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Kingdom of Fife |  |
Contents |  |
Fife Towns & Parishes |  nearby places |
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| Much of the present-day town of Kirkcaldy |
Places in Abbotshall parish, with links to online historical and modern maps. (The Google maps show all the places in the list; the links to www.magic.gov.uk don't apply in Scotland).
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| Please read the main Fife pages if you have not already done so. | |
A separate Records Page page gives details of the records for this parish held by Scottish archives.
The ScotlandsPlaces website lets users search across national databases by geographical location. It includes, amongst other material,
A very good description is to be found in the relevant chapter in History of the County of Fife: From the Earliest Period to the Present Time by John M Leighton, published 1840, online at Google Books.
Old Kirkcaldy - Central, North & West (Stenlake Publishing) contains many photographs and full descriptions.
Abbotshall Churchyard, Abbotshall Road, Kirkcaldy (grid ref. NT 273913, GPS: 56.108906 -3.170535):
Kirkcaldy Central Library has a large collection of transcripts, indexes and manuscript volumes of Kirkcaldy burials.
A selection of interesting inscriptions and photographs are included in the booklet Guide to Kirkcaldy Graveyards, published by Kirkcaldy Civic Society, 1996 (ISBN 1946294038).
Parish / district reference number for 1841 - 1871 censuses:
399. Some parts in 442 in 1861 & 1871 (see Civil Registration).
District reference number for 1881 - 1901 censuses: 442 (included with
Kirkcaldy).
The 1841 return can be searched on the FreeCEN website.
The 1851 census has been indexed and published by the Tay Valley Family History Society.
Some census records on microfilm may be consulted in LDS Family History Centres around the world.
LDS Library Film Numbers:
1841 1851 1861 1871 1881 1891 Abbotshall 1042699 1042251 103825,
index to streets on 104116103986 see Kirkcaldy see Kirkcaldy
Data provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Further information on the main Fife page.
Only the Abbotshall Parish Church and the Abbotshall Free Church are considered here. Other churches are listed on the Kirkcaldy page.
The Old Statistical Account (written in the 1790s) gives this information about Dissenters:
The New Statistical Account (written in 1836) gives this information:
The 1865 Ecclesiastical Directory lists the parish church and the Free Church.
Details of church history here.
Only the Abbotshall Parish Church and the Abbotshall Free Church are considered here. Other churches are listed on the Kirkcaldy page.
The original Old Parish Registers (of baptisms / births, proclamations / marriages, and deaths / burials) of the Church of Scotland, which cover the years up to 1854, are held in the General Register Office for Scotland in Edinburgh, and they can all be consulted there at the ScotlandsPeople Centre.
Parish reference number: 399
The Old Parish Registers (OPRs) span the following dates (although there are gaps within these ranges):
Abbotshall OPR Births / baptisms Proclamations / marriages Deaths / burials / mortcloths 399/1a 1650-1691 1651-1691 399/1b 1692-1711 1692-1712 399/2 1710-1785 1710-1744 399/3 1785-1819 1741-1819 399/4 1820-1854 (+ index) 1820-1855 (+ index) 399/5 1750-1806 399/6 1806-1843 399/7 1818-1850 399/8 1851-1860
Data supplied by General Register Office for Scotland The Detailed List of the Old Parochial Registers of Scotland, published 1872, provides this information about the content of the OPRs, including the gaps within them:
B. Only one entry Oct. 1662 - Feb. 1664. Record, 1692 - 1705, tabulated. Irregular entries about 1763, and 11 leaves at end of Record for 1806, containing such entries, dated 1784 - 1808; they are also of frequent occurrence after 1807.
M. From 1710 - 1744 the entries occur among B. for same period. Separate Record of M., however, recommences June 1741. Blank June 1762 - Jan. 1764. After Record for 1806, are four leaves containing 'Clandestine Marriages', 1784 - 1807.
[Vol 399/1b contains handwriting samples on fly-leaf. Vol. 399/4 contains an index to B. 1841 - 1855 (surname followed by forename of child), and an index to M. 1843 - 1855 (both parties' surnames, bridegroom's first).]
[Subsequent to publication of the Detailed List, the 4 volumes with Death records were added (399/5, 399/6, 399/7, 399/8).]The baptisms / births, proclamations / marriages and deaths / burials indexes can be searched at the ScotlandsPeople website. Copies of the register entries may be purchased.
Copies of the registers on microfilm may be consulted in some local libraries and at LDS Family History Centres around the world. The indexes to baptisms / births and proclamations / marriages can also be searched on the LDS Family Search website or on the IGI on microfiche in local libraries.
LDS Library Film Numbers:
1040142 Items 2 - 4 Baptisms, 1650-1819; Marriages, 1650-1743, 1741-1762. 1040143 Items 1 - 5 Marriages, 1764-1819; Burials, 1750-1843, 1818-1832, 1843-1860. 993525 Baptisms and Index, 1816-1855; Misc. church notes; Marriages and Index, 1819-1855.
Data provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Deaths / burials are listed on Fife Family History Society's Pre-1855 Fife Deaths CD.
Further information on the main Fife page.
Kirk Session records (CH2/225) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.
An index of names and a partial transcription of the Kirk Session Minutes for 1793 - 1812 has been published by the Fife Family History Society in their Publication 21.
Heritors' Records (HR237) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.
Only the Abbotshall Free Church is considered here. All other churches are listed on the Kirkcaldy page.
