Nature of Source
Surveys and description of about 938 Scottish parishes published between 1791 and 1799. The surveys were instigated by Sir John Sinclair, M.P. for Caithness who organised questionnaires to be sent to local Church of Scotland ministers covering the local geography, topography, natural resources, agriculture and population, including ages, gender and occupations. A second or ‘New’ Statistical Account was published between 1834 and 1845 and a Third Statistical Account between 1951 and 1992. A Fourth Statistical Account for East Lothian was published between 2003 and 2009.
The accounts often included reports into everyday life of the people living in the parish and provide the names of major landowners but only occasionally mention ordinary people by name.
Other Scotland Resources
Census Returns
Clan & Tartan Records
County & Local Histories
Court Records
Directories, Trade, Professional, Telephone & Street
Electoral Registers or Burgess Rolls
Emigration Records
Hearth Tax
Heraldic Coats of Arms & Seals
Kirk/Church Sessions
Land Tax Assessments & Returns
Maps & Gazetteers
Militia Lists
Monumental/Memorial Inscriptions
Newspapers, magazines & journals
Old Parish Registers-Baptisms (OPRs)
Old Parish Registers-Burials (OPRs)
Old Parish Registers-Marriages & Proclamations (OPRs)
Passenger Lists
Pedigrees and Family Histories
Poor Law Records
Registers of Deeds (Books of Council and Session)
Retours of Services of Heirs
Sasines, Registers of
Statistical Accounts of Scotland
Statutory Registration-Birth
Statutory Registration-Death
Statutory Registration-Marriage
Surname Origins and Distribution
Valuation Rolls & Stent Rolls
Wills/Testaments and Inheritance
Period Covered
1791 – 1845
Genealogical Value
Some individual names mentioned.
Descriptions of places.
Parishioner occupations and religious affiliations
Description and history of parish.
Very useful for a social and economic picture of an area.
Further References
Statistical Accounts Related
- Baker, Sonia (ed). East Lothian Fourth Statistical Account, 1945-2000: East Lothian Council Library Service, 2003-2006
- Sinclair, Sir John (ed). The Statistical Account of Scotland 1791-1799: EP Publishing, 1973-1983
- Steven, Maisie. Parish Life in 18th Century Scotland: A Review of the Old Statistical Account: Scottish Cultural Press, 2002
- The New Statistical Account of Scotland: Blackwood & Sons, 1845
- The Third Statistical Account of Scotland: Oliver and Boyd, 1951-
Family History Guides
- Adolph, Anthony. Tracing Your Scottish Family History: Collins, 2008
- Bigwood, Rosemary: The Scottish Family Tree Detective: Tracing Your Ancestors in Scotland: Manchester University Press, 2007
- Clarke, T. Tracing Your Scottish Ancestors: The Official Guide: Birlinn, 2012
- Cory, Kathleen B. Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2009
- Durie, Bruce. Scottish Genealogy: The History Press, 2012
- Durie, Bruce. Documents for Genealogy & Local History: The History Press, 2013
- Hamilton-Edwards, Gerald. In Search of Scottish Ancestry: Phillimore, 1983
- Holton, Graham & Winch, Jack. Discover Your Scottish Ancestry: Internet and Traditional Resources: Edinburgh University Press, 2009 (Preview available from Google Books)
- James, Alwyn. Scottish Roots: From Gravestone to Website: The Step-By-Step Guide to Tracing Your Scottish Ancestors: Luath Press, 2005
- Maxwell, Ian. Tracing your Scottish Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians: Pen & Sword, 2009
- Paton, Chris. Researching Scottish Family History: The Family History Partnership, 2010
- Paton, Chris. Tracing Your Scottish Ancestry through Church and State Records: A Guide for Family Historians: Pen & Sword Family History, 2019
- Stewart, Alan. My Ancestor was Scottish: Society of Genealogists, 2012
- Tovey, Helen. My Scottish Ancestry: Lomond Books, 2011
Other
- Concise Scots Dictionary: Edinburgh University Press, 1999 (Preview available from Google Books)
- Lynch, Michael. Oxford Companion to Scottish History: OUP Oxford, 2011
- Moffat, Alistair & Wilson, James. The Scots: A Genetic Journey: Birlinn, 2011
- Richards, Eric. The Highland Clearances: Birlinn, 2013
- Scots Dictionary: Collins, 2014
- Timperley, Loretta R, (ed). A Directory of Land Ownership in Scotland c 1770: Scottish Record Society, 1976
- Torrance, Richard D. Scottish Trades, Professions, Vital Documents & Directories: Scottish Association of Family History Societies, 1998
- Wightman, Andy. The Poor Had No Lawyers: Who Owns Scotland and How They Got it: Birlinn, 2013
Some published accounts are available at Google Books and the Internet Archive including The New Statistical Account of Scotland, 1845
Websites
https://stataccscot.edina.ac.uk/static/statacc/dist/support/introduction (University of Edinburgh Statistical Accounts of Scotland. An Introduction to the Statistical Accounts of Scotland)
https://statacc.blogs.edina.ac.uk (The blog has been set up to accompany the Statistical Accounts of Scotland Online Service. The blog shares interesting aspects of the Accounts, how they came to be, how they can and are being used by researchers and historians today)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistical_Accounts_of_Scotland (Wikipedia entry: Statistical Accounts of Scotland)
www.electricscotland.com/webclans/statistical_accounts.htm (Scotland Accounted For: An Introduction To The ‘Old’ (1791-1799) And The New (1834-1845) Statistical Accounts Of Scotland, by Charles W J Withers)
https://scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/places (ScotlandsPlaces Gazetteer: The gazetteer is an A-Z index of inhabited places in Scotland, both past and present showing Scottish places and administrative units)
www.scottish-places.info (Gazetteer for Scotland)
Online Databases
https://stataccscot.edina.ac.uk/static/statacc/dist/home (University of Edinburgh Statistical Accounts of Scotland, 1791-1845: Transcriptions, parish maps and scanned page images of the First and Second editions)
www.electricscotland.com/history/statistical/oldndx.htm (The Old Statistical Account of Scotland, 1791-1799. Volumes available in downloadable PDF files)
www.electricscotland.com/history/statistical/index.htm (The New Statistical Account of Scotland, 1845. Volumes available in downloadable PDF files)
CD Roms
Midlothian 2000 CD-ROM: A Fourth Statistical Account of Midlothian, edited by Rennie McElroy, Midlothian Council, 2000)
