Orwell is a parish in the north of Kinross-shire. It is bounded on the eastern part of the south by Loch Leven, and elsewhere by the parishes of Kinross, Fossoway, Dunning, Forgandenny, Forteviot, Arngask, Strathmiglo, and Portmoak. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).
Middleton, Milnathort, Orwell
Arlary, Hattonburn
PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
Orwell. The parish of Orwell was disjoined from Kinross in 1567. On 19 Jan 1732, the Court of Teinds removed the parish church from Orwell to Milnathort. The church of Milnathort was originally a Secession Church which joined the Church of Scotland in 1839. It was retained by the Free Church in 1843.
Includes ministers, licentiates, assistants, readers, and clerks.
Orwell (QO)
Milnathort (QO)
(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 |
| 1688-1854 | Orwell | 463 | OPR |
| 1855-1971 | Orwell | 463 | RD |
| 1972-2012 | Milnathort | 450 | RD |
| 2009 | Perth and Kinross, Kinross | 452 | RD |
| 2026 | Perth and Kinross Council; Milnathort and Orwell 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
Beveridge, Henderson, Miller, Reid, Robertson, Scott, Simpson, Taylor, Thomson, Watson
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 [No attribution].
"In 1794 there were in the parish 429 families; 741 males, 964 females, total number of souls 1705. There were 18 feuars, 10 masons, 20 wrights, 27 shoemakers, 13 tailors, 83 weavers in town, 35 weavers in the country, 1 butcher, 1 gardener, 1 currier, 2 brewers, and 259 servants.
The people are, in general, active and industrious: they are naturally generous and social, and very fond of news. Drunkenness in this parish is entirely unknown. They are very orderly and decent people; and crimes of any consequence are seldomer committed here than in many parishes in Scotland of equal population."
(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 20, p. 126
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 9, Section II, p. 52
See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.
