Kingdom of Fife

Contents

Fife Towns & Parishes

Nearby places

Dysart

Towns and Villages

Places in Dysart parish, with links to online historical and modern maps.

Archives, Libraries and Museums

A separate Records Page page gives details of the records for this parish held by Scottish archives.

The John McDouall Stuart Museum at 1 Rectory Lane, Dysart, is housed in the birthplace of this legendary explorer of Australia.

The ScotlandsPlaces website lets users search across national databases by geographical location. It includes, amongst other material,

• catalogue entries for maps and plans held by the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh
• details of historical buildings and archaeological sites held by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, Edinburgh (RCAHMS).

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Bibliography

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 Dysart and East Kirkcaldy (Stenlake Publishing) contains many photographs and full descriptions.

Cemeteries

There are 6 cemeteries in Dysart parish. There are others in Kirkcaldy, in Kirkcaldy and Abbotshall parishes.

• This was the original churchyard for Dysart parish.
• The Burial Registers for 1582 - 1596 and 1721 - 1821 are on the OPR microfilm, vols. 426/1 and 426/2
• A transcript of burials 1795 - 1899 is available in the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/30 - wrongly described as '?Dysart Relief Church'). It has been published by the Fife Family History Society Journal (vol 8, no 3) and on the Records pages of the their website. This is not included in the OPR microfilm.
• All monumental inscriptions are included in Mitchell & Mitchell - see below.
• Another listing of the stones has been published by the Fife Family History Society in their Journal, New Series, no. 19.
• By the mid-18th century, the burial ground became quite inadequate for the needs of the parish.
• A CD with photographs of the stones and transcriptions is available from Scottish Monumental Inscriptions or from The Parish Chest.

• This churchyard was opened in the mid-18th century as a relief churchyard for St. Serf's.
• This site was opposite the gates of Dysart House (Lord Rosslyn's house). It has been redeveloped as a children's playground.
• The burial register for 1795 - 1817 is in the Kirk Session Records at the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/23). It has not been included on the OPR microfilm.
• The burial register for 1818 - 1838 is included on the OPR microfilm, vol. 426/9, called the 'Burying Ground opposite Lord Rosslyn's'. The original is at the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/24).
• The burial register for 1838 - 1854 is included on the OPR microfilm, vol. 426/10, called the 'West Burying Ground'. The original, covering the years 1838 - 1861, is at the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/25).
• All the burial registers for 1795-1861 have been published on the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website.
• A typed transcript of the burial register for 1795 - 1899 is at the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/30).
• The tombstones have been removed and few records of inscriptions survive apart from those listed in Dysart: Past and Present (1912) by Andrew S Cunningham.
• The churchyard was closed in 1868 when Dysart Cemetery (6. below) was opened.

• Pre-1855 monumental inscriptions are included in Mitchell & Mitchell - see below.
• The burial register for 1825 - 1854 is on the OPR microfilm, vol. 426/11, called the 'New Church Burial Ground'; the original covering 1825-1861 is at the National Archives of Scotland (CH2/390/26).
• A CD with photographs of the stones and transcriptions is available from Scottish Monumental Inscriptions or from The Parish Chest.

• The cemetery opened in 1756.
• Pre-1855 monumental inscriptions are included in Mitchell & Mitchell (see below), where it is called "Kirkcaldy Pathhead, Ravenscraig or Nether Street".
• A listing of all stones has been published by the Fife Family History Society in their Publication 19, Monumental Inscriptions.
• The burial register for 1756 - 1863 is on the OPR microfilm, vol. 426/8.
• A CD with photographs of the stones and transcriptions is available from Scottish Monumental Inscriptions or from The Parish Chest.

