Inverness Library
Farraline Park
Inverness
IV1 1NH
Tel: +44 1463 220330
Fax: +44 1463 711128
E-mail:
archives@highland.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Thu, 10:00 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 17:00,
By appointment only
The archive comprises the official records of Inverness-shire (including Skye and its burghs, dating from the 15th to the 20th century. These records include registers of deeds and legal papers, school log books and admission registers, poor law registers and several court papers. The archive also holds the papers of many highland families, estates, businesses and societies from the 16th century to date.
Western Isles
Stornoway Library
19 Cromwell Street
Stornoway
Isle of Lewis
HS1 2DA
Tel: +44 1851 703064
Fax: +44 1851 705657
www.cne-siar.gov.uk
Western Isles archives include school board minute books (1870's-1930's), school log books and estate records.
Co Leis Thu
Northton (Taobh Tuath)
Isle of Harris
HS3 3JA
Tel/Fax: +44 1859 520258
E-mail: seallam@cs.com
www.seallam.com
Open: Mon-Sat, 09:00 - 18:00.
The universally renowned family history centre for the Western Isles. Contains a vast resource of information on local families, crofts and villages and on those who emigrated.
Community Library
Sgoil Lionacleit
Liniclate
Isle of Benbecula
HS7 5PJ
Tel: +44 1870 602211
Fax: +44 1870 602817
Open: Mon & Thu, 09:00 - 16:30, Tue & Fri 09:00 - 20:00, Wed 09:00 - 12:30 & 13:30 - 16:00, Sat 11:00 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 16:00.
Community Library
Castlebay Community School
Castlebay
Isle of Barra
HS9 5XD
Tel: +44 1871 810471
Fax: 44 1871 810650
Open: Mon & Wed, 09:00 - 16:30, Tue 09:00 - 16:30 & 18:00 - 20:00, Thu 09:00 - 16:00 & 18:00 - 20:00, Fri 09:00 - 15:30, Sat 10:00 - 12:30. Closed everyday between 13:00 - 14:00.
Isle of Skye
Clan Donald Library
Armadale Castle
Ardvasar
Isle of Skye
IV45 8RS
Tel: +44 1599 534454
Fax: +44 1471 844735
E-mail:
library@cland.demon.co.uk
www.clandonald.com
Open: Easter-October, daily, 09:30 - 17:30.
Booking is advisable, other times available by appointment.
A comprehensive collection of publications on Highland history, literature and culture. Over 4000 photographs, MacDonald estate papers for Skye and North Uist, together with family history collections, census returns and parish registers.
Scotland is a country with a remarkable history. So it should come as no surprise that Scotland is home to a remarkable collection of museums and heritage centres. These range from the major, internationally renowned collections in Edinburgh's Royal Museum of Scotland to hundreds of small centres that specialise in the history of local communities. The following museums are all in your chosen area. A visit to any one of them may well shed new light on the lives led by your ancestors.
Highland Museum of Childhood
The Old Station
Strathpeffer
IV14 9DH
Tel: +44 1997 421031
E-mail:
info@hmoc.freeserve.co.uk
Highland Museum of Childhood Website
Open: March-October Mon-Sat 10:00-17:00; Sun 13:00-17:00; July-August, Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00; Sat 10:00-17:00; Sun 14:00-17:00
Displays include children at work, at school and at play.
Inverness Museum and Art Gallery
Castle Wynd
Inverness
IV2 3EB
Tel: +44 1463 237114
Open: Mon-Sat 09:00-17:00
Displays of human history of Inverness and the Highlands
Highland Folk Museum, Kingussie
Duke Street
Kingussie
PH21 1JG
Tel: +44 1540 661307
Open: April-October, daily
An open air museum featuring a black house and a wide range of farming equipment.
Highland Folk Museum, Newtonmore
Aultlarie
Newtonmore
PH21 1JG
Tel: +44 1540 661307
Open: April-October, daily
Award-winning open air museum including a reconstruction 18th century farming township, a school and much else.
