Cleish is a parish in Kinross-shire. It is bounded on the north by Fossoway and Kinross parishes, on the east by the parishes of Portmoak and Ballingry, on the south by the parishes of Beath and Dunfermline, and on the west by the parish of Saline. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).
Blairadam, Cleish, Kirkton, Kelty, Maryburgh
Barns, Nivingston
PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
The church of Cleish was dedicated to St Cuthbert. In 1685 the parish of Cleish was disjoined from the county of Perth and annexed to Kinross-shire.
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 |
| 1700-1854 | Cleish | 460 | OPR |
| 1855-1956 | Cleish | 460 | RD |
| 1957-1971 | Kinross and Cleish | 462 | RD |
| 1972-2003 | Kinross | 452 | RD |
| 2004-2008 | Kinross | 452 | RD |
| 2009 | Perth and Kinross, Kinross | 452 | RD |
| 2026 | Perth and Kinross Council; Kinross 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
Davidson, Hepburn, Ireland, Millar, Norman, Penman, Pollock, Robertson, Steedman, Taylor
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 Alexander Dalling.
"The number of inhabitants amounted, in January 1791, to 653, of whom 303 were males, and 350 females. In this are included 25 persons living in Dunfermline parish, but annexed to Cleish quoad sacra. There are 3 villages in the parish, all situated upon the great road from Queensferry to Perth, viz. Kelty, containing 113 persons; Maryburgh, 89; and Gairneybridge, 58. The rest of the people, 393 in number, live in the country. Nearly the half of the present inhabitants of the parish were born in it; 2 or 3 are natives of England, and 5 of Ireland.
The farmers and their families amount to about 170. The labourers, with their families, are about 220. There are 2 slaters, 6 shoemakers, 3 smiths, 1 bleacher, 5 masons, 8 wrights, 1 turner, 1 dyer, 12 weavers, 5 tailors, 1 miner, 1 gardener, 1 tollman, 2 millers, 1 innkeeper, who has no other employment. These, with their families, are about 220. There are about 60 servants in the parish, male and female. The men are employed almost entirely in agriculture."
(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 3, p. 549
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 9, Section II, p. 32
See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.