• Land for a burial ground was granted to the Pathhead Feuars in 1684.
• In 1828 the Pathhead Feuars acquired the garden adjoining their churchyard, thereby extending it by almost a half.
• Pre-1855 monumental inscriptions are in Mitchell & Mitchell (see below), where it is called "Kirkcaldy Dunnikier".
• A listing of all stones has been published by the Fife Family History Society in their Publication 19, Monumental Inscriptions.
• Lair registers from 1714 - 1960 have been indexed and a copy is held by Kirkcaldy Library. The original volumes up to 1847 are held by Kirkcaldy Museum, the remainder are still held by the Pathhead Feuars Trust. There is an index to the Lair Registers 1714-1847 on the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society.
• A CD with photographs of the stones and transcriptions is available from Scottish Monumental Inscriptions or from The Parish Chest.

• The cemetery opened in 1868.
• The current lair registers (dating from 1868) are administered by Fife Council, Kirkcaldy Crematorium, Dunnikier Park, Dunnikier Way, Kirkcaldy, KY1 3PL. Tel. 01592 260277. Fax 01592 203438.

Ref: "Fifeshire Monumental Inscriptions (pre-1855) vol. 1 South east parishes" by John Fowler Mitchell & Sheila Mitchell, published by the Scottish Genealogy Society. ISBN 0901061948

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).

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Census

Parish / district reference number for 1841 - 1901 censuses: 426. The ScotlandsPeople website has a street index to the 1911 census.

The 1851 census has been indexed by the Tay Valley Family History Society.

Some census records on microfilm may be consulted in  LDS Family Search Centres around the world.

LDS Library Film Numbers:

	1841	1851	1861	1871	1881	1891
Dysart	1042701	1042266, 1042267	103828, index to streets on 104116	103990	203522, index to streets on 203392	208755, index to streets on 208606

Data provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Further information on the main Fife page.

Church History

In addition to the parish church, other churches include a chapel of ease at Pathhead, a relief church (later United Presbyterian) and a Free Church in the parish.

For more details of other churches in Dysart, Kirkcaldy, Gallatown, Pathhead and Sinclairtown, see the Kirkcaldy page.  An authoritative book is Kirkcaldy's Churches, 1999, Kirkcaldy Civic Society, ISBN 0946294178, available from Fife Family History Society.

The Old Statistical Account (written in the 1790s) has this to say about the religious views of the inhabitants:

• The Established Church in Dysart is collegiate [served by 2 ministers].
• Almost the only sectaries in the parish are
  •  Burghers (with a church in the parish)
  • Antiburghers (also with a church in the parish)
  • Relief (attend worship in Kirkcaldy parish)
• 552 families in total are seceders

The New Statistical Account (written in 1836) gives this information:

• There are 2 dissenting chapels in the parish, one belonging to the synod of Relief, the other to the Antiburghers.
• The usual congregation in both places does not exceed 800 or 900 at most.
• In the east part of the parish, there are 2509 belonging to the Established church, 709 belonging to other denominations, and (say) 231 of unknown adherence.

A census of Religious Worship and Education was taken in 1851 at the same time as the census of population. A table of statistics about the churches in Fife at this time is available here. The statistics for the separate burghs were also given. Those for Dysart are as follows:

Dysart (Parliamentary Burgh): Population of Parish 8739, Population of Burgh 8041:

Religious Denomination	Number of Places of Worship	Number of Sittings			Number of Attendants at Public Worship on Sunday March 30 1851 (including Sunday Scholars)
		Free	Appropriated	Total	Morning	Afternoon	Evening
Established Church	2	200	770	2770	1088	1140
Original Secession Church	1	550	250	800	362	330
United Presbyterian Church	1			420	285	336
Free Church	2	450		1250	759	955
Latter Day Saints or Mormons	1	81		81	84
Total	7	1281	1020	5321	2578	2761	0
Returns are altogether wanting for 2 other churches: Established Church 1, United Presbyterian Church 1.

Source: Census of Great Britain, 1851, Religious worship and education. Scotland. Report and tables. British Parliamentary Papers 1854 LIX (1764).

