The People of Edinburgh, 1725-1775

Description

As with the other books in his “Scottish People” series, Dr. David Dobson’s The People of Edinburgh, 1725-1775 identifies thousands of individuals who were living in a Scottish burgh at the time of significant Scottish immigration to North America. This volume finds the city of Edinburgh breaking out of its medieval boundaries and moving to the New Town of Edinburgh, to the north, by the close of this period. In 1725 Edinburgh was still the center of the Scottish legal system, the Church of Scotland, brewing, printing, university education, medicine, and a wide range of specialized crafts. Fifty years later it was also interconnected with the burgh of Canongate, a center for skilled craftsmen, and to the north with the town of Leith, which functioned as Edinburgh’s port. The information in this book–which identifies many of the inhabitants of Edinburgh, Canongate, and Leith living at home and abroad during the mid-18th century–is based on both manuscript and published sources, including burgess records; records of the Commissariat Court, the High Court of Admiralty, and the Court of Session; and more.