Page last updated on: Wednesday, 21 July, 2021.
We have recently had access to a copy of the Girthon Kirk Session notes from 1821 to 1863. These are notes from meetings between the minister and elders. Most of the issues concern sex outside marriage, which clearly becomes recognisable when the female produces a child. There are many instances where the two parties do not get married and the birth certificate of the child doesn't mention the father's name. These notes are therefore vitally important for the genealogist who wants to find the father of an illegitimate child. There are over 380 pages of such session notes which we have summarised for perusal.
These notes have been summarised by decade and produced as .pdf files.
In 1834 these same Session notes contained a list of all the male heads of families in Girthon. These are listed below.