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Kingdom of Fife |  |
Contents |  |
Fife Towns & Parishes |  nearby places |
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The parishes of St Andrews and St Leonards were united to form a single parish in 1895.
| Boarhills |
| St. Andrews |
| Strathkinness |
Places in St Andrews and St Leonards parish, with links to online historical and modern maps.
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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.
St
Andrews Library, Church Square, St Andrews, Fife. KY16 9NN.
Tel. 01334 659378
The Hay Fleming Reference Library (the library of David Hay Fleming,
historian & antiquary, 1849-1931) previously housed here has
been transferred to the St Andrews University Library.
St
Andrews University Library, North Street, St Andrews, Fife.
KY16 9TR. Tel. (01334) 476161
In addition to an extensive university library, the Manuscripts Dept.
in the Special
Collections Department (which is open to visiting scholars
and the general public) is the archive for local authority and church
material in the East Fife area. It has a growing collection of archive
material of local families, estates and businesses
(scroll to the foot of the page). The Hay
Fleming Collection (the library of David Hay Fleming,
historian & antiquary, 1849-1931) contains, in addition to
family papers, a large collection of material about Scotland in
general, and St Andrews in particular. The library holds one of the
largest and most important collections of historic photography in
Scotland containing upwards of 300,000 images. The photography
collection is currently being digitised and can be searched online.
There are also a number of museums in St Andrews with varying displays.
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 chapters 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 - St Andrews and St Leonards.
Old St Andrews (Stenlake Publishing) contains many photographs and full descriptions.
An excellent history of the town is St Andrews: City by the Northern Sea by Raymond Lamont-Brown (ISBN: 978-1841584508).
There are 4 cemeteries and 4 other locations of memorial inscriptions in St Andrews & St Leonards parish:
1. St Andrews Cathedral Churchyard, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 514165; GPS: 56.338356 -2.787712):
2. St Andrews Eastern Cemetery, The Pends, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 515165; GPS: 56.338366 -2.786094):
3. St Andrews Western & Roundal Cemetery, Strathkinness Low Road, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 487160; GPS: 56.333579 -2.831282):
4. St Leonard's Chapel, The Pends, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 513164; GPS: 56.337447 -2.789310):
5. St Salvator's Church, North Street, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 510168; GPS: 56.341009 -2.794237):
6. Holy Trinity Church, South Street, St Andrews (grid ref. NO 509166; GPS: 56.339202 -2.795817):
7. Boarhills Churchyard / Cemetery, A917, by Boarhills (grid ref. NO 562137; GPS: 56.313671 -2.709611):
8. Magus Muir, south of Strathkinness (grid ref. NO 456152; GPS: 56.326045 -2.881247):
The pre-1855 monumental inscriptions for St Andrews Cathedral, St Andrews Cemetery, Trinity Church, St Leonard's Chapel, St Salvator's Church and Boarhills Churchyard are listed in Fifeshire Monumental Inscriptions (pre-1855) vol. 3 The north east parishes by John Fowler Mitchell & Sheila Mitchell, published by the Scottish Genealogy Society. ISBN 0901061999
The Churchyard Memorials of St Andrews, Alan Reid, published in Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 1910-11, vol. 45, pages 488-550, deals mostly with 16th and 17th century memorials. Post-reformation tombstones in the Cathedral Churchyard, St Andrews, George MacDonald, published in Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland,1935-36, vol. 70, pages 40-121, has many detailed descriptions of stones. They can both be downloaded from ARCHway.
Some stones are recorded in Graveyard Monuments in East, North and Central Fife, John di Folco, published in Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 1969-70, vol. 102, pages 205-236, which deals largely with stones dated pre-1707. It can be downloaded from ARCHway.
War graves can be seen at the Scottish Wargraves Project and war memorials can be seen at the Scottish War Memorials Project.
Parish / district reference number for 1841 - 1901 censuses: 453
Surname indexes to the 1841 and 1861 censuses have been produced by Dr David Calvert. The 1851 census has been indexed by the Tay Valley Family History Society. All are available from the Society.
The 1841 return can be searched on the FreeCEN website.
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 St Andrews & St Leonards 1042704 1042272 103832 103995 203530 208766
Data provided by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Further information on the main Fife page.
The Old Statistical Account (written in the 1790s) gives this information about the religious views of the inhabitants:
The New Statistical Account of St Andrews (written in 1837) gives this information:
The New Statistical Account of St Leonards (written in 1837) gives this information:
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 St Andrews are as follows:
St Andrews (Parliamentary Burgh): Population of Parish 7327, Population of Burgh 5107:
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 6 486 970 1456 2085 1696 350 United Presbyterian Church 1 380 380 300 350 Free Church 2 52 812 1144 766 833 Episcopal Church 2 184 296 480 191 214 Independents or Congregationalists 1 360 143 195 173 Baptists 1 250 250 68 71 90 Total 13 972 2458 4070 3553 3359 613 The number of sittings was not returned for 2 of the Established Churches. 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 St Andrews parish church, a second charge of the Established Church in St Andrews, St Leonard's parish church, an Established Church at Strathkinness, Free Churches at St Andrews and Strathkinness, the Episcopal Church, the Baptist Church, the Congregational Church and the United Presbyterian Church.
