Archives - Dundee Town Council Minutes 1716-1717 - Dundee City ...

INTRODUCTION
Volume 8A of the Town Council Minutes opens in the Spring of 1716. The previous
volume ceased abruptly on 1st August 1715, when the country was in a state of upheaval
during the Rebellion of 1715.
Normally the councillors and magistrates were elected at Michaelmas, however,
because of the unrest, no elections were held that September. In February 1716 a temporary
magistracy was appointed by the Duke of Argyll, and in March a special Warrant was issued
by George I, empowering the Duke of Douglas, Alexander Duncan of Lundie, David
Halyburton of Pitcur, John Scrymgeour of Tealing,and John Scrymgeour,jun. of Tealing, to
proceed with the election of councillors and magistrates, which they did on 26th April 1716.
In September 1716 another election was held, thus bringing Dundee back into line with the
customary practice of holding annual elections at Michaelmas.
The following index therefore, covers a period of 18 months, i.e. from April 1716 to
September 1717, and includes the elections held in April 1716 and September 1716. The
manner of identifying entries in the Council Minutes is dictated by the fact that pages of the
Minutes Book are not numbered. Identification is by the date of the minute in which the
entry can be found. Spelling of proper names was not consistent within these minutes, and for
the purpose of the index the practice was adopted of using the modern equivalent with
variations shown in parenthesis.
As a number of the terms used in the index are no longer in common usage a limited
glossary has been provided below.
GLOSSARY
Baxter: baker
Box-Master: the treasurer of a town’s fund, or of a guild or society
Cess: a tax, rate; a local tax
Common Good: the funds of a royal burgh
Cordiner: a cordwainer; shoemaker
Girnell: chest for storing grain,&c.
Haik: a rack or manger for fodder
Hammerman: a blacksmith; a worker in iron,tin,&c.
Litster: a dyer
Missive dues: the proportion of administrative expenses allocated to each member of the
Convention of Burghs
Mortification: land or money bequeathed to town
Multure: a toll of meal taken by a miller for grinding corn
Port: a gate; gateway
Precenter: a leader of singing in church
Press: a wall-cupboard with shelves
Shuttle: a small drawer or box in press
Stent: to assess, rate,tax
Victualler: a grain-dealer, a corn-factor
Walker: a walk-miller, a fuller
Writer: a lawyer, solicitor, law-agent