Kinghorn Wester, Little Kinghorn, Western Kinghorn, Bartland, Bertiland, Bryntiland
Burntisland is a parish on the south coast of Fife. It lies opposite Granton and is bounded on the south by the Firth of Forth, and on other sides by the parishes of Kinghorn and Aberdour. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).
Binnend, Burntisland, Grange, Kirkton
Colinswell, Grange
PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
In old times this parish is often styled Kinghorn Wester or Little Kinghorn. It was at an early time disjoined from Kinghorn. The parish church was dedicated to St Serf. It belonged to the Abbey of Dunfermline. The ruins of the old church still stand at the Kirktoun. On 12 May 1601, when this church was still new, the General Assembly met in it. In that year there was a bad outbreak of plague in Edinburgh, and in various other populous places. Therefore the Assembly was called to meet at Burntisland, which had a clean bill of health. Fairs of St Serf, St Peter, and St Clement were held at Burntisland. (1928: Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ, by Hew Scott, D. D.)
Includes ministers, licentiates, assistants, readers, and clerks.
(1928: Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ, by Hew Scott, D. D.)
Parish registers turned over to the Registrar-General, as a result of the Registration of Births, Deaths, and Marriages (Scotland) Act of 1854. The letters B. D. and M. indicate Births (or Baptisms), Deaths (or Burials), and Marriages (or Proclamations of Banns) respectively. Numbers indicate separate volumes or books. Note: These records are by no means complete or without damage; consult the Detailed List of the Old Parochial Registers of Scotland (1872) to learn more about the condition of the records.
| OPR and RD Numbers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date Range | Name | Number | Type |
| 1672-1854 | Burntisland | 411 | OPR |
| 1855-1855 | Burntisland Burgh | 411-1 | RD |
| 1855-1855 | Burntisland Landward | 411-2 | RD |
| 1856-1971 | Burntisland | 411 | RD |
| 1972-1991 | Burntisland | 423 | RD |
| 2009 | Fife, Kirkcaldy | 421 | RD |
| 2026 | Fife Council; Burntisland Community Council | ||
(2009: Parishes and Registration Districts of Scotland - Old and New, National Records of Scotland)
Local community councils (2026) are provided as a potential source of additional information for settlements within the original boundaries of the parish. (Source)
Statistics from informal and official censuses
Brown, Duncan, Henderson, Reid, Robertson, Smith, Thomson, Walker, Wilson, Young
Note: Names appearing in research materials, other than censuses. Simple names (First name, surname only) have been omitted unless they appear associated with large properties. All women's names, and men's names with occupations, military ranks, or peerage titles are included.
By the Reverend Mr James Wemyss.
"The number of souls, in the parish, may be about 1100. The inhabitants of the borough are often shifting."
(This section contains excerpts, at times restructured or paraphrased, from an article appearing in Statistical Account of Scotland, Sir John Sinclair, 1791-1799)
Primary Sources:
Statistical Account of Scotland (1791-1799), Volume 2, p. 423
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 9, Section I, p. 404
See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.
