Chris Paton
Writer
Chris Paton is an expert on Scottish family history and writes the daily blog Scottish GENES. He is the author of Tracing Your Scottish Family History Through Church & State Records and Tracing Your Scottish Family History on the Internet.
Recent articles by Chris Paton
Scottish death records: Where to find them, and what they can tell you
Discover when Scottish civil death records began, how to find them online and how to use them in family history
Scottish ancestry: How to find Scottish criminal records
The Scottish court and criminal system is distinct from that of England and Wales. Nell Darby explains the best websites to find Scottish ancestors who fell foul of the law
Scottish marriage records: Where to find them, and what they can tell you
Discover how to trace Scottish civil marriage records from 1855 in family history on the ScotlandsPeople website and in person
Scottish birth records: Where to find them, and what they can tell you
Discover how to search Scottish civil birth records online using ScotlandsPeople, and use them in your family history research
How to research Scottish ancestry
Scottish ancestry expert Chris Paton picks out the key records for tracing your Scottish family history
The Highland Clearances: What were they, why did they happen and when did they happen?
What were the Highland Clearances, when did they happen and why did they happen? Chris Paton on the mass expulsion of Scottish crofters
Kirk session records: What are they and what can they tell family historians?
Chris Paton explains how you can use kirk session records to trace your Scottish ancestors
Scottish ancestry: How to find free Scottish records online
Discover your Scottish ancestry with the help of these free Scottish ancestry records online
Scottish census records online
Chris Paton shares his tips on how to get the most out of Scottish census records online and save money!
What are Scottish Poor Law records?
Was the Poor Law system in Scotland different to England? And how do you find the family history records? Chris Paton explains