The 1865 Ecclesiastical Directory lists the parish church and the United Presbyterian Church in Dysart (but others are listed under Kirkcaldy).

Information and pictures of the churches at the Scottish Churches website.

Details of church history here.

Church Records

Only the Dysart Parish Church, the Dysart Relief Congregation (later United Presbyterian, then United Free), the Dysart Free Church, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Dysart Branch are considered here. All other churches are listed on the Kirkcaldy page.

The Parish Church (Established Church, Church of Scotland):

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. The baptisms / births, proclamations / marriages and deaths / burials indexes can be searched at the ScotlandsPeople website. Copies of the register entries may be purchased.

Parish reference number: 426

The Old Parish Registers (OPRs) span the following dates (although there are gaps within these ranges):

Dysart OPR	Births / baptisms	Proclamations / marriages	Deaths / burials / mortcloths
426/1	1582-1662	1582-1662	1582-1596
426/2	1609-1662	1612-1629	1721-1821
426/3	1662-1734	1662-1734
426/4	1735-1819
426/5		1735-1819
426/6	1820-1854	1849-1850 (3 entries)
426/7		1820-1854
426/8			1756-1863
426/9			1818-1838
426/10			1838-1854
426/11			1825-1854
Register of Neglected Entries	1844-1853

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.  blank May 1596 - Nov. 1609, April 1610 - Nov. 1611; defective 1623. Many leaves before 1662 considerably wasted, and many entries imperfect. Blank Oct. 1679 - Dec. 1682, and (exc. 11 irregular entries) Dec. 1694 - Jan. 1708. Mothers' names not recorded till 1645, and often omitted till March 1662.
M.  (Contracts and Marriages.) Blank July 1592 - Jan. 1612, Feb. 1648 - Jan. 1650, Feb. 1653 - Dec. 1654, July 1677 - Dec. 1682, Dec. 1694 - Jan. 1708 (exc. one entry 1698).
D.  (Burials.) Record much wasted by damp.
[Vol. 426/6 contains an index to B. 1820 - 1854 "Appendix" (surname followed by forename of child). It also has 3 M. 1849 - 1850 (Herd / Adamson, Davis / Westwater and Crawford / Hetherton).]
[Subsequent to publication of the Detailed List, vol. 426/2 - B. 1609 - 1662, M. 1612 - 1629, D. 1721 - 1821 has been added. Also added is vol. 426/8 - D. 1756 - 1863 (Burials - Sinclairtown Burial Ground). In addition, there were records found in the Kirk Session records (CH2/390/24-26) which have been added: vol. 426/9 - D. 1818 - 1838 (Burials - Burying Ground opposite Lord Rosslyn's (St. Denis)); vol. 426/10 - D. 1838 - 1854 (Burials - West Burial Yard (St. Denis)); vol. 426/11 - D. 1825 - 1854 (Burials - New Church Burying Ground (Barony Churchyard)).]

Copies of the registers on microfilm may be consulted in some local libraries and at LDS Family Search 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:

1040108 Item 4	Baptisms, 1582-1596, 1609-1662; Marriages, 1582- 1592, 1612-1662; Burials, 1582-1596
1040109	Transcripts (Baptisms, 1609-1662, Marriages, 1612- 1629); Burials, 1721-1753, 1731-1778, 1796-1821, 1731-1775; Baptisms, 1662-1819, 1762-1813; Marriages, 1662-1694, 1708-1734
1040110 Items 1 - 3	Burials, 1818-1855, 1825-1855; Neglected entries (baptisms), 1844-1853
1040195	Marriages, 1735-1854; Baptisms with Appendix, 1820-1854; Burials, 1756-1863
304667 Item 9	Burials, v. 23. 1795-1817 [St Denis]; v. 24. 1818-1838 [St Denis]; v. 25. West burials yard, 1838-1861 [St Denis]; v. 26. New Church burial ground, 1825-1861 [Barony churchyard].

