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Elie

Map showing the location of the parish

"Elie parish is situated on the Firth of Forth around Elie Bay. It is bounded on the north and west by Kilconquhar and on the east by Abercrombie. It is 1 mile from east to west and 1 mile in breadth, with an area of 1590 acres. 1470 acres are under cultivation, 70 acres are wooded, and 40 acres are waste land lying near the shore, being little better than a bed of sand. There are no hills. It is watered by a small stream which issues from Kilconquhar Loch and empties into Elie harbour. The soil is of an average quality. The rent of land is from £1 to £4-5/- per acre. Although coals are not wrought now in the parish, it bears ample proof of this having been done at a former period. Coals are now brought from another parish or imported from Newcastle. There is a Free Church but no U P church. There are 2 small schools besides a parish school. With few exceptions the inhabitants are sober, industrious, moral and religious. Elie Burgh is a Burgh of Barony. It is neat, clean, well-built and has a fine appearance. The harbour is good, safe and well sheltered from W and SW gales. A few fishermen live in the village, and go along the coast for white fish. Grain, potatoes and other produce are taken to Leith weekly; and other mercantile goods are brought back in return. The Aberdeen and Dundee steamboats stop at the harbour twice a week to land and take in passengers. The nearest market is Colinsburgh, 2.5 miles distant, which is also the post town, although there is a sub-post office in the village. The parish church and school are here. There is one inn, a good subscription library and a friendly society called the Sea Box. From the fine clean sands few places in the Firth are better adapted for sea bathing, hence in summer it is much resorted to for that purpose. It is 5 miles from Anstruther, 13 from St Andrews and 15 from Cupar." from 'A Descriptive & historic gazeteer of the counties of Fife, Kinross & Clackmannan', M Barbieri, published 1857.

Towns

Elie
Earlsferry, Liberty and Williamsburgh were included from 1891  (previously in Kilconquhar parish)

Please read the main Fife pages if you have not already done so.

Bibliography

Old Elie & Earlsferry (Stenlake Publishing) contains many photographs and full descriptions.

Cemeteries

Elie Churchyard, High Street, Elie (grid ref. NO 492001):

Census

Parish / district reference number for 1841 - 1901 censuses: 427

The 1841 return can be searched on the FreeCEN website.

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

Further information on the main Fife page.

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Church History

The 1865 Ecclesiastical Directory lists the parish church and the Free Church.
Details of church history here.

Elie Church - 350 years, 1639 - 1989 by David Thomson is available from the Fife Family History Society.

Church Records

The original Old Parish Records (of baptisms / births, proclamations / marriages, and 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 copies on microfilm may be consulted in local libraries and at LDS Family History Centres around the world. The baptisms / births and proclamations / marriages (but not deaths) can also be searched at Scotland's People - the online database of Scottish Birth, Marriage, Death & Census records at the General Register Office. The index can also be searched on the LDS FamilySearch website.

Deaths are listed on Fife Family History Society's  Pre-1855 Fife Deaths CD.

The old parish records span the following dates (although there may be gaps within these ranges):

Elie OPR Births / baptisms Proclamations / marriages Deaths / burials / mortcloths
427/1 1639-1775 1639-1775 1736-1760
427/2 1773-1819 1774-1819 1783-1808
427/3 1820-1854 1820-1854 1822-1854
Data supplied by General Register Office for Scotland

There are no Kirk Session records for the parish church (Church of Scotland) either at St Andrews University Library or in Edinburgh. Details of church records here.

Heritors' Records (HR253) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

Civil Registration

Registration of Births, Marriages and Deaths began in Scotland on 1st January 1855. Full information on the main Fife page.

Registration district number start date end date
Elie 427 1855 1967
East Neuk 426 1968 1971
East Neuk 414 1972 2002
Fife 414 2003  

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

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Description & Travel

Elie town centre Ordnance Survey Grid Reference GPS Post code Lat. 56°11'25"N
NO 488001 56.190754
-2.826579		 KY9 1AX Lon. 2°49'31"W

Directories

On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there is a transcription of Westwood's 1861 Parochial Directory of Fife.

Historical Geography

Elie parish had a detached portion north-west of the main part of the parish. On 15th May 1891 this part was transferred to Kilconquhar parish (comprising part of Charleton, Newton House, Muircambus and part of West Muircambus).

An area of Kilconquhar parish situated on the coast was, on the same date, transferred to the parish of Elie. This contained the burgh of Earlsferry, the villages of Liberty & Williamsburgh, Donald's Land, Grange, Grangehill, Melon Park, St Ford, part of West Muircambus, Kincraig, Old Glebe and Crooks.

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

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Land & Property

Valuation Rolls and Sasines for the burgh are held by the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

Maps

Historic maps: Present-day maps:

Names, Geographical

The Ordnance Survey [Place] 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).

Obituaries

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 recently re-published it in their Publications Series, 27.

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.

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Population

Year Population
1755 642
1801 730
1851 843
1901 1142   * boundary changed
1951 1325

See also A Vision of Britain for population statistics.

Probate Records

Prior to 1824, wills, testaments & inventories of residents of Elie may be found in either the St Andrews Commissariot (CC20) or the Edinburgh Commissariot (CC8) records. From 1824, commissary business has been conducted by the Sheriff Court of Fife at Cupar (SC20).

Indexes and finding aids are given on the main Fife page.

Local sources worth searching for deeds include St Andrews Commissary Court and Cupar Sheriff Court.

Schools

School Board Records and school logbooks are held at the Fife Council Archive Centre. Details of records here.

Town Records

The archives of the former Burghs of Elie & Earlsferry are held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library and the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.

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William McM. Owen    last updated 17 December 2006