Thank you for registering for the online course, Researching Scottish Ancestors!
Scots have been migrating to and settling in America and Canada for centuries. Today, there are an estimated 25 million Americans of Scottish descent. Tracing your Scottish heritage is rewarding, but not without its challenges. This five-session online seminar will provide you with key historical context, strategies, and resources setting you on the right path to trace your ancestry back several generations in Scotland.
This course includes five 90-minute classes and exclusive access to handouts. Original broadcasts April 2022.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Class 1: Origins and Journeys: Migrations to the U.S. and Canada
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Many Americans and Canadians have Scottish ancestry. Determining exactly where in Scotland your ancestors came from, however, can be the hardest part of researching them. By understanding the history of Scotland and the many waves of emigration, you can start to narrow down possible origins. This first class reviews the many waves of Scottish immigration and the push-pull factors that led them to making their way to America.
Class 2: Civil and Parish Records in Scotland
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Researching civil registrations and church records of births/baptisms, marriages, and deaths is often the first thing that family historians do when they learn they have ancestry in Scotland. In this session Rhonda R. McClure reviews what information is provided in each record type and how to locate and access these resources.
Class 3: Using the Scottish Census & Census Substitutes
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Scottish census and census substitutes can provide important details about the immediate family of your ancestors. This class reviews what censuses exist, what information they provide, and where to access both transcriptions and digitized images.
Class 4: Other Scottish Records
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Beyond vital, church, and census records there are several other resources that are useful to family historians—many of which are underutilized. This class covers wills and testaments, land records, court records, military records, and occupational records.
Class 5: Strategies and Case Studies
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Using various research strategies, you can combine what you’ve learned in previous classes to analyze your Scottish ancestors. The second half of the class introduces Scottish tartan and Scottish heraldry research, plus using DNA to find ancestors and cousins.
COURSE HANDOUTS
RECORDED PRESENTATIONS
Class 1: Origins and Journeys: Migrations to the U.S. and Canada
Live Broadcast: March 30, 2022
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Running Time: 1:42:51
Class 2: Civil and Parish Records in Scotland
Live Broadcast: April 6, 2022
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Running Time: 1:37:08
Class 3: Using the Scottish Census & Census Substitutes
Live Broadcast: April 13, 2022
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Running Time: 1:25:56
Class 4: Other Scottish Records
Live Broadcast: April 20, 2022
Presented by: Rhonda R. McClure
Running Time: 1:33:37
Class 5: Strategies and Case Studies
Live Broadcast: April 27, 2022
Presented by: David Allen Lambert
Running Time: 1:46:35
INSTRUCTOR BIOS
David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist has been on the staff of American Ancestors since 1993 and is an internationally recognized speaker on the topics of genealogy and history. Lambert has published many articles in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, the New Hampshire Genealogical Record, Rhode Island Roots, Mayflower Descendant, and American Ancestors magazine. He has authored and or co-authored in the published genealogies presented to David McCullough, Ken Burns, Angela Lansbury, Michael and Kitty Dukakis, Nathaniel Philbrick, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. He has also published eleven books including A Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries (American Ancestors, 2018), and Vital Records of Stoughton, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1850 (Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants, 2008). David received his B.A. in History from Northeastern University. David is an elected Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society in Boston, Mass., and a life member of the New Hampshire Society of the Cincinnati and the General Society of the War of 1812. David also serves as the tribal genealogist for the Massachusett Tribe at Punkapoag in Massachusetts. His areas of expertise include New England and Atlantic Canadian records of the 17th through 21st century; American and international military records; DNA research; and Native American and African American genealogical research in New England.
Rhonda R. McClure, Senior Genealogist is a nationally recognized professional genealogist and lecturer. Before joining American Ancestors in 2006, she ran her own genealogical business for 18 years. She was a contributing editor for Heritage Quest Magazine, Biography magazine, and was a contributor to The History Channel Magazine and American History Magazine. In addition to numerous articles, she is the author of twelve books including the award-winning The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Online Genealogy, Finding your Famous and Infamous Ancestors and Digitizing Your Family History. She is the editor of the newly released 6th edition of the Genealogist’s Handbook for New England Research. Her areas of expertise include, immigration and naturalization, late 19th- and early 20th-century urban research, missionaries, State Department Federal records, New England, Mid-West, Southern, German, Italian, Scottish, Irish, French Canadian, and New Brunswick research as well as Internet research, genealogical software and online trees.