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 (CH2/390) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

A list of elders (1827 - 1841) and a communion roll (1835) for the parish church have been extracted from the Kirk Session records (CH2/390/8) and have been published by the Fife Family History Society in their Publication 20.

Heritors' Records (HR613) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

Notices from the Local Records of Dysart, a compilation from various sources covering both parish and burgh matters from 1534 to 1697, published in 1853, is available online at the Internet Archive.

Other Churches :

Only the Dysart Relief Congregation (later United Presbyterian, then United Free), the Dysart Free Church, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Dysart Branch are considered here. All other churches are listed on the Kirkcaldy page.

Most records of other churches are held by the National Archives of Scotland in Edinburgh.

Some of the pre-1855 baptism and marriage registers have been transcribed and published.

Details of church records, transcriptions and indexes here.

The Dysart page of the LDS Family Search Research Wiki has more information about church history and records.

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Civil Registration

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 districts did not necessarily coincide exactly with parishes. In the 20th century especially, there were frequent changes in registration districts.

Court Records

Dysart Burgh Court records are at the National Archives of Scotland (B21).

On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there is an index to Dysart Burgh Register of Deeds (1690-1829).

Details of court records here.

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Description & Travel

Surrounding parishes: Kirkcaldy, Auchterderran, Kinglassie, Markinch, Wemyss.

Kirkcaldy Civic Society provide lots of information about the town.

Directories

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.

Gazetteers

There is a list of places in Dysart parish, with links to online historical and modern maps.

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.

• David Webster's Topographical Dictionary of Scotland, published 1819, online at Google Books.
• Fullarton's Topographical, Statistical and Historical Gazetteer of Scotland, published 1842, online at Google Books.
• Samuel Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of Scotland, published 1846, online at British History.
• Barbieri's Descriptive and Historical Gazetteer of the Counties of Fife, Kinross and Clackmannan, published 1857, is at Google Books.
• Frances Groome's Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland (1882-4) and John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles (1887), are on A Vision of Britain (click on "Historical descriptions").
• Frances Groome's Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland(1892-6) on Electric Scotland

Historical Geography

In 1901, the parishes of Abbotshall, Dysart & Kirkcaldy, plus part of the parish of Kinghorn, were united to form the parish of Kirkcaldy & Dysart.

In 1930, the burgh of Dysart was combined with the burgh of Kirkcaldy.

A Vision of Britain provides historical descriptions, population & housing statistics, historic boundaries and maps.

Land & Property

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.

Maps

This British Library webpage uses small examples of historical maps of London to show the differences between maps at various scales.

• On-line maps:
  • For 17th, 18th and early 19th century maps, see the National Library of Scotland map collection.
  • Ordnance Survey 6-inch, 1st edition (1855) Fife sheets 24, 32 at the National Library of Scotland (for the best images), or at old-maps.co.uk or British History online.
  • Ordnance Survey 6-inch editions of 1896, 1919 and 1938 at old-maps.co.uk.
  • Small images of Ordnance Survey 25-inch editions of 1895, 1914 and 1943 at old-maps.co.uk.
  • Town plan of Dysart dated 1832 (Great Reform Act plan & report) at the National Library of Scotland
  • Town plan of part of Dysart, 1894 (Ordnance Survey), included with Kirkcaldy, at the National Library of Scotland.
  • There is a list of places in Dysart parish, with links to online historical and modern maps.
  • A Vision of Britain has the Ordnance Survey 1-inch, Popular edition (1920s) - showing parish boundaries; and Land Utilisation mapping (1930s); and more.
  • Ordnance Survey 1-inch, 1st edition (1867) sheet 40; 2nd edition (1899) sheet 40; and 3rd edition (1906) sheet 40 at the National Library of Scotland.
  • Ordnance Survey 1-inch, Popular edition (1928) sheet 68 at the National Library of Scotland.
    
