Aberlady is a parish on the north-west coast of the county of Haddington. It is bounded on the north by the Firth of Forth, which here forms Aberlady Bay, and by the parish of Dirleton, on the east by Dirleton and Haddington parishes, and on the south by Gladsmuir parish. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).
Aberlady, Luffness
Gosford, Luffness
PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
Formerly a prebend and mensal church of the Bishop of Dunkeld.
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 |
| 1632-1854 | Aberlady | 702 | OPR |
| 1855-1967 | Aberlady | 702 | RD |
| 2009 | East Lothian, North Berwick | 721 | RD |
| 2026 | East Lothian Council; Gullane Area 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
Anderson, Black, Brown, Dickson, Murray, Scott, Sinclair, Smith, Thomson, Turnbull
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 Dr Neil Roy.
"By an accurate enquiry very lately made, from house to house, the number of souls was found to be precisely 800, of which number 386 were in the village of Aberlady. The whole of the landed property, exclusive of some enclosures about the houses of Balncrieff and Gosford, and a few acres belonging to feuars in Aberlady, is possessed by eight farmers. The farms are large, which is unfriendly to population. The village of Gosford is entirely destroyed, and that of Balncrieff falling into decay."
(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 6, p. 546
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 2, Section II, p. 249
See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.
