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Yetholm
The Parish of Yetholm is in south east of Roxburghshire on the border with England. The Parish of Morebattle lies to the west and on the north is the Parish of Linton. The English County of Northumberland is on the eastern boundaty.
The twin villages of Kirk Yetholm and Town Yetholm straddle the River Bowmont. The St Cuthbert's Way from Melrose to Lindisfarne passess through the Parish and te Pennine Way ends in Kirk Yetholm. Kirk Yetholm also has a long association with Gipsie famiilies.
Roxburgh Memorial Inscriptions Vol 3 Yetholm, second edition 1997 by Elspeth Ewan - includes:
Hearth Tax
Militia List
War Memorial Transcriptions
List of Ministers
A transcript of signatures from the Yetholm Militia Club 1825
The Kirk Yetholm Gypsies by A. V. Tokely 2002.
See our sales list for full details and cost of postage.
Volumes available for consultation within our Archive
Bygone Yetholm by Keith Albesson and others - Yetholm History Society.
Water Mills on the Bowmont - Yetholm History Society 2003.
The Churches and Graveyards of Roxburghshire by Dr. G.A.C. Binnie 2001.
Rutherford's Southern Counties Register and Directory 1867.
County Directory of Scotland 1912 - Borders Towns and Villages.
CD-ROM Pigot's 1837 Directory of Berwickshire and Roxburghshire.
CD-ROM Land Ownership Commission Report 1872 -1873.
Magazine Articles
Please note that the heading Author includes persons who have compiled or transcribed records; and that the topics indexed, and the synopses are subjective opinions. See the Sales List to buy copies of the magazines containing articles in which you're interested.
Title
Synopsis
Size Description
Issue No
Author
Rev. John Baird, 1799-1861 - Friend of the Gypsies
John Baird was Minister at Kirk Yetholm. He was responsible for the new bridge , rebuilding the Kirk and School. He also educated the Gypsies and brought them into the community. was a founder member of the Berwickshire Naturalists Club.
4 pages or more
26
Donald Whyte
Yetholm, Past and Present
Review of a guide book published by Yetholm History Society.
less than 1 page
96
Ronald Morrison
Society Library
Recent additions to the Society Library.
less than 1 page
98
A Tale of Two Sisters
A Wanless family’s emigration from Yetholm to Canada.
3 pages or more
49
Gordon Roy Fairbairn
The Gladstones: A study
This is a brief outline of the Gladstone family here in the Borders and as far away as Edinburgh, and Norwich.
3 pages or more
35
G.M.S. Lauder-Frost
Andrew Thompson (Convict, Emancipist and Philanthropist)
Some notes on the life of Yetholm born Andrew Thompson transported to Australia for petty theft but who went on to become a successful entrepreneur, philanthropist and one of the most influential men in the Colony. How a town square created by him and now the oldest surviving in Australia is under threat and of attempts to try to preserve this.
2 pages or more
81
Ronald Morrison
Thompson Square Windsor N.S.W. - a memorial to two Scotsman
A report on the campaign to save an historic town square named after James Thompson, born Yetholm, convict, emancipist and philanthropist.
2 pages or more
89
Nina Butler
Reminiscences of Childhood by a Matron of 78
Narrative written by the author's great grandfather's sister about their emigration from Scotland to New York in 1829. Continued in issue 42.
5 pages or more
41
Jim Wilson
Jerdan Family History
The family history of the Jerdans, who they married, and where they lived in the Borders.
2 pages or more
34
Fred Kennington
The Flowers of the Forest
Borders who fell at Flodden
A list of nobility who fell in the battle The rank and file fell with no records.
2 pages or more
26
Andrew Cockburn
The Kirk Yetholm Gypsies
If you are connected to Yetholm, this is a must for you, it covers the gypsies from Persia right through to being settled in Kirk Yetholm. It is in two parts: issue 31 and 32.
4 pages or more
31
A. V. Tokley
The Bennets of Grubet
An old Roxburghshire family associated with Kirk Yetholm and the Gypsies and their descendants.
3 pages or more
29
Donald Whyte
Map of Yetholm from UK Great Britain, Ordnance Survey one-inch to the mile (1:63,360), 'Hills' edition, 1885-1903 by kind permission of the National Library of Scotland. Use the control at the top left of the map to zoom in or out and drag the map left, right, up, or down as you wish.
Map of Yetholm from UK Ordnance Survey Historical Maps from 1919-1947 by kind permission of the National Library of Scotland. Use the control at the top left of the map to zoom in or out and drag the map left, right, up, or down as you wish.
20 Most Common Surnames
The 20 most common surnames on gravestones recorded by us in the Yetholm monumental inscriptions volume are (number of gravestones in brackets): YOUNG (39), SCOTT (22), TURNBULL (22), HALL (19), DAVIDSON (18), OLIVER (16), BROWN (16), CAIRNS (16), STENHOUSE (16), KERR (14), DOUGLAS (13), WILSON (13), ROBSON (13), PRINGLE (13), HOGG (12), ELLIOT (12), TAIT (11), DODDS (11), THOMSON (9), BELL (9).
Other Sources
The Scottish Gypsies' Advocate by John Baird 1839.
Memoir of the Rev John Baird, minister of Yetholm by William Baird - London 1862.
The Yetholm History of the Gypsies by Joseph Lucas Kelso 1882.
The Gypsies of Yetholm by William Brockie Kelso 1884.
The Statistical Accounts of Scotland compiled initially between 1791 and 1799, with a subsequent edition between 1834 and 1845 are a valuable record of the geography, history, economy, people and customs recorded by local ministers. You'll need to search for the parish name.
Two Centuries of Borders Church Life by J Tait Kelso 1891.
