FIFE FAMILY HISTORY AND THE PRINTED WORD

[We continue our series of articles on Fife Family History and the Printed Work. In our last we dealt with published family histories. This article will deal principally with Memorial Inscriptions, Kirk Session Records, Trade Directories, and Trade Incorporation Records, and General Biographies.]

(A) MEMORIAL INSCRIPTIONS.

(1) MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS (pre 1855) IN EAST FIFE,

(2) MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS (pre 1855) IN WEST FIFE.

We begin with these two works produced by John Fowler Mitchell and Sheila Mitchell for the Scottish Genealogy Society in 1971 and 1972, and which are still available through the Society. As the title suggests, the pre 1855 tombstones have been transcribed from the older graveyards of Fife; each graveyard/cemetry has a plan, showing the location of the stones, which have been numbered and indexed; and there is also a series of notes giving more information. For a work of such magnitude, it is natural that there has been some slight omission of some pre 1855 stones from the Fife cemetries but, nevertheless, this is a MONUMENTAL work, and a "must" for the Library of anyone interested in Fife genealogy.

(3) THE CHURCHYARD MEMORIALS OF CRAIL, CONTAINING A FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE EPITAPHS ANTERIOR TO 1800: TOGETHER WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE OTHER ANTIQUITIES OF THE BURGH (1893). By Erskine Beveridge. Privately printed by Beveridge, a Dunfermline linen manufacturer, who had a great interest in local antiquities. 113 copies were published. The Churchyard Memorial stones of Crail are perhaps unique, and Beveridge hasexamined /investigated/researched each stone in turn, with notes from local and national archives. The book, which is profusely illustrated, runs to some 303 4-to pages. As a postrcipt, it may be added that Beveridge left a series of MS papers of inscriptions and sketches of some other churchyards of Fife, including Aberdour, Beath, Crombie, Culross, Dalgety, Dunfermline, Inverkeithing, Rosyth, Saline, and Tulliallan, which are now preserved in Dunfermline Central Library.

(4) COLLESSIE CHURCHYARD. To 31st December 1911 (1912). By Henry Rae-Arnot. Is an inventory of the Churchyard by death lair. Very impressive work, 337 pages. Privately printed.

(5) THE ANCIENT MONUMENTS OF ST ANDREWS (1847). By Rev Chas J Lyon. Lithographed and printed by G S Tullis of Cupar, Printer to the University of St Andrews, the book contains 8 pages + 4 folded lithographed plates, detailing 13 of the ancient monumental inscriptions in St Andrews, eight or nine of which date prior to the Reformation.

(6) THE CHURCHYARD MEMORIALS OF ST ANDREWS. By Alan Reid (1911). Reprinted from Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (pp 488-550), the work deals principally with 17th and 16th c. memorials.

(7) POST REFORMATION TOMBSTONES IN THE CATHEDRAL CHURCHYARD,

ST ANDREWS . By Sir George Macdonald. Reprinted from Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries, Scotland (1935-36), pp 40-121. Has very detailed descriptions of many of the stones in the Churchyard and Museum.

(8) GRAVEYARD MONUMENTS IN EAST, NORTH, AND CENTRAL FIFE. By John di Folco. Reprinted from Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (1969-70), pp 205-236. The survey was intended to supplement the information on graveyard monuments in the 1933 Inventory, "Royal Commission of Ancient Monuments for Scotland: Fife, Kinross and Clackmannan," and was also intended as a natural extension of the works by Sir George Macdonald and Erskine Beveridge above. "Its limiting date is 1707, but later monuments are mentioned where it was felt they possessed details of design or lapidary interest. Of the 38 parishes covered, 9 (Cameron, Carnbee, Crail, Dunbog, Dunino, Kemback, Logie, Moonzie and Newburgh) were excluded as they contained no memorial within the survey date. The remaining are listed in alphabetical order and each monument is described individually."'

(9) MONUMENTS AND MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS IN SCOTLAND (2 vols 1871-72) . By Rev Charles Rogers. Published for the Grampian Club, Vol 11 (pp 65-141) deals with Fife, and records some of the more major and unusual inscriptions from Fife burial grounds.

(B) KIRK SESSION REGISTERS

(10) THE PARISH REGISTER OF DUNFERMLINE. 1561-1700. Published in parts by The Scottish Record Society between 1911-1937, the work is an abbreviated transcript of the OPR, and hence invaluable to all Fife researchers

(11) ST ANDREWS KIRK SESSION REGISTER. 1559-1600 (2 vols, Scottish History Society, 1889-1890). Transcribed and edited by David Hay Fleming, with notes, the work is indexed, and thus is, an invaluable aid to the researcher in finding out if any of his/her forbears were summoned before the Kirk Session.

