Place:Kiltearn, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland

source: Family History Library Catalog

the following text is based on the Wikipedia article on Kiltearn

Kiltearn (Gaelic: Cill Tighearna) is a parish in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland. The principal settlement is the village of Evanton, and the parish extends almost to Dingwall and about halfway to Alness along the shore of the Cromarty Firth. The old Kiltearn church and burial ground are by the shore; the current church is on the main street in Evanton.

The 16th century churchman Donald Munro was buried in Kiltearn, "a little to the east of the burial ground of the family of Foulis", although the grave is not marked.

the following text is based on the Wikipedia article on Evanton

The ancient parish of Kiltearn is within the medieval lands known as Ferindonald (Fearann Dhòmhnaill) in the heart of the old "Earldom" of Ross. Traditionally, Ferindonald is supposed to be derived from a grant of King Máel Coluim III to Donald Munro of Foulis (Domhnall mac an Rothaich), the legendary progenitor of Clan Munro. However, there is no evidence for the existence of this family until the fourteenth century.

end of Wikipedia contribution

Prior to 1975 the parish was located in the old county of Ross and Cromarty, which was replaced in that year by the Highland Region and in 1996 by the unitary authority named the Highland Council Area.

The parish has an area of 117 sq. km (45.1 sq. miles) with a coastline of about 5 miles on the Cromarty Firth. Part of its northeastern boundary is Loch Glass. As well as the village of Evanton, the parish includes the settlements of Ardullie, Redburn and Swordale, all of which are redirected here.

Notes for the Highland Council Area and the Western Isles Council Area

The local archives are held by The Highland Archive Service which is based in Inverness with branches in Stornoway, Fort William and Caithness. It is "responsible for locating, preserving and making accessible archives relating to all aspects of the history of the geographical area of the Highlands."

Family history societies and historical associations covering the Highland Council Area and the Western Isles Council Area are:

• The Highland Family History Society based in Inverness.
• Lochaber and North Argyll Family History Group based in Fort William.

These associations publish their aims on their websites as well as a list of publications. In many cases the publications are also available through the Scottish Genealogy Society (see below).

• The FreeCen Project--Scotland has a searchable (not browsable) transcription for each of the counties in the area. Nairnshire and Caithness have the 1841, 1851, 1861 and 1871 complete. Inverness-shire and Ross and Cromarty have 1841 complete with some work on 1851 and Sutherland has not completed 1841.

Transcriptions of Gravestone Inscriptions

• The Scottish Genealogy Society provides a series of monumental inscriptions either in print in booklet form or on CD for each of the counties in the area (Caithness, Inverness-shire, Nairnshire, Ross and Cromarty, and Sutherland). Some of the booklets cover only one graveyard, others cover a group. Prices vary. In many cases the coverage is of pre-1855 stones only--this is because gravestone inscriptions are often used by family historians as death registration equivalents in the era of the Old Parish Registers (when deaths were not universally recorded).
• The Fearn Peninsula Graveyards Project has a paid website which allows browsing in ten graveyards in Easter Ross. They charge £2.50 for 24 hours of usage with unlimited searches.
• An index of monumental inscriptions from Caithness compiled by D J Ryrie might prove to be a useful start for searching gravestones in that county. GENUKI states "All (?) of the monumental inscriptions (MIs) in Caithness have been collected and are in print currently from Books From Scotland amongst other places." The Scottish Genealogy Society also has a list of their holdings.
• Sutherland cemeteries are covered in Pre-1855 tombstone inscriptions in Sutherland burial grounds by A S Cowper & I Ross, published at Edinburgh in 1989 by the Scottish Genealogy Society.
• There are no specific notes for gravestone transcriptions for either Inverness-shire or Nairnshire in GENUKI. However, the Scottish Genealogy Society lists booklets for both counties.

Sources for Emigration Records

• Hebrides People have a database containing lists of people who emigrated to North America from a number of parishes in the Western Isles.