71st Regiment of Foot Scotland

[Bump]

Dear All,
My 4th G Grandfather John Dibbs was a soldier in the 71st Regiment of Foot, of College Kirk Parish when he married Elizabeth Simpson of North Kirk Parish in Edinburgh in Jan 1783. This regiment was disbanded in 1783.
His first child was born in Dec 1783 in Dundee, following which he moved to St.Leonards and St.Andrews.
I have not been able to find a birth for him in Scotland, and the 1841 Scotland Census says he was English.
Can anyone tell me where the regiment might have been formed and where I could find information on it. I am coming to Edinburgh shortly and wanted to have things mapped out where I should go before I arrive.
Where is College Kirk Parish and where is North Kirk Parish?
To search for records e.g.. land records of St.Andrews, Militia information, does one go to the national records of Scotland or to Scotlands People Centre.
Any help greatly appreciated, With thanks,
Joanne.

[GrahamSimons]

This guide from the National Archives might help you. I have followed up the Service Records lnk on Find My Past for you and found no hits for a John Dibbs in the right date range. Nearly all War Office records were held centrally, so Kew is the place!
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/research-guides/british-army-soldiers-discharge-and-pension-records.htm

Looks like the Regimental Museum is in Glasgow. They're unlikely to have any records of individual soldiers. See http://www.armymuseums.org.uk/museums/0000000100-Royal-Highland-Fusiliers-Museum.htm and http://rhf.org.uk/rhf/

[hdw]

Here's something about the regiment -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/71st_(Highland)_Regiment_of_Foot

Harry

[Bump]

Thank you both Graham and Harry for your reply.

I would dearly love to know where this regiment was recruited from, but shall try Kew. I thought there should be something in Scotland.
With regards,
Joanne.

[neil1821]

I would dearly love to know where this regiment was recruited from, but shall try Kew.

The regiment was raised in 1775 from Inverness, Stirling and Glasgow for service in North America.
2 battalions who fared differently.

1st Btn was in America from 1776-82, then went to Halifax, Nova Scotia before returning to Scotland. Disbanded 1786

2nd Btn was captured at Boston in 1776 and exchanged back to Britain. Reformed in 1778 and went back to America only to be captured a second time at Yorktown 1781 and interned. Disbanded back in Stirling in 1783.

[TriciaPerth]

My 5th Great Grandfather was John Dibbs. His father was Thomas Dibbs and mother, Margaret Eadie. General Fraser raised the 71st Regiment of Foot in 1776. The Regiment embarked for Boston to join British Forces under Lord Howe. At the capitulation of Yorktown in 1781, the Regiment became prisoners of war. The Americans were unable to make the Fraser Highlanders desert. At the end of the war they were shipped back to Scotland and were disbanded. It is possible that John was part of this group.
He married Elizabeth Simpson in New North Kirk in Edinburgh (not sure where that was) in 1783. By December he was a shoemaker in Dundee, where his first child was born. All the rest of his six children and perhaps a seventh, were born in St Andrews and St Leonard parish where the family settled for the next 20 years. I have details of all the children but do not have a birth or death date for John.

[Margow]

According to the Fife Family History Death Index, John Dibbs, shoemaker, St Andrews, died 20 May 1846 and was buried 23 May 1846.  His wife, Elizabeth Simpson, died 29 March 1827 and was buried 2 April 1827.  Information taken from St Andrews & St Leonards OPR (453)

Margow

[TriciaPerth]

Thank you , Margow. This is really helpful.

Tricia

[jf99]

I would dearly love to know where this regiment was recruited from, but shall try Kew.

The regiment was raised in 1775 from Inverness, Stirling and Glasgow for service in North America.
2 battalions who fared differently.

1st Btn was in America from 1776-82, then went to Halifax, Nova Scotia before returning to Scotland. Disbanded 1786

2nd Btn was captured at Boston in 1776 and exchanged back to Britain. Reformed in 1778 and went back to America only to be captured a second time at Yorktown 1781 and interned. Disbanded back in Stirling in 1783.

The data on Fraser's 71st which looks like it might be from the archived <http://www.regiments.org/> is a little wide of the mark in places.  The Wikipedia article, though rather confusing, is basically reliable.

The battalions were mustered at Inverness and Stirling and then marched to Glasgow for some hasty licking into shape before shipping over to America but recruiting parties went farther afield- for instance, Serjeant John Crosby, of Major Patrick Campbell's Coy drummed up for recruits in Dunkeld, Perth, Crieff, Dundee and Pittenweem.  Both battalions made it to America but some companies were captured at sea en route, including one boat with the CO of the 2nd Bn that sailed into Boston Harbour unaware Crown forces had decamped to Nova Scotia months before. By 1783 losses in battle and from disease had reduced the 2 battalions to one. It was these survivors who went into captivity at Yorktown.   

If you are interested in more detailed information on Fraser's  71st, this reference and the host web forum might be of interest to you:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Revlist/message/138327

By the way the 71st of 1776-83 had nothing to do with Mcleod's 71st ( Originally 73rd until Frasers 71st disbanded) that became the Highland Light Infantry and which subsequently amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to become the Royal Highland Fusiliers. Confused? You should be.

  The archived site mentioned above < http://web.archive.org/web/20080108080429/http://www.regiments.org/regiments/index.htm#table.> although not infallible is still  a very useful starting point for information on the old regiments.

Hope that might be useful at this late date.
JF