Information and pictures of the churches at the Scottish Churches website.
Details of church history here.
Holy Trinity, St Andrews
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: 453
The Old Parish Registers (OPRs) span the following dates (although there are gaps within these ranges):
St Andrews OPR Births / baptisms Proclamations / marriages Deaths / burials / mortcloths 453/1 1627-1680 453/2 1680-1738 453/3 1739-1803 453/4 1803-1819 453/5 1638-1659 453/6 1659-1670 453/7 1670-1679 453/8 1679-1698 453/9 1698-1706 453/10 1706-1719 453/11 1719-1729 453/12 1729-1740 453/13 1740-1750 453/14 1750-1762 453/15 1763-1771 453/16 1770-1819 453/17 1732-1819 453/19 1820-1854 453/20 1820-1854 453/21 1820-1854 Register of Neglected Entries 1844-1845 St Leonards OPR Births / baptisms Proclamations / marriages Deaths / burials / mortcloths 453/18 1667-1819 1668-1819 453/22 1820-1854 1820-1855
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:
St. Andrews: B. With the exception that it is defective Dec. 1737 - April 1740, Record carefully kept throughout; the portion prior to 1680, in particular, being beautifully written. After Record for June 1712, three pp. of entries of children baptized by an Episcopal Minister 1712 - 1741; and at the beginning of vol. 2, two pp. of irregular entries of children baptized by Seceders 1738 - 1757. After Record for 1819 there are 17 slips of paper containing the dates of Births of children born bet. 1803 and 1844.
M. Record of Contracts and Marriages prior to 1770 mixed up with other matters. Blank 1685 - 1694. Separate Record after 1770. Irregular Marriages occasionally recorded.
D. Greater part of first leaf destroyed. Prior to Feb. 1735 the entries record not only the date of Death and Burial, but generally also the hour of both. After Feb. 1735 the date of Death only recorded.St. Leonards: B. blank Aug. 1695 - June 1696. Only one entry May 1799 - May 1800.
M. blank Jan. 1677 - April 1678, and March 1690 - Nov. 1691. Only one entry Nov. 1692 - Aug. 1694, and one April 1695 - Aug. 1696. No entry for 1717. Blank March 1739 - June 1740. No entry for 1769. Blank Sept. 1797 - Nov. 1800. No entry for 1821.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:
1040171 Item 3 Baptisms 1627-1667 1040172 Baptisms 1667-1819; Misc. Baptisms 1820-1843 1040173 Session book (includes Marriages) 1638-1679 1040174 Session book (includes Marriages) 1679-1685, 1694- 1720 1040175 Session book (includes Marriages) 1720-1754 1040176 Session book (includes Marriages) 1754-1771; Marriages 1770-1819; Burials 1732-1819 1040388 Baptisms, Marriages (St. Leonards) 1667-1819; Baptisms, Marriages, Burials (St. Andrews) 1820-1854 1040181 Item 1 Baptisms, Marriages (St. Leonards) 1820-1855; Neglected Entries (Baptisms - St. Andrews) 1844-1845
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 are held at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library, with digital copies at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Some Kirk Session material is to be found in the OPR records (453/5-15). Details of church records here.
Heritors' Records (HR73-St Andrews, HR491-St Leonards) are at the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.
Records for the following churches are held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library:
St Leonards CH2/1561 Hope Park (burgher, United Presbyterian, United Free, and Church of Scotland) CH3/1584 Martyrs Free Church CH3/1585 St Andrews Congregational Church St Andrews Episcopal Church Strathkinness Church CH2/1547 Strathkinness United Free Church CH3/1566 Strathkinness Associate Session (relief, Free) CH3/291 Boarhills Church CH2/1541 Indexes to pre-1855 baptisms and marriages for some of these congregations have been published by Fife Family History Society.
The LDS have filmed some records which may be consulted at LDS Family History Centres.
Details of church records and indexes here.
The St Andrews 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 |
| St Andrews (Fife) burgh | 453/1 | 1855 | 1855 |
| St Andrews (Fife) landward | 453/2 | 1855 | 1855 |
| St Leonards | 453/3 | 1855 | 1855 |
| St Andrews and St Leonards | 453 | 1856 | 1967 |
| St Andrews | 453 | 1968 | 1971 |
| St Andrews | 413 | 1972 | 2002 |
| Fife | 413 | 2003 |
Registration districts did not necessarily coincide exactly with parishes. In the 20th century especially, there were frequent changes in registration districts.
St Andrews Burgh Court records (from 1588) and Dean of Guild court records (1894-1975) are held at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library.
The Regality of St Andrews records (from 1671), including the Admiralty Court Book (1671-1730) is held by the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Other Regality Court records are in the Cupar Sheriff Court records (SC20) (also at the National Archives of Scotland), and in the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library.
Details of court records here.
