Poor Law and Kirk Sessions Lookup please

[Yule]

I am trying to find the death and buriel place of Robert Yule born Chirnside Berwick 1771c,  who died between 1851 and 1861. He married Alison Brown born Eccles Berwick 1876c. He was described as a Pauper in 1851, and his death has not been recorded in the parish of Ednam, Berwickshire which is where he was living in 1841 and 1851 census. Is it possible for anyone to do a lookup in the Poor Law records or Kirk Sessions. I am not sure if this is possible or if I am asking for the impossible.

[JMStrachan]

The kirk Session minutes are only researchable at the National Archives in Edinburgh, or other archive centres in Scotland. They are not indexed, so to search them you have to read through the relevant years and hope you spot something. I've done it: it's hard on your eyes and takes ages!

Death certificates started in Scotland in 1855, so if he died from 1855 to 1861 his death certificate should be available on the pay to view ScotlandsPeople web site. If it was before 1855 then you'd be looking for a burial entry in the parish register. Unfortunately, burials weren't very well recorded in many Scottish parishes.

[Forfarian]

I am trying to find the death and buriel place of Robert Yule born Chirnside Berwick 1771c,  who died between 1851 and 1861. He married Alison Brown born Eccles Berwick 1876c. He was described as a Pauper in 1851, and his death has not been recorded in the parish of Ednam, Berwickshire which is where he was living in 1841 and 1851 census. Is it possible for anyone to do a lookup in the Poor Law records or Kirk Sessions. I am not sure if this is possible or if I am asking for the impossible.

It is possible, but it's a very big ask.

JMStrachan has told you about the Kirk Session minutes, and I can only echo what he says.

As for the Poor Law records, the Poor Law only came into effect in 1845. Your man should have been recorded by the Parochial Board if he was a pauper in 1851. There might not have been an entry in the Register of Applications, if he was a pauper before 1845, but there would certainly have been a page in the Register of Poor.

The problem is finding out whether the relevant archives have actually survived, because many have not. Then you have to find out where the surviving registers are, and how to access them. I suggest you start with a look in the catalogue here
http://www.heartofhawick.co.uk/heritagehub/collections/catalogue.asp and if they seem to have something promising, drop them an e-mail.

Happy hunting!

[Yule]

Thank you both for your reply, I very much appreciate it and will now travel up to Scotland to do some researching to see if I can find anything at all, so that hopefully I will be able to erect a headstone for them or some mark that they had lived, as owing to them they gave us a wonderful life.

[flst]

I note that Alison was a widow on the 1861 census & living on her own at Burnside, Coldingham. She died in 1869 in Eccles. Apparently the headstones for Eccles have been transcribed & there are 5 Yules mentioned. I'm wondering if any of them belong to your Yules. If Robert & Alison were paupers they probably did not have a headstone on their grave. Their offspring may have mentioned them on a later/other grave?
flst


 

[Yule]

Hello FLST, Thank you for taking the time to reply. Alison was not living on her own in 1861 census but was living with 2 of her children at Coldstream, and next door to her son James and his family. Alison died 18Th December 1869, at Humebank, Coldstream. As their son James also died at Humebank, I need to find out if this was a hospital or a home of some description, at the moment I cannot find this information. We have found the gravestone of their son James at Lennel churchyard and incidentally cleaned the stone up so that every word can be read clearly, however, there is no mention of Robert and his wife Alison. I am almost certain that they were buried together and I also feel sure that Robert will have been buried with his wife Alison at either Eccles, ( no records of them being buried there though) Chirnside or Ednom which is where they lived together for many years. I am determined and hopefully we will find their final resting place. This will mean a great deal to me. Again Thank you for your time. 

[tidybooks]

Hi Yule,

Think I have found MI for James Yule the son, headstone in Lennel Kirkyard, outside Coldstream.(It is also resting place of Sir Alec Douglas-Hume, ex-Prime Minister)

http://www.rootschat.com/links/0xq7/

You may look at the Coldstream and District Hstorical Society, they actually have images of the Kirkyard, but it maybe able to assist about what Humebank was.

Tom

http://www.coldstreamhistorysociety.co.uk/index.php/home

[flst]

Hi, yes I saw that M.I. as well but didn't mention it in my post as Yule said he'd found it & spruced up the headstone.
Still cannot find the correct 1861 census entry for Alison maybe it's mistranscribed
flst

[Ruskie]

I am trying to find the death and buriel place of Robert Yule born Chirnside Berwick 1771c,  who died between 1851 and 1861. He married Alison Brown born Eccles Berwick 1876c.

I'm the first to admit that I am not very good as sums ... but, is this right or am I missing something?:
Robert Yule born circa 1771
Robert Yule died between 1851 and 1861
Robert Yule married Alison Brown
Alison Brown born circa 1876?