What is the Register of Deeds? Is it of any use to family historians? How can we get to use it? These questions will be answered in this presentation of interest to anyone with Scottish ancestors.

The Register of Deeds spans the activities of the full breadth of society over some 500 years. It is a huge record series which contains both original legal documents and their copies made by the clerks of the various courts all over the country. However, it has remained relatively inaccessible to researchers outside of Scotland due to a lack of published or on-line finding aids and calendars.

To improve this situation, a co-operative effort has started between Scottish genealogists and the Genealogical Society of Queensland Scottish Group to transcribe and index the records for future generations to use. This international project has become possible by the use of modern imaging techniques and communication methods to enable the volunteers to access the records remotely. Even so, the work requires a number of volunteers with palaeographic skills to read and interpret the historical images. Some examples of the deeds discovered during the process will illustrate the usefulness of these records to family historians.

 This presentation will explore the ways in which the project can be speeded up to make the vast number of records available in a reasonable time frame. The rapid advances in artificial image interpretation hold promise in this area. The presentation will cover experiments using large language model AI systems to enhance the process and ways that the project can be improved by other societies. Examples and live interaction with the AI models will demonstrate the use of these systems in this important area of research.

Presenter:
Alistair Henderson

Alistair Henderson of Fordell, B.E., FSA (Scot) is a retired electrical engineer who travelled through all continents of the world endeavouring to clean the skies from the effects of dirty polluting industries, and has worked in those parts that tourists never get to see.

As hereditary Chief of the Name and Arms of Henderson, with a lineage stretching back over five centuries, he is also one of only six full Scottish chiefs resident in Australia. His duties as a Chief take him to all parts of Australia, Canada and the U.S.A. as well as to Scotland.

He has been chairman of the GSQ Scottish Interest Group for over 25 years, and has a daughter resident in Glasgow, which means he regularly travels to Scotland for family visits and research.

His interests include industrial archaeology, heraldry, woodworking, Scottish history, and of course, tracing his wife’s Scottish and Irish family history.

Tickets available until 8 AM Saturday 28th October 2025

The link is included in your registration payment – Please make sure you retain this.

Event via Zoom and recording available to all attendees to view for a month afterwards.

QFHS and any GSQ Affiliate members you will require to put in your Member No or Branch as well as the code given to you to use.