The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) ( gd, Oifis Choitcheann a' Chlàraidh na h-Alba) was a non-ministerial directorate of the Scottish Government that administered the registration of

birth Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the f ...

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

s and

adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

s in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

from 1854 to 2011. It was also responsible for the

statute A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...

s relating to the formalities of marriage and conduct of

civil marriage A civil marriage is a marriage performed, recorded, and recognized by a government official. Such a marriage may be performed by a religion, religious body and recognized by the state, or it may be entirely secular. History Every country maintai ...

in Scotland. It administered the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of Scotland's population every ten years. It also kept the

Scottish National Health Service NHS Scotland, sometimes styled NHSScotland, is the publicly funded healthcare system in Scotland and one of the four systems that make up the National Health Service in the United Kingdom. It operates 14 territorial NHS boards across Scotland, ...

Central Register The National Health Service Central Register (NHSCR) is a Scottish Government database accessible to public bodies approved by the Scottish Parliament. The register was established in the early 1950s to facilitate the transfer of patients between ...

. On 1 April 2011 it was merged with the

National Archives of Scotland The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...

to form

National Records of Scotland National Records of Scotland ( gd, Clàran Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government. It is responsible for Civil registry, civil registration, the census in Scotland, demography and statistics, family histor ...

. All the former department's functions continue as part of the new body.

History

Initially ministers of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

were responsible for keeping

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

records of

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

s and

s, but only for their own church members. Later the

Privy Council of Scotland The Privy Council of Scotland ( — 1 May 1708) was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of ...

, following the suggestion of the

General Assembly of the Church of Scotland The General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the sovereign and highest court of the Church of Scotland, and is thus the Church's governing body.''An Introduction to Practice and Procedure in the Church of Scotland'' by A. Gordon McGillivray ...

enacted that all parish ministers should keep a record of

burial Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s and marriages. This situation continued until 1854, when

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

passed an Act transferring responsibility to the State. The

Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act 1854 Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), t ...

created the General Register Office of Births, Deaths and Marriages, headed by the Registrar General with the appointment of registrars in every parish. It also provided that the Registrar General should produce an annual report to be forwarded to the

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

to be laid before Parliament, containing a general abstract of the numbers of births, deaths and marriages registered during the previous year. The first general abstract (relating to 1855) was submitted in 1856. The parochial and borough divisions in Scotland were adopted as the basis of registration, and the

session clerk A session (from the Latin word ''sessio'', which means "to sit", as in sitting to deliberate or talk about something; sometimes called ''consistory'' or ''church board'') is a body of elected elders governing each local church within presbyteria ...

s of the Church of Scotland were, in most cases, appointed as the first registrars under the Act. Where the parish or borough was too large for a single registrar, the sheriff was empowered to divide it into districts. Registers were to be produced in duplicate, and one was to be sent to the Office of the Scottish Registrar General in Edinburgh. Compulsory civil registration began in Scotland on 1 January 1855, and coverage seems to have been complete for marriages and deaths. Birth registration took rather longer to bed down, but by the time of his first annual detailed report, published in 1861, the first Registrar General for Scotland, William Pitt Dundas, claimed that: "there is good reason for believing that very few births indeed now escape registration."Higgs, Edward,
The development of the General Register Office (Scotland)
Retrieved 26 March 2016 In 1855 and 1860, two Acts, the

Registration (Scotland) Act, 1855 Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), t ...

(18 & 19 Vict., c.29) and the

Registration (Scotland, Amendment) Act, 1860 Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), t ...

(23 & 24 Vict., c.85), were passed which amended some of the sections of the 1854 Act. The original Act had placed considerable burdens on the sheriffs of the Scottish counties, who had already played a role in the taking of decennial censuses. The amending Acts reduced their responsibilities by appointing registration district examiners to inspect the registers. They also made revised provision for the transmission of the parochial registers up to the year 1820 to the General Register Office Scotland (GROS), and the registers for the years 1820–1855 to the custody of the local registrars. These registers were to be retained by the registrars for 30 years, after which they were to be sent to the GROS. On 1 April 2011 GROS was merged with the National Archives of Scotland, with which it already had close ties and shared management of the Scotland's People Centre in

Princes Street Princes Street ( gd, Sràid nam Prionnsan) is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1.2 km (three ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

, to form National Records of Scotland.

Superintendent of Statistics

From 1855 the role of accumulating and publishing statistics from data has fallen to one person. These people were: * James Stark from 1855 to 1870 *William Robertson from 1871 to 1878 * Robert James Blair Cunynghame from 1879 to 1901 *

James Craufurd Dunlop James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

from 1902 to 1929 *

Peter Laird McKinlay Dr Peter Laird McKinlay FRSE FSS (1901 – 8 December 1972) was a Scottish medical statistician. His report on the effects of milk on schoolchildren brought about the introduction of Free School Milk in British Schools from the Education Act 19 ...

from 1930 to 1960

Registrars General for Scotland

The Registrar General was also Deputy to the

Lord Clerk Register The office of Lord Clerk Register is the oldest surviving Great Officer of State in Scotland, with origins in the 13th century. It historically had important functions in relation to the maintenance and care of the public records of Scotland. Tod ...

. The Deputy Clerk Register had to be an

Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

of not less than ten years standing. William Pitt Dundas was the first holder of the combined post of Deputy Clerk Register and Registrar General from September 1854 until April 1880. His successor,

Roger Montgomerie Roger Montgomerie, , (22 October 1828 – 25 October 1880) was a British Conservative politician. Born 22 October 1828, 4th son of 9 children to William Eglinton Montgomerie and Susanna Fraser Anderson''Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald 20 October ...