(C) TRADE DIRECTORIES.

(12) The earliest directories are the national trade directories published by PIGOT & CO. Their DIRECTORY OF SCOTLAND AND THE NORTH OF ENGLAND (1820-21) is the earliest, but only contains Dunfermline and Kirkcaldy. Their COMMERCIAL DIRECTORY OF SCOTLAND (1825-26) and also for 1837 are more extensive, and contains trade entries for all the Fife parishes. SLATER succeeded Pigot and produced COMMERCIAL DIRECTORIES in 1852 and 1867, and also at intervals during the 19th and 20th centuries, until the 1st World War. More locally, the PAROCHIAL DIRECTORY FOR THE COUNTIES OF FIFE AND KINROSS (1st edit. 1862; 2nd edit, 1866), published by Alexander Westwood, is another "must" for the Library of the Fife genealogist. It has very extensive trade listings, and is, in effect, a trade Census of Fife. The first edition was published in Jan 1862, and thus can be used with the 1861 Census.

(D) TOWN DIRECTORIES.

(13) BURNTISLAND. THE BURNTISLAND DIRECTORY AND ILLUSTRATED YEAR BOOK for 1892 (1891). Printed and Published in Kirkcaldy by the Fifeshire Advertiser, this was the first and last issue.

(14) DUNFERMLINE. The first DUNFERMLINE DIRECTORY was published in 1830 by John Miller, a local printer, and was published by him at intervals, afterwards becoming an "Addenda" to his "Dunfermline Register," a yearly almanac. The 1830 number now no longers appears to exist, the earliest numbers being THE DUNFERMLINE DIRECTORY for 1832, and that for 1835. The Dunfermline Citizen Office issued a total of 3 DUNFERMLINE DIRECTORIES: the 1st in 1890-91; the 2nd in 1894-95; and the 3rd in 1896-97.

(15) KIRKCALDY. The earliest Directories are the KIRKCALDY DIRECTORY FOR 1834, and THE KIRKCALDY DIRECTORY FOR 1835, compiled by James Thomson, and printed and published by James Birrell of Kirkcaldy. Between 1882 and 1935 a local newspaper, the Fifeshire Advertiser, published, at intervals, 17 editions of their KIRKCALDY.DIRECTORY. Another local newspaper, The Fife Free Press, alo published several town directories of Kirkcaldy, though not as extensive as the Fifeshire Advertiser.

(E) TRADE INCORPORATION RECORDS.

(16) THE DUNFERMLINE HAMMERMEN. A HISTORY OF THE INCORPORATION OF HAMMERMEN IN DUNFERMLINE, TO WHICH IS APPENDED A HISTORY OF THE CONVENER'S COURT OF DUNFERMLINE (1909). By Daniel Thomson. The Hammermen included such trades as blacksmiths, cutlers, gunsmiths, watch and clockmakers. Thomson's work is based on the Dunfermline Hammermen MS Record Books covering the periods 1687-1862 and 1772-1829. His book principally deals with the workings of the trade as a whole, and although he does not record the history of individual Hammermen families, nor list apprentices, Deacons, and office-holders (which are contained in the MS Record Books), there are still many names recorded.

(17). DUNFERMLINE CLOCKMAKERS UP TO 1900 [1982]. By J & M Norgate and F Hudson. Published by Felix Hudson, a local clockmaker and Jeweller, and written in conjunction with Martin Norgate, formerly curator of Dunfermline Museum, gives a history of all the Dunfermline clockmakers from earliest times to 1900. The principal source is the Hammermen Records. Other sources used include Census returns, OPR returns, newspaper advertisements, trade directories, and private information. Profusely illustrated, this very well researched work is still available locally.

(18) OLD SCOTTISH CLOCKMAKERS. FROM 1453 TO 1850. 2nd Edition (1921). By John Smith. Since we have just been dealing with local clockmakers, perhaps this is a good opportunity to mention this scholarly work, which has become a standard work of research. Originally published in 1903, the 2nd Edition was greatly revised and extended, and contains the names of many Fife clockmakers, with a history of the more important tradesmen and their firms. This 2nd Edition was republished in 1975 by EP Publishing Ltd of Wakefield, and reprinted in 1979.

