A Genealogist's Guide to Discovering Your Irish Ancestors by Dwight A. Radford

Author:Dwight A. Radford [Radford, Dwight A.,Betit, Kyle J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-55870-577-7
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2001-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

Pre-1845 Records

Prior to 1845 each Church of Scotland parish’s kirk session administered poor relief. The kirk session included the parish minister and elected elders and was the lowest ecclesiastical court in the church. Poor relief took the form of monetary payments, and the main source of income for this relief was the weekly collections. The kirk also distributed assistance in the form of shelter, food, clothing, fuel, medical care, funeral expenses, and education for children.

You will find in the session minutes information on poor relief prior to 1845. Some of the clues you need to look for in these records are reports concerning where a destitute person or family had obtained a “legal settlement.” This meant that their parish of residence was responsible for them rather than another parish where they might apply for poor relief. So a destitute person or family could be sent back to the parish that agreed to be responsible. Maybe that parish was in Ireland or elsewhere in Scotland, thus giving you valuable clues to former residences and birthplaces.

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