, died six months after his appointment, and Mr Pitt Dundas resumed office for around a year, until the appointment of Sir

Stair Agnew Sir Stair Agnew (6 December 1831 – 12 July 1916) was a Scottish public official. He served as Registrar General for Scotland. Life He was born at Lochnaw Castle in the parish of Leswalt in Dumfries and Galloway, the fifth son of Sir And ...

KCB. The last person to hold the combined posts was Sir James Patten McDougall KCB, in office from May 1909 to March 1919. Originally, this was the supervision of birth, death and marriage registration. It was expanded to include the conduct of the 1861 Census and all subsequent ones (working closely with the Registrar General to ensure consistency) and other statistical functions. In 1920 the

Registrar General (Scotland) Act 1920 General Register Office or General Registry Office (GRO) is the name given to the civil registry in the United Kingdom, many other Commonwealth nations and Ireland. The GRO is the government agency responsible for the recording of vital record ...

was passed which provided for the appointment by the Secretary of State for Scotland a whole-time Registrar General, Dr

, (previously

Medical Superintendent of Statistics Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, and Health promotion ...

) was appointed. On the formation of National Records of Scotland, the positions of Registrar General and

Keeper of the Records of Scotland The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...

were initially kept separate, but on the retirement of Duncan Macniven in August 2011, George Mackenzie was appointed Registrar General in addition to his existing role as Keeper.

List of Registrars General for Scotland

* William Pitt Dundas, 12 September 1854 – 28 April 1880 * Roger Montgomerie, 19 April 1880 – 25 October 1880 * William Pitt Dundas, C.B., 17 November 1880 – 12 January 1881 * Sir Stair Agnew,

K.C.B. The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

, 13 January 1881 – 30 April 1909 * Sir James Patten McDougall,

, 1 May 1909 – 7 March 1919 *

Dr. Doctor is an academic title that originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. The word is originally an agentive noun of the Latin verb 'to teach'. It has been used as an academic title in Europe since the 13th century, w ...

James Craufurd Dunlop, 1 January 1921 – 2 September 1930 * Andrew Froude, I.S.O., 3 September 1930 – 14 February 1937 * James Gray Kyd,

C.B.E. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

, 1 September 1937 – 30 November 1948 * Edmund Albert Hogan,

, 1 December 1948 – 31 May 1959 *

Alexander Burt Taylor Alexander Burt Taylor, (6 June 1904 – 13 March 1972) was a Scottish civil servant and author who served as the Registrar General for Scotland. Life Alexander Burt Taylor was born 6 June 1904 at Earlston, Berwickshire, Scotland, the son of Rev ...

CBE D Litt, 1 June 1959 – 4 September 1966 *

James Allan Ford James Allan Ford CB MC (10 June 1920 – 30 March 2009) was a Scottish writer, soldier and senior civil servant. Born in Auchtermuchty, Fife, Ford was brought up in Edinburgh and educated at the Royal High School. In 1938 he entered the civil ...

CB MC, September 1966 - September 1969 * Archibald L Rennie, October 1969 - 11 June 1973 * William Baird, 12 June 1973 – 3 August 1978 * Victor Colvin Stewart, 4 August 1978 – 12 April 1982 * Dr Charles Milne Glennie CBE, 13 April 1982 – 31 October 1994 * James Meldrum, 1 November 1994 – 21 February 1999 * John Randall, 22 February 1999 – 1 August 2003 * Duncan Macniven, 4 August 2003 – 5 August 2011 * George MacKenzie, 8 August 2011 – 28 September 2012 * Tim Ellis, 4 February 2013 - April 2018 * Anne Slater (Interim), April 2018 - 16 December 2018 * Paul Lowe, 17 December 2018 – present

New Register House

New Register House New Register House is one of multiple buildings within the National Records of Scotland estate. It is located near St Andrew Square to the east end of Princes Street in the New Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It also houses the Court of the Lor ...

, which houses the registration side of the former GROS's business, is close to the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh. It was designed by Robert Matheson, the

Clerk of Works A clerk of works or clerk of the works (CoW) is employed by an architect or a client on a construction site. The role is primarily to represent the interests of the client in regard to ensuring that the quality of both materials and workmanship are ...

at the

Office of Her Majesty's Works in Scotland An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific dut ...

. Initially, the General Register Office had been located in General Register House. The building was erected on its present site near the Old Register House. The site was acquired in 1856 and the building was opened on 30 March 1861, though not completed until 1864 at a total cost of £40,000.

Other buildings

GROS had two other main buildings: Ladywell House, in the

Corstorphine Corstorphine (Scottish Gaelic: ''Crois Thoirfinn'') ( ) is an area of the Scottish capital city of Edinburgh. Formerly a separate village and parish to the west of Edinburgh, it is now a suburb of the city, having been formally incorporate ...

area of Edinburgh, where population, household and vital statistics data (including Scotland's census) are housed; and Cairnsmore House on the Crichton Estate in Dumfries, home of Scotland's NHS Central Register.Where to Find Us
gro-scotland.gov.uk, accessed 13 August 2011 All three buildings are now part of the

estate.

References

External links

October 2014 archive of website

Scotlands People
- A genealogical research site administered by the GRO for Scotland {{Scottish Government Directorates Scottish genealogy Archives in Scotland Defunct departments of the Scottish Government New Town, Edinburgh Marriage, unions and partnerships in Scotland