This thesis explores important aspects of early nineteenth-century Scottish life, namely geographical mobility, occupational changes and family relationships. A major theme concerns people's transitions through life and how these were moulded by individuals' and families' strategies, and by historical circumstances. The work is based on the evaluation and exploration of a series of hitherto underutilised criminal records, the precognitions of the Lord Advocate's Departement, which is studied for its contribution to these themes. Because this is the first study to use the precognitions systematically for these purposes, particular attention is given to the specifics of their production and validity, as well as to recent literature on the themes under consideration. The research focuses primarily on people who moved geographically, and studies them in terms of their occupational and social groups. Analyses are made of movements between rural and urban places, and to and from towns and cities, particularly Glasgow. Consideration is also given to how far concepts of regional production and regional identity aid our understanding of mobility and personal strategies. An exploration is then made of the ways people used occupational changes and family relationships, often in conjunction with their mobility, while coping with their changing social and economic circumstances. The thesis concludes that geographical mobility, occupational changes and family relationships were integral aspects of people's strategies, and that further work on sources of this nature should yield additional insights regarding nineteenth-century Scotland.