Armadale Castle Gardens and Museum of the
Isles
Slet
Isle of Skye
IV45 8RS
Tel: +44 1471 844305
www.clandonald.com
Open: April-October, daily 09:30-17:30
The museum describes Highland history from the standpoint of Clan Donald
Local societies are run by volunteers who meet together periodically. Most maintain an index of members' interests - and this could well lead to the discovery of a long lost cousin or two. If there are any such societies in your chosen area, they will be listed below.
Highland Family History Society
c/o Highland Council Genealogy Centre
Inverness Library
Farraline Park
Inverness
IV1 1NH
Tel: +44 1463 236463
Fax: +44 1463 711128
E-mail:
angus.bethune@tesco.net
Highland Council Genealogy Centre Website
Details of members' research interests held on computer.
It may seem a little odd, but a visit to the burial ground of an ancestor can make you feel more closely connected to them. However, tracking down the specific plot, or lair as they were referred to in Scotland, depends on the period of time when the deaths occurred.
Up to the mid-19th century it was the normal practice for people to be interred in the Parish Kirk burial ground - although this was only rarely marked with anything as grand as a headstone. The Scottish Association of Family History Societies (SAFHS) is currently co-ordinating a major project to develop a National Burial Index, relating to pre-1855 records. This will eventually be available on CD ROM. Although this will help to confirm that burials took place in parish burial grounds, it will not, unfortunately, indicate the location of the lair.
If your ancestor was wealthy enough, their grave may have been marked by an inscribed headstone. Over the years, family history societies and other volunteer groups have painstakingly transcribed and indexed such inscriptions - and these are nearly always held in the relevant local history libraries or family history research centres.
By the mid-19th Century, many parish burial grounds had become seriously overcrowded, especially those in urban areas, and this led to the creation of both private and municipal cemeteries. If you know the place and date of death, you should be able to discover the location of a lair, although not all cemeteries and records have survived.
The concept of cremation started to gain popularity in the late 1940s and has increased ever since. Ashes may be taken away by the family, scattered in the garden of remembrance or buried either in the crematorium or in a family plot.
Inverness City
Cemeteries and Crematorium Office
Highland Council - Inverness
Glenurquhart Road
Inverness
IV3 5NX
Tel: +44 1463 717849
Fax: +44 1463 717 850
Requests in writing in the first instance. It is essential to provide full details, particularly cemetery, date of death and full name. No fee charged at present.
Lochaber
Burial Administrator
Area Protective Services
Highland Council - Lochaber
Fulton House
Gordon Square
Fort William
PH33 6XY
Tel: +44 1397 707 008
Fax: +44 1397 707 009
There are 16 burial grounds within Fort William and surrounding areas. As the records are in ledger form, and are not indexed, detailed information is essential. This applies particularly to Cameron's, Campbell's and MacDonald's where an address is often required as a means of identification. There is a standard search fee of £18 plus VAT. Copies of the ledger entry are available free of charge.
Badenoch & Strathspey
Burial Administrator
Highland Council Protective Services
Ruthven Road
Kingussie
PH21 1EJ
Tel: +44 1540 664 500
Fax: +44 1540 661 004
Several old churchyards within this area have no plans of lairs or burial records. Visitors to the above office are required to make an appointment and to give as much information as possible. A search fee of £18 per hour is charged.
Skye & Lochalsh
Roads, Community and Protective Services
Highland Council - Skye and Lochalsh
Broom Place
Portree
Isle of Skye
IV51 9HF
Tel: +44 1478 612 727
Fax: +44 1478 612 255
Email: skye&lochalsh.area@highland.gov.uk
There are 42 burial grounds within the Authority area, nine of them being classified as heritage sites. The records held relate to post-1900 deaths, and not all burial grounds have complete records or lair plans. Requests for searches must be made in writing. A search fee of £18 plus VAT per hour or part thereof is charged.
