The Scots have always had a wanderlust that since the Middle Ages has led them to seek adventure or flee hardship through internal migration, cross-border movement and relocation overseas. The exodus increased significantly after the parliamentary union in 1707, and in the 19th century it exploded into a sustained surge of emigration that carried Scotland almost to the top of a European league table of people-exporting countries. The two million emigrants who left in the 1800s were followed by a similar number in the 20th century, as Scots flocked to all corners of the world, notably the British Empire and the United States.

In this lecture, Marjory Harper considers internal and external patterns and practices of mobility in the two centuries after 1750, analyzing the motives of the emigrants, the mechanisms through which they implemented their relocation, their practical experiences of both outward movement and return, and the extent to which the transfer of ethnic identities generated a recognizable Scottish diaspora. The lecture also scrutinizes the attitudes of donor and host communities, particularly in North America and the Antipodes, but also with reference to UK cross-border movement to England. These issues are explored through a blend of written and oral testimony.

Chris Fleet will indicate the maps and features on the National Library of Scotland (NLS) maps website that are most useful for family history research purposes. The presentation will cover the most important maps, a summary of the main types of Ordnance Survey maps, and relevant copyright legislation relating to maps. The primary focus will be on how to find these maps on the NLS maps website using the most related viewers, including the georeferenced map viewers. Chris will also discuss the use of historical gazetteers for finding places that no longer exist and of the Boundaries viewer for finding historic parish boundaries. Some recent new functions and guides will be covered, as well as map scanning plans and future website additions.

DNA testing has exploded onto the genealogy scene in recent years and is now one of the most important tools available to advance family tree research. In order to successfully use DNA testing for genealogy, however, it's essential to combine it with traditional research techniques. In this presentation, Michelle Leonard will concentrate on several in-depth Scottish case studies that demonstrate what can be achieved when you combine long-established research methodologies with DNA test results analysis. These case studies will cover the verification of family tree lines, the breaking down of brick walls and the solving of hitherto unfathomable mysteries. Michelle will explain the pathways to success and provide lots of her top tips along the way!

Robin Baird Lewis’ Auntie Ethelwyn was the last descendant of Alexander Carlyle, an emigrant who was brother to the Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher, Thomas Carlyle. Her aunt somewhat casually mentioned "family documents" she still had "somewhere" and the obvious step for any young ambitious history scholar was to pounce. The documents were letters exchanged among 19th-century family members that covered the very human drama of Ethelwyn's great-great-grandfather's life in Ecclefechan, Annan, Dumfries, and eventually his emigration from Liverpool to Upper Canada via New York. Robin set out to discover more about Alexander, the 18th- and 19th-century Scottish agricultural situation and his emigration to Upper Canada in the early 1840s—which became her Master’s thesis. That the letters were treasured and kept safe on both sides of the Atlantic offers us rare first-hand evidence of “what they were thinking” before emigrating.

Meet fellow registrants and discuss your “Aha!” moments from the presentations. Share your ideas for future research. Breakout hosts will be on hand to encourage conversation.

An interactive session, in which representatives of the Scottish regions will be available for consultation. Registrants are invited to wander among breakout rooms, each with an archivist, genealogist and/or family historian from one of the six Scottish regions. We have been tracking registrants' interests in various counties of Scotland (which you indicated when you registered) and we have invited people “on the ground” who can suggest local records to help with your research.

Identify your region:

Tracing your emigrant Scottish ancestors back across the pond can often be challenging. Depending on when and where they settled in North America, records in the new country may provide few details of an ancestor’s place of origin. Kirsty Wilkinson’s talk will highlight some sources found in Scotland that can help you make that connection. Even after they left Scotland, your ancestors may be mentioned in a variety of Scottish records, some of which may indicate where they settled. As well as discussing which sources may be most useful, Kirsty will outline search strategies for uncovering your ancestral homelands in Scotland and extending your family lines.

The first census in Scotland, the Senchus Fer n-Alban, documented the descendants of Irish Gaels in the west of Scotland, a people known to the Romans as the ‘Scotti’ from which ‘Scotland’ derives its name. The stories of both Scotland and Ireland have remained intertwined ever since. Whilst the 17th century Plantations of Ulster led to the settlement of thousands of Scots in the north of Ireland, the incorporation of Ireland into the UK in 1801, and the subsequent Great Famine of the 1840s, led to an equally vast migration of Irish folk into Scotland in the 19th century and beyond.

In this session, Chris Paton will explore the Scottish records that not only can assist in documenting what became of the settlers who arrived over the last two centuries, but in many cases can also identify their original point of origin in Ireland. He will cover the vital records as created by the state and the various Scottish churches, such as confirmation (probate) records and the administration of poor relief, as well as the records of religious and political conflicts, explaining how they can help to shed light on ancestral stories.  

Stay with us as we wrap up and thank our partners, our speakers, our volunteers and our participants.