This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: GordonPertJohnson Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.britisles.scotland.ans.general/5515.1.1.1.1.1.1.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Dates, please? The OPRs are the abbreviation for the registers of the Church of Scotland, but as these parish ministers had a theoretical responsibility for EVERYONE in the parish, whether members of the Church of Scotland or not, you can at times find baptisms there which occurred in other churches. As regards marriages, the banns were required by law to be called in the parish church (Church of Scotland), no matter where the subsequent wedding was performed. So you often find in the OPRs details of banns for a wedding, but no baptisms for the couple's children. This is a good indication that the couple were members of another denomination, or perhaps non-churchgoers. This is particularly noticeable in the years 1843-1854, when a large proportion of the population moved over to the Free Church (formed 1843 as a result of a religious schism). Once civil registration started (in 1855), all children are recorded by civil birth certificates. You can often find the missing earlier children in the 1851 and 1861 census returns. The term "Scotch Presbyterian Church" is unknown in Scotland, and is clearly written by someone unfamiliar with the Scottish churches. If it was later in the 91th century, it could refer to the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland, which amalgamated with the Free Church of Scotland to form the United Free Church of Scotland in 1900. The United Presbyterian church was an amalgamation of the Relief congregations and the United Seccession Church. You can see why the question is complicated! Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.