On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there are indexes to St Andrews Commissariot Deeds (1700-1809) and St Andrews Burgh Register of Deeds (1692-1891).
| St Andrews town centre | Ordnance Survey Grid Reference | GPS | Post code | Lat. 56°20'21"N |
| NO 509166 | 56.339202 -2.795817 |
KY16 9LU | Lon. 2°47'47"W |
The Handbook to St Andrews, published in 1897, a detailed history and description of the city of St. Andrews, together with its people, is available on CD from Archive CD Books.
There is a very informative St Andrews website.
The town is also the home of golf, and the St Andrews Links Trust has a full set of information pages about the sport.
Surrounding parishes: Ceres, Cameron, Leuchars, Kemback, Dunino, Crail, Kingsbarns.
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 St Andrews 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.
Before 1891, St Andrews and St Leonards parishes were a
complicated mixture of town and
country parts, intermixed with each other. St Leonards consisted of 4
separate parts: an
area at Kenly at the south end of St Andrews parish, 2 parts in the
burgh of St Andrews
itself, and an area at Rathelpie to the west of the burgh.
On 15th May 1891 a new parish of St Leonards was created, situated
entirely within the
burgh of St Andrews. The country areas were transferred to St Andrews
parish. The following subjects were, therefore, transferred from St
Leonards parish to St
Andrews parish: Upper Kenly Farm, Nether Kenly, Newmill, Rathelpie,
Peekie, Peekie Mill
and Mill Bank, Westerlee.
The separate parishes were united to form the Parish of St Andrews and
St Leonards in
1895.
A Vision of Britain provides historical descriptions, population & housing statistics, historic boundaries and maps.
There is an excellent history of the town by local authors Raymond Lamont-Brown and Frank G Riddell.
Valuation Rolls and Registers of Sasines for the Burgh are held by the National Archives of Scotland, Edinburgh. Details of records here.
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.
Hospital records (mostly of an administrative nature) are held by the Fife Council Archive Centre. The following hospitals are included: Memorial Cottage Hospital, St Andrews 1875-1949. Patient records are closed for 100 years.
War graves can be seen at the Scottish Wargraves Project and war memorials can be seen at the Scottish War Memorials Project.
There is an index to the Ordnance Survey Object Name Books for this parish here.
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.
Lists of St Andrews fleshers, 1610 - 1844, St Andrews tailors, 1659 - 1866 and St Andrews weavers, 1751 - 1862, extracted from trade incorporation records held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library, have been published by the Fife Family History Society in Publication 14 - Trade Incorporation Records and is also available on the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website. Details of records here.
Also available on the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website are similar lists of St Andrews Weavers (1751-1862), Tailors (1659-1866) and Hammermen (1539-1792).
At the Fife Council Archive Centre is an index to the St Andrews District Criminal Register, 1888 - 1899. Names of criminals are included in the Archive Catalogue on the Fife Council website (select A in the A-Z list, then Archives).
Records of the St Andrews Sea Box Society are held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. Details of records here.
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 11.
Minutes of St Andrews District Council (1970 - 1975) are held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. Details of records here.
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.
The workhouses.org.uk website has some information about the St Andrews almshouses (the East Poorhouse).
| Year | St Andrews | St Leonards |
| 1755 | 4590 | 323 |
| 1801 | 4203 | 363 |
| 1851 | 6740 | 587 |
Parish of St Andrews & St Leonards:
| Year | Population |
| 1901 | 9410 |
| 1951 | 10977 |
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 St Andrews 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, Cupar Sheriff Court and St Andrews 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 |
| St Andrews (Burgh) | Burgh | 568 | 473 |
| East End | 359 | 178 | |
| Infant | 280 | 253 | |
| St Andrews (Landward) | Boarhills | 117 | 65 |
| Strathkinness | 208 | 144 |
Matriculation &/or Graduation lists for St Andrews University 1413-1579 and 1747-1897 have been published and are available on CD from Archive CD Books. The 1747-1897 matriculation roll is online at the Open Library.
University records are held in the Muniments Collection in the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. Details of records here.
"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 hearth tax, clock & watch tax, male servants tax, female servants tax, and farm horse tax are all on ScotlandsPlaces.
Some taxation records are to be found in the burgh records held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. Details of records here.
People of St Andrews 1600-1799 by David Dobson, drawn largely from tax lists, can be obtained from the Tay Valley Family History Society.
The archives of the former Burgh of St Andrews are held at the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. They include Council Minutes (from 1656), Stent Rolls (from 1618), Cess Books (from 1826), Guildry Records (from 1604), records of Maltmen and Wright Incorporations, Harbour Dues (from 1859), etc.
There are also some records at the Fife Council Archive Centre.
St Andrews Burgh Register of Sasines (from 1673) and Registers of Deeds (from 1692) are held at the National Archives of Scotland (B65).
On the Records pages of the Fife Family History Society website there is an index to St Andrews Burgh Register of Deeds (1692-1891).
Details of records here.
A Burgess Roll of St Andrews 1751 - 1775 has been published by the Fife Family History Society.
Some voting registers are held by the Special Collections Dept. of St Andrews University Library. Details of records here.
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Page maintained by William McM. Owen : last updated 25 October, 2012
