The Society's workshop programme is designed to help both members and non-members explore their Scottish ancestry in greater depth.
To reserve a spot in any of the Society's classes, please book online. Should you have any inquiries about the courses, feel free to email scotsgenpublicity@scotsgenealogy.com or visit us at the Family History Centre at 15 Victoria Terrace, Edinburgh EH1 2JL.
If you book a class and later find you are unable to attend, we kindly request that you inform us as soon as possible, as there is often a waiting list of individuals eager to participate.
The full roster of our classes is viewable on the
Calendar and available to book in our online
Shop.
A Beginners Course in Researching Your Scottish Family History
This six-week Zoom course, tutored by Ken Nisbet, will look at the sources that are available both online and offline to help you start researching your family history. Importantly, we will also research other sources such as employment, military service, appearance in local newspapers, education, etc. Ken will also explain how to put the acquired information together to give an account of your relatives’ lives. The course is priced at £50; classes will all take place on Thursdays at 7pm, last for about two hours, and include time for a Q&A session. To book, please follow the link: https://scottish-genealogy-society.sumupstore.com/category/4-classes
Week 1: 24 September 2026 - What is family history and how to create one?
A detailed examination of Scottish Statutory Registration and the records created; looking at birth, marriage, and death records, 1855 to date; and how the rules about what constitutes a legal marriage have changed.
Week 2: 1 October 2026 - Censuses from 1801 to 1911 and what the 1921 census contains
Examples from 1841 to 1921 will be examined. We will also look at other lists such as valuation rolls, voters rolls, post office & trade directories which can help with research.
Week 3: 8 October 2026 -Church records and where to find them
Investigating the various kinds of records that exist – parish registers and kirk sessions, as well as examining how the Church of Scotland split and then reunited, and the effect it had on its records. We will also look at Roman Catholic Church records - what they are and where to find them.
Week 4: 15 October 2026 - Education and employment records
What records we can find on our ancestors’ schooling and further education; if they went to university; what employment records can be found online/offline; government employment, trade union records, railway, shipping & nursing etc; also a look at how to research industrial accidents.
Week 5: 22 October 2026 - Military records from 17th to 20th Century
Looking at what records are available and what they can tell us about our relatives’ service history.
Week 6: 29 October 2026 - Introduction to the use of DNA in family history
Ken will show us how to understand the information and how to put it together to make a family history.