Records of other churches are held by the National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Details of church records, transcriptions and indexes here.
The Abbotshall page of the LDS Family Search Research Wiki has more information about church history and records.
Registration of Births, Marriages and Deaths began in Scotland on 1st January 1855. Full information on the main Fife page.
Registration districts covering this parish:
| Registration district | number | start date | end date |
| Abbotshall (landward) | 399 | 1855 | 1874 |
| Kirkcaldy and Abbotshall | 442 | 1875 | 1919 |
| Kirkcaldy | 442 | 1920 | 1971 |
| Kirkcaldy | 421 | 1972 | 2002 |
| Fife | 421 | 2003 |
Registration districts did not necessarily coincide exactly with parishes. In the 20th century especially, there were frequent changes in registration districts. Some parts of Abbotshall parish were in Kirkcaldy registration district until 1874, thereafter the whole of Abbotshall is included in Kirkcaldy registration district.
| Abbotshall church | Ordnance Survey Grid Reference | GPS | Post code | Lat. 56°6'34"N |
| NT 274913 | 56.108921 -3.168927 |
KY2 5PE | Lon. 3°10'10"W |
Surrounding parishes: Kinghorn, Auchtertool, Auchterderran, Kirkcaldy.
Kirkcaldy Civic Society provide lots of information about the town.
The parish entry in Pigot's National Commercial Directory for the whole of Scotland, 1837, is online at Google Books.
Westwood's Parochial Directory for the Counties of Fife and Kinross for 1862 and 1866 are online at Google Books. On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there is a transcription of the 1862 edition.
There is a list of places in Abbotshall parish, with links to online historical and modern maps. (The Google maps show all the places in the list; the links to www.magic.gov.uk don't apply in Scotland).
Several old gazetteers are available. They all contain descriptions of the parish and many are also worth searching for entries of places within the parish.
On 15th May 1891, two detached parts of Abbotshall (both surrounded by Kirkcaldy parish) were transferred to Kirkcaldy parish. They comprised the following subjects: Smeaton, Smeaton Row and part of East Smeaton Farm.
In 1901, the parishes of Kirkcaldy, Dysart and Abbotshall, and part of the parish of Kinghorn, were united to form the parish of Kirkcaldy and Dysart.
A Vision of Britain provides historical descriptions, population & housing statistics, historic boundaries and maps.
Details of historic buildings and archaeological sites in this parish held by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, Edinburgh, are catalogued at ScotlandsPlaces. In the results, click RCAHMS. Unfortunately, not all entries have digital images.
This British Library webpage uses small examples of historical maps of London to show the differences between maps at various scales.
The Register of the Fife Fallen in the Great War, vol 1:Kirkcaldy & Dysart Fallen, 1914-1919 has been published and is available from the Fife Family History Society and the Tay Valley Family History Society.
The Ordnance Survey Object Name Books 1850-1854 are held at the Fife Council Archive Centre. There is an index to the entries for this parish on the Fife Council website (select A in the A-Z list, then Archives).
Andrew Campbell has produced Fife Deaths from Newspapers 1822-1854 - a compilation of deaths recorded in local newspapers. Copies of this index are held by the Fife libraries and the Family History Societies.
Fife Deaths Abroad 1855-1900 - a compilation of overseas deaths recorded in Fife newspapers - has been produced by Andrew Campbell of Fife Family History Society. The Society have re-published it in their Publications Series, 29.
The parish is included in Andrew Campbell's compilation of Fife Shopkeepers and Traders 1820-1870 taken from newspapers and directories. It is available in most Fife reference libraries, in the libraries of the family history societies, and at the Manuscript Department of the Special Collections Department of St Andrews University Library. It is also available as Fife Traders and Shopkeepers on CD from Fife Family History Society.
The relief of paupers after 1845 was carried out by the Parochial Board and later by the Parish Council. Their records are at the Fife Council Archive Centre. Details of records here.
Peter Higginbotham's website has a lot of information about Kirkcaldy combination poorhouse.
| Year | Population | |
| 1755 | 1348 | |
| 1801 | 2501 | |
| 1851 | 5030 | |
| 1901 | 7733 | * boundary changed |
| 1951 | no separate figures |
There is a page with census statistics from 1755 to 1961 here.
See also A Vision of Britain and Histpop for population statistics.
Prior to 1824, wills, testaments & inventories of residents of Abbotshall may be found in either the St Andrews Commissariot (CC20) or the Edinburgh Commissariot (CC8) records. From 1824 to 1960, commissary business was conducted by the Sheriff Court of Fife at Cupar (SC20). From 1960, it has been conducted at Kirkcaldy (SC23) Sheriff Court.
Indexes and finding aids are given on the main Fife page.
Local sources worth searching for deeds include St Andrews Commissary Court, Cupar Sheriff Court and Kirkcaldy Burgh Register of Deeds.
School Board records and / or school logbooks are held at the Fife Council Archive Centre. Details of records here.
Education statistics for Fife schools in 1891-2 list the following board schools in the parish:
| School Board | School | Accommodation for scholars | Average attendance |
| Kirkcaldy (Landward & Abbotshall) | Chapel | 149 | 106 |
"Statistical accounts" giving fascinating insights into the local topography and history, social and economic conditions, and even the daily lives of people, were written by the parish ministers in the 1790s and the 1840s. For more information see the main Fife pages
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