Find Ancestors

Does anyone know why there seems to be a big bulk of records missing for haddington on Scotlands People?

I can see various records on freereg, but can't find them in any form on Scotlands people and noticed it seems to be all the ones for Haddington.

I have a load of ancestors in Haddingtonshire and have never found any problem. Asking a stupid question maybe but have you also checked under East Lothian?

Who are you looking for? I have looked up several births/baptisms for Haddington from familysearch on scotlands people and they are all there.

there are various records I have dates for from freereg for haddington which I have been unable to find the actual record for on scotlands people

Including some details given to me by Haddington Record office.

One is a marriage15 October 1826 between John Paterson and Robina Shiells

I also can't find the death of Peter Shiells on the 25 December 1808

I have tried various wildcard searches and no luck.

there are quite a few others, I will need to revert to my file.

I am wondering if it might be a certain date period that is an issue on the OPR's. I dont think there was any problem with the statutory registers.

The record dated 15th October 1826 is for banns, not for a marriage.
The second banns were called on 26th October.
The marriage isn't on Familysearch either; though, I admit it's a bit odd; on the face of it they did get married as Familysearch has various baptisms for their children.

(I wonder if the fact that Robina was 8 1/2 months pregnant at the time of the second banns being called is relevant)

Name: Elizabeth Paterson
Gender: Female
Christening Date: 28 Dec 1827
Christening Place: , HADDINGTON, EAST LOTHIAN, SCOTLAND
Birth Date: 18 Nov 1826 <<<<<<<<<<
Father's Name: John Paterson
Mother's Name: Robina Shiells



(BTW who are your John Paterson's parents? My Pattersons are also from Haddington/Aberlady/Gladsmuir)

Click on the link to "Extant OPR's" on this page (in the section headed "The marriage may not have been recorded at all"):
http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/content/faqs/questions/index.aspx?200

Although the marriage should show up, according to that, there's no OPR for Haddington for the period covering the death.

But registration wasn't compulsory at that time, so maybe the marriage just wasn't registered.

[EDIT: though that doesn't make sense, as you've found the details elsewhere!]

I can't see the actual marriage anywhere.
The date that CelticShiv quotes for the marriage is in fact the first reading of banns.

ahh so the marriage reference on freereg is the banns and not actual marriage? So that is why it isn't on Scotlands people? Maybe it was objected? Any way to find out?

The death of Peter Shiells was def registered. I originally got a copy from Haddington Archives, but with my move to Canada have misplaced it, so was trying to refind it on there with no luck, or maybe it was a different record they got the information from and not the OPR, what other records could it of been? I wish I could find the photocopy they sent me.

I have noticed other records for Haddington couldnt be found on there though which I am finding on freereg, I can't remember exactly who now, as I have a huge section of my tree which is for Haddington. Will have to take note of any from here on.

Beverly - my Patersons/Pattersons are originally from Canongate, Midlothian. Johns parents were Hugh Paterson and Jean/Jane Reid, but I know quite a bit section of the patersons related to me were in Haddington, so you never know. What are the names you have?

this is the second banns

County East Lothian
Place Haddington
Church Haddington Parish Church
RegisterNumber 629
MarriageDate 22 Oct 1826
GroomForename John
GroomSurname PATTERSON
GroomAge
GroomParish Haddington
GroomCondition
GroomOccupation
GroomAbode
BrideForename Robina
BrideSurname SHIELLS
BrideAge
BrideParish Haddington
BrideCondition
BrideOccupation
BrideAbode
GroomFatherForename
GroomFatherSurname
GroomFatherOccupation
BrideFatherForename
BrideFatherSurname
BrideFatherOccupation
WitnessOneForename Mark
WitnessOneSurname LUCAS
WitnessTwoForename David
WitnessTwoSurname CLEGHORN
Notes 2nd Banns
FileNumber 35451

and this is the first

County East Lothian
Place Haddington
Church Haddington Parish Church
RegisterNumber 629
MarriageDate 15 Oct 1826
GroomForename John
GroomSurname PATTERSON
GroomAge
GroomParish Haddington
GroomCondition
GroomOccupation
GroomAbode
BrideForename Robina
BrideSurname SHIELLS
BrideAge
BrideParish Haddington
BrideCondition
BrideOccupation
BrideAbode
GroomFatherForename
GroomFatherSurname
GroomFatherOccupation
BrideFatherForename
BrideFatherSurname
BrideFatherOccupation
WitnessOneForename Mark
WitnessOneSurname LUCAS
WitnessTwoForename David
WitnessTwoSurname CLEGHORN
Notes 1st Banns
FileNumber 35451

both taken from Freereg, so you would think an actual marriage occurred right?

The obvious alternative source for death records is kirkyard memorial inscriptions.

Here's an Aberdeen example from http://www.anesfhs.org.uk/databank/miindex/miindex.php

booklet: Kirkyard of Turriff (AA189)
burial ground: Turriff
stone: 164
Alexander Anderson 20 Oct 1874
Elizabeth Scott 31 Jul 1875
Margaret Watson 22 Nov 1890
Alexander Anderson 19 Jun 1908

The full transcription reads:
1876
Erected
by
Alexander Anderson
Hill of Ardmiddle in memory
of his son Alexander
who died 20th Oct'r 1874
aged 21 years
also his mother
Elizabeth Scott who died
31st July 1876 aged 80 years
also his wife
Margaret Watson who died
22nd Nov 1890 aged 71 years
The above Alexander Anderson
died 19th June 1908 aged 83 years

I dont think it was a memorial transcription as it gave his cause of death. Which is what made me assume OPR

I don't think that parish burial records at that time gave a cause of death.

It's impossible to say if John and Robina actually got married; I'm still wondering if they might have postponed the marriage because she was so pregnant.

Oddly enough I can't see a baptism for Robina either. Have you found a death record for Robina Paterson? A search on ScotlandsPeople gives only one result for Robina Patterson in East Lothian betwen 1855 and 1875. You would get a lot of useful info from this certificate.


(My Patterson lot were nearly all Robert William or John, in the Aberlady area. Married into Herbertsons, Andersons and Congaltons)

There is public tree on Ancestry which has lots of sources for this family but it only has freereg for the marriage. It also says that John was a widower when he married and that he married again after Robina died in 1832. It also gives her baptism as being under "Binnie Sheil" on 20th Sept 1801, birth 6th Sept and notes that she was also know as Elizabeth. That baptism comes up on scotlandspeople

Hmm so whose is the burial between 1855 and 1875? :-S

That Robina died in 1869 and was 8 years old (found by playing around with YOD and ages).

I can't find any death record for Robina

I believe she is the Binnie Shiels born 6 August 1801s to Peter Shiells (who I mentioned above and who died in 1808 in haddington from Palsy and whose death I cant find on scotlands people - Cause of death is given on some parish OPR's but not all) and Elizabeth Lemon. I actually descend down from another daughter of Peter Shiells and Elizabeth Lemon also - Joan Shiells. It looks like Joan Shiells son and Robina Shiells daughter married (1st cousins) not unusual in those days.

The person on ancestry I am in contact with, along with several othe descendants of this branch and we are workign togething to piece as much info as we can.

Robina died between 1831 and and 1833, she had a daughter in 1831, so maybe died in childbirth, as John remarries to Mary Perkins in 1833.

He actually marries 5 times in his life. I have his will and various other records, so am just trying to piece together/locate the missing records.

Thanks, Potty.

thanks everyone for all your insight into this. :-)