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Roxburghshire
Roxburghshire lies alongside the border with England, with Berwickshire to
the east and Dumfries-shire to the west. Its County Town was Newton St
Boswells although the major burghs are still Hawick, Jedburgh, Melrose and
Kelso, all but Hawick housing famous historic abbeys. The rural areas were
predominantly sheep farms whereas the small urban areas, notably Hawick,
were heavily into hosiery and knitwear industries. Floors Castle, near
Kelso was built for the 1st Duke of Roxburgh, whilst Abbotsford, near
Melrose was the home of Sir Walter Scott.
Clan and Family Heartlands
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.
Armstrong
Elliot
Maxwell
Scott
Douglas
Turnbull
Rutherford
Parishes
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).
Ancrum,
Ashkirk,
Bedrule,
Bowden,
Castletown (Castleton),
Cavers,
Crailing,
Eckford,
Ednam,
Hawick,
Hobkirk,
Hounam (Hownam),
Jedburgh,
Kelso,
Kirktown,
Lilliesleaf,
Linton,
Makerston,
Maxton,
Melrose,
Minto,
Morebattle and Mow (Morebottle),
Oxnam,
Roberton,
Roxburgh,
Smalholm (Smailholm),
Southdean,
Sprouston,
St Boswell's,
Stitchell and Hume,
Wilton,
Yetholm
* 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 (1791-9) 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
Local Studies Libraries
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 Library offices in your chosen area:
Scottish Borders Archive & Local History
Centre
Heritage Hub
Kirkstile
Hawick
Roxburghshire
TD9 0AE
Tel: +44 1450 360 669
E-mail: archives@scotborders.gov.uk
www.scottishborders.gov.uk/heartofhawick
Open: Mon 10:00 - 16:45, Tues 10:00 - 19:45, Wed - pre-arranged tours &
talks only, Thurs 10:00 - 19:45, Fri 10:00 - 16:45, Sat 10:00 - 16:45
(closed 13:00 - 14:00).
Local Archives Centres
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:
Scottish Borders Archive & Local History
Centre
Heritage Hub
Kirkstile
Hawick
Roxburghshire
TD9 0AE
Tel: +44 1450 360 669
E-mail: archives@scotborders.gov.uk
www.scottishborders.gov.uk/heartofhawick
Open: Mon 10:00 - 16:45, Tues 10:00 - 19:45, Wed - pre-arranged tours &
talks only, Thurs 10:00 - 19:45, Fri 10:00 - 16:45, Sat 10:00 - 16:45
(closed 13:00 - 14:00).
Museums and Heritage Centres
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.
Hawick Museum and Scott Gallery
Wilton Lodge Park
Hawick
Tel: +44 1450 373457
Fax: +44 1450 378506
Open: April-September, Mon-Fri, 10:00 - 12:00 & 13:00 - 16:45 &
Sat-Sun, 14:00 - 16:45. October-March, Mon-Fri, 13:00 - 16:00 & Sun
14:00 - 16:00.
Display reflecting manufacturing, domestic life and rich history of the
area.
Drumlanrigs Tower
1 Tower Knowe
High Street
Hawick
Tel: +44 1450 377615
Fax: +44 1450 378506
Open: March-October, Mon-Sat 10:0-17:00, Sun 12:00-17:00.
Interprets Hawick's turbulent history from medieval times using the latest
audio visual technology. Housed in beautifully restored period building.
Audio tours available.
Family History Society
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.
Borders Family History Society
Hon Secretary
Mrs Heather Lough
2 Fellowhills
Ladykirk
Berwickshire
TD15 1XN
www.bordersfhs.org.uk
Burial Information
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.
Environmental Health - Burials
Scottish Borders Council
Council Chambers
High Street
Hawick
TD9 9EF
Tel: +44 1450 364 736
Searching for burial records is undertaken for a fee of £25 per hour.
