Lessudden, St Bosel's
St Boswells is a parish on the north border of Roxburghshire. It is bounded on the north by Berwickshire, and on other sides by the parishes of Maxton, Ancrum, Bowden, and Melrose. (1867: The Imperial Gazetteer of Scotland, by John Marius Wilson).
Newton or Newton, St Boswells or Lessudden
Camieston
The parish of Mertoun had a part detached or nearly detached situated east of Dryburgh Abbey. This part was transferred to the parish of St Boswells and to the county of Roxburgh. See affected properties and landholders. (1892: Boundary of counties and parishes in Scotland as settled by the Boundary Commissioners under the Local Government Act, 1889, by Hay Shennan)
PRE-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
POST-REFORMATION GOVERNANCE:
The church of Lessudden, dedicated to St Mary, belonged to the Abbey of Dryburgh. In 1652 the parish church was removed from Lessudden to St Bosel's village, where it took the place of an earlier chapel of that saint. Near this village are St Boswell's Well and St Cuthbert's Well. St Boswell's Fair is held on the Green in summer.
Includes ministers, licentiates, assistants, readers, and clerks.
(1928: Fasti Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ, by Hew Scott, D. D.)
Parish registers turned over to the Registrar-General, as a result of the Registration of Births, Deaths, and Marriages (Scotland) Act of 1854. The letters B. D. and M. indicate Births (or Baptisms), Deaths (or Burials), and Marriages (or Proclamations of Banns) respectively. Numbers indicate separate volumes or books. Note: These records are by no means complete or without damage; consult the Detailed List of the Old Parochial Registers of Scotland (1872) to learn more about the condition of the records.
| OPR and RD Numbers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date Range | Name | Number | Type |
| 1692-1854 | St Boswells | 804 | OPR |
| 1855-1967 | St Boswells | 804 | RD |
| 2009 | Scottish Borders, Melrose | 820 | RD |
| 2026 | Scottish Borders Council; St Boswells Parish Community Council | ||
(2009: Parishes and Registration Districts of Scotland - Old and New, National Records of Scotland)
Local community councils (2026) are provided as a potential source of additional information for settlements within the original boundaries of the parish. (Source)
Statistics from informal and official censuses
Anderson, Brown, Henderson, Kerr, Lawrie, Murray, Scott, Thomson, Williamson, Wilson
Note: Names appearing in research materials, other than censuses. Simple names (First name, surname only) have been omitted unless they appear associated with large properties. All women's names, and men's names with occupations, military ranks, or peerage titles are included.
By the Reverend Mr John Scade.
"The whole number of souls at present, inclusive of children, amounts to about 500. Of these, about 300 reside in the village of Lessudden, and about 200 in the other parts of the parish. The people, in general, are of a sober and frugal turn both of mind and manners. In Lessudden there may be from 85 to 90 children, and elsewhere in the parish from 50 to 55."
(This section contains excerpts, at times restructured or paraphrased, from an article appearing in Statistical Account of Scotland, Sir John Sinclair, 1791-1799)
Primary Sources:
Statistical Account of Scotland (1791-1799), Volume 10, p. 204
New Statistical Account of Scotland (1834-1845), Volume 3, Section I, p. 104
See Parish Page Sources for all source information and links.