(19) SCOTTISH ARMS MAKERS. A BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF MAKERS OF FIREARMS, EDGED WEAPONS AND ARMOUR WORKING IN SCOTLAND FROM THE 15TH CENTURY TO 1870 (1977). By Charles E Whitelaw. Since we have been dealing with Hammermen, perhaps this is a good opportunity also to mention this scholarly work. There are sections on Dunfermline and St Andrews, extracted from the local Hammermen Records, as well as Cupar and Kirkcaldy.

(20) YE DOINGS OF AN ANCIENT CRAFT. BEING AN ACCOUNT OF THE HAMMERMEN OF ST ANDREWS FROM PRE-REFORMATION TIMES UNTIL THE END OF LAST CENTURY. (1884) By D H Fleming. Consists of a paper read before the Literary and Philosophical Society of St Andrews, 12th April 1884, and reprinted from the "St Andrews Citizen," April 19 - June 21 1884. His article is based on the St Andrews Hammermen Record Book, which was presented to the University of St Andrews by John Bowes, builder, Paisley, in 1878. The Record Book is in 2 Parts, Part 1 from 1539-1731, and Part 2 from 1731-1792. Fleming's article deals mainly with the workings of the trade, and although he does mention some names, those interested in the Hammermen should really consult the Record Book (which has been indexed by the University staff) in St Andrews University Library)

(21) THE CORDINERS OF ST ANDREWS (1879). By D H Fleming. Reprinted from the St Andrews Citizen of 5th April 1879, Fleming's principal source is the Trade Record Book. Strictly speaking this Record Book only dates from 1616-1796, but it contains complete lists of ancient deacons, freemen and apprentices, from 1524-1616, copied from an earlier volume. Fleming's 15-paged pamphlet deals principally with the workings of the Trade, but it does quote names to illustrate these workings. For example: "In 1786 John Marr was fined £20 Scots for taking an apprentice without booking him; and in 1791 the trade refused to admit Wm. Carmichael and Wm Cuthbert for not serving a regular apprenticeship."

(22) THE BAXTER BOOKS OF ST ANDREWS (1903). Printed for the Scottish Association of Master Bakers, the book gives a history of the Baxter Incorporation from the 3 MS Record Books, which were presented to the St Andrews University Library in June 1885 by William Woodcock, writer in St Andrews. Book 1 covers the period from 3rd June 1548 to 15th June 1566, with a blank between 1559 and 1563. Book 2 gives a record of the craft from 3 July 1573 to 11 Sep 1800, and Book 3 covers the period from 12th Sep 1800 to 15th Nov 1861. Appendixed to the published book is a list of Apprentices from 1548 to 1828; of Freemen admitted from 1548 to 1855; a list of Deacons from 1548 to 1861 a list of Positors and Boxmasters from 1555 to 1861; and a list of officers from 1558 to 1856.

(23) THE WEAVERS' CRAFT. BEING A HISTORY OF THE WEAVERS' INCORPORATION OF DUNFERMLINE (1903). By Daniel Thomson. The source for Thomson's work is the Incorporation Records, which date from 1596-1863. His work deals principally with the workings of the Trade but, again, it does quote names to illustrate these workings. He also gives a list of members of the Incorporation as at 16th March 1837, lists the Deacons from 1724-1863, and gives some notable boxmasters/treasurers and Freemen of the Trade. He also lists the linen manufacturers in Dunfermline in 1820-21, 1825-26, and 1835-36, his source for these being Pigot's Directory.

(F) BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARIES.

(24) BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY OF EMINENT MEN OF FIFE (1866). By M F Conolly. Originally published in parts between June/July 1864 and June 1866 as 60 weekly numbers and 12 monthly parts, before appearing in book form in July 1866, 492 pages. A Supplement was published in Conolly's "Fifiana" (1869), pp 43-103. Conolly's Fifeshire Biography is, as yet, the most extensive work published on the subject. However, researchers, when using the Dictionary, should bear in mind that the later biographies are nothing more than obituaries, reprinted word for word from the local newspapers

(25) LIVES OF EMINENT MEN OF FIFE (1846). By James Bruce. Consists of 7 Biographies written by the Editor of the Fifeshire Journal, which first appeared in the FJ between June 12 1845 and Jan 1 1846, "as a contemplated series of some forty or fifty," before being published in book form on Jan 29 1846.

[A J Campbell, Editor] (to be continued)