    Map from One-inch to the mile, Popular edition, Scotland, 1920-1930; by kind permission of the National Library of Scotland.
  • Ordnance Survey 1-inch, 7th series (1950s-1960s) sheet 56 at the National Library of Scotland.
• Paper maps:
  • The National Library of Scotland sells paper and digital copies of their maps (select "Enquiries & copies").
  • The Caledonian Maps Victorian Ordnance Survey Map Series sheet 40 (reprint of the 1899 1-inch map).
  • Old-maps.co.uk sell paper copies of all their on-line maps.
  • Ordnance Survey 1-inch, 7th series (1950s-1960s) sheet 56
  • Alan Godfrey Maps produce reprints of the large scale 1894 Ordnance Survey town plans of Kirkcaldy & part of Dysart.
  • The best collection of large scale local and estate maps and plans is held by the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. The RCAHMS also has some plans. They are catalogued on the ScotlandsPlaces website. N.B. Only a few maps and plans are available as digital images.

• On-line maps:
  • Streetmap
  • Ordnance Survey maps
  • both Google maps and Bing Maps provide detailed maps and aerial photographs
  • Google based mapping showing just the parish names for this and the surrounding parishes.
  • Google based mapping showing places in this parish only recorded in the GENUKI Gazetteer.
  • Google based mapping showing places in this parish and nearby recorded in the GENUKI Gazetteer.
  • There is a list of places in Dysart parish, with links to online historical and modern maps.
• Paper maps:
  • Ordnance Survey Landranger (scale 1:50000 -  about 1 inch to 1 mile) sheets 59 - St Andrews
  • Ordnance Survey Explorer (larger scale 1:25000 -  about 2 and a half inches to 1 mile) sheet 367 - Dunfermline, Kirkcaldy & Glenrothes south

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Military History

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.

War memorials can be seen at the Scottish War Memorials Project.

Names, Geographical

There is an index to the Ordnance Survey Object Name Books for this parish here.

Obituaries

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.

Occupations

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.

There is a series of articles about many Fife family businesses in Fife Family History Society's Journal, New Series 10.

Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.

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. Despite the name, Dysart Combination Poorhouse was in Thornton, in Markinch parish.

Records of the Dysart Combination Poorhouse are at the Fife Council Archive Centre. Fife Family History Society have published an index covering the period 1868-1880 in their Publications Series, 34.

Peter Higginbotham's website has a lot of information about Dysart combination poorhouse.

Population

There is a page with census statistics from 1755 to 1961 here.

See also A Vision of Britain and Histpop for population statistics.

Probate Records

Prior to 1824, wills, testaments & inventories of residents of Dysart 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 Dysart Burgh Register of Deeds.

Schools

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:

Statistics

"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

• The 'Old' Statistical Account is at Google Books.
• The 'New' Statistical Account is also online at Google Books.

Taxation

Some 18th century assessed tax records (eg window tax & inhabited house tax) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

The hearth tax, clock & watch tax, male servants tax, female servants tax, and farm horse tax are all on ScotlandsPlaces.

Town Records

The archives of the former Burghs of Dysart and Kirkcaldy are held by Fife Council Archives. They include Council Minutes, Dysart Parochial Board records, Dysart Combination Poorhouse records (1921-1928).

On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there is an index to Dysart Burgh Register of Deeds (1690-1829).

Dysart Burgh Protocol Books, Burgh Register of Sasines and Registers of Deeds, Burgh Court Books and Burgess Rolls are held at the National Archives of Scotland (B21).

Details of records here.

Notices from the Local Records of Dysart, a compilation from various sources covering both parish and burgh matters from 1534 to 1697, published in 1853, is available online at the Internet Archive.

Voting Registers

There are Voters' Rolls at Ancestry.co.uk for Dysart burgh for 1832.

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Page maintained by William McM. Owen : last updated 25 October, 2012