Since posting a general inquiry on this list a week or two ago, I have had some very helpful replies, from some very generous and kind people. I have tried to reply to everyone with my appreciation, but in case I neglected to do so, thank you all so much. I have been struggling to grasp the names of all the places; including not only where they are, but what they are. I have been shopping around for a map of the area, that had some detail. I purchased one today, which I thought seemed pretty good, but it still seems to be missing many of the names I'm looking for. I have also been trying to describe locations for births, and don't seem to know how to properly label them. Let me throw out a few questions, and please forgive me if they seem really stupid. I'm a long way away in Northern California, USA. 1. First off, what exactly is INVERNESS? I have seen it described as a shire, a county, and a burgh. If you write it, what is the proper label to give it? 2. Is the ISLE OF SKYE a district of Inverness? I know it's an island and obviously a logical way to describe any place on it (as in duh!), but is it an official area or district? 2. I know PORTREE is a town, but is also something else, like a parish? 3. I believe that SNIZORT is a parish, but is it also something else? One of my ancestors (Malcolm McLeod) was listed on a couple of censuses as born there. I have seen this listed as "Snizort Parish, Portree, Isle of Skye, Scotland." This seems wrong, and if it is, how should it be described? 4. What is KILMUIR? Is it a parish, a district or a town? (Same question for all these below.) 5. What is GORTENCRAIG? 6. What is TORMICHAG? 7. What is COILLEMORE? 8. What is BALMEANACH? 8. What is SUSHNISH? 9. Are any of these places, whatever they are, near to each other? Elizabeth Dulaig sent me some Old Parish Records, and it appears that children of the same family seem to have been listed as being born in a number of these different places. Does that make sense? 10. Elizabeth also sent me somecensus records listing PORTREE, with GORTENCRAIG, COILLEMORE, and TORMICHAG. Is Portree the larger area and these other areas district of it, or is it the other way around? If anyone could help me with any of these questions, I would appreciate it. If anyone is annoyed at my stupidity, I apologize. These are really bugging me and I really want to understand, not to mention be able to properly document everything. Rick Waggener Walnut Creek, California, USA

Hi Rick I can give you some general answers, without knowing in detail the local places you mention. You can get information on Scottish counties at http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/sct/ Click on Invernesshire and you get a list of parishes and other information. You can look up Scottish placenames on http://www.scotsorigins.com/ Spelling may be a problem, but often you can find out which parish it belongs to. As for the same child being born in 2 places, that appears often because the birth was registered in the father's parish and the mother's parish. Regards Sheena ----- Original Message ----- From: "sequoia" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2004 7:43 AM Subject: [SCT-INV] Stupid Geography Questions > Since posting a general inquiry on this list a week or two ago, I have had some very helpful replies, from some very generous and kind people. I have tried to reply to everyone with my appreciation, but in case I neglected to do so, thank you all so much. > > I have been struggling to grasp the names of all the places; including not only where they are, but what they are. I have been shopping around for a map of the area, that had some detail. I purchased one today, which I thought seemed pretty good, but it still seems to be missing many of the names I'm looking for. I have also been trying to describe locations for births, and don't seem to know how to properly label them. > > Let me throw out a few questions, and please forgive me if they seem really stupid. I'm a long way away in Northern California, USA. > > 1. First off, what exactly is INVERNESS? I have seen it described as a shire, a county, and a burgh. If you write it, what is the proper label to give it? > 2. Is the ISLE OF SKYE a district of Inverness? I know it's an island and obviously a logical way to describe any place on it (as in duh!), but is it an official area or district? > 2. I know PORTREE is a town, but is also something else, like a parish? > 3. I believe that SNIZORT is a parish, but is it also something else? One of my ancestors (Malcolm McLeod) was listed on a couple of censuses as born there. I have seen this listed as "Snizort Parish, Portree, Isle of Skye, Scotland." This seems wrong, and if it is, how should it be described? > 4. What is KILMUIR? Is it a parish, a district or a town? (Same question for all these below.) > 5. What is GORTENCRAIG? > 6. What is TORMICHAG? > 7. What is COILLEMORE? > 8. What is BALMEANACH? > 8. What is SUSHNISH? > 9. Are any of these places, whatever they are, near to each other? Elizabeth Dulaig sent me some Old Parish Records, and it appears that children of the same family seem to have been listed as being born in a number of these different places. Does that make sense? > 10. Elizabeth also sent me somecensus records listing PORTREE, with GORTENCRAIG, COILLEMORE, and TORMICHAG. Is Portree the larger area and these other areas district of it, or is it the other way around? > > If anyone could help me with any of these questions, I would appreciate it. If anyone is annoyed at my stupidity, I apologize. These are really bugging me and I really want to understand, not to mention be able to properly document everything. > > Rick Waggener > Walnut Creek, California, USA >