A new edition of the official guide to researching your Scottish family history is out just in time for Christmas.
Now in its 8th edition, the best-selling book Tracing Your Scottish Ancestors is produced by National Records of Scotland (NRS).
NRS looks after Scotland’s national archives and makes them available to researchers. It provides access to millions of digital images of birth, death and marriage records and more, through the website Scotland’s People.
NRS Archivist Veronica Schreuder updated the latest edition of the book. She said: “Scotland has some of the most detailed and well-preserved records in the world but the sheer scale of them can make it daunting to get started.
“This book shows you step-by-step how to develop your family tree and how to use less well known records to uncover more detail.
“As well as being a practical guide, it also makes a thoughtful gift this festive season.”
It’s been six years since NRS last updated its guide. Since then many more record sets have become available on Scotland’s People.
There’s helpful guidance on the kirk session and other court records of the Church of Scotland. They contain details of key community events across Scotland between 1559 and 1900. This is mostly in the form of evidence in church court cases, offering a vivid snapshot into the everyday lives of ordinary Scots. They can give fascinating details of how our ancestors lived, worked and worshipped.
The new record sets also include the prison registers from jails in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Perth among others. The addition of photographs for some inmates at Barlinnie and Perth means there is a chance of people meeting their ancestors face to face.
Additionally, customers can search for female relatives in the index cards of the Scottish Women’s Land Army and the Scottish Women’s Timber Corps. During the Second World War, these organisations recruited women to ensure the country still had food and fuel while men joined the armed forces. The records of crofters gathered during the Napier Commission inquiry of 1883 will be of interest to people with Highland ancestors who worked the land.
This new edition also provides guidance on how to see records only available in person in our search rooms at General Register House, Edinburgh. NRS’ archives are a treasure trove for anyone looking to discover more about family, local or social history across Scotland.
Tracing Your Scottish Ancestors is published by Birlinn and costs £14.99. It is available on the Scotland’s People website shop, from bookshops and online retailers.
