Before he married my great grandmother, Annie Ross, in 1878, Frank Gillanders Matheson first married Isabella McKenzie (abt 1838-1871) on 20 Apr 1866 in Inverness. I wrote about their marriage and family here.Frank's and Isabella's marriage registration names her parents as Roderick McKenzie, wood sawyer, deceased, and Margaret Finlayson. Isabella died on 29 Mar 1871 from rheumatic fever, just four days after giving birth to her third daughter, and namesake. Her death registration confirms her parents' names and other information.
Last year, I found Frank's older brother, John Mathieson, and wrote about his life and family here. Yes, like my Doughertys, the Mathesons are another family where different spellings were used by different siblings in the same generation. This is something that definitely keeps genealogists on our toes.
John married Catherine McKenzie in Inverness on 16 Dec 1864. While the image of their marriage registration on Scotland's People and while it's not the best reproduction, it is clear that Catherine's parents are also Roderick McKenzie, wood sawyer, deceased and Margaret Finlayson.
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| John Mathieson & Catherine McKenzie marriage registration, Scotland's People |
Frank witnessed their marriage, together with Catherine's and Isabella's brother, Alex.
The 1871 census, conducted a few months after Isabella died, shows that Catherine was then living temporarily at Frank's home at Clash Dhu in Rafford, Moray, caring for Frank's and Isabella's two young daughters, Margaret Finlayson b 1868 (named after her grandmother), and Catherine (yes, named for her aunt), b 1869.
Sadly, Isabella's namesake had died on 4 May. Catherine's nine-month old daughter, also a Margaret, was included in that household census. By that time, Catherine and John had two young children of their own. Their daughter was with Catherine, but what of her son? Well, the 1871 census of John's household at East Grange in Kinloss, Moray shows that Catherine's mother, Margaret was living there.
Catherine died at East Grange in Kinloss on 5 Nov 1873 from pneumonia. In her registration, her father's occupation is given as agricultural labourer. I think a wood sawyer would fall into that broad category.
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| Catherine McKenzie Mathieson death registration, Scotland's People |
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| Margaret Finlayson McKenzie death registration, Scotland's People |
And what about Roderick McKenzie, Catherine's and Isabella's father? He died in Urray on 30 Oct 1858 aged 57. No cause of death was recorded, but yes, his occupation was sawyer.
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| Roderick McKenzie death registration, Scotland's People |
John, Catherine, Frank and Isabella were all born at Urray in Ross-shire, their baptismal records between 1829 and 1838 show. The Mathesons and McKenzies were neighbours it seems. Since statutory records were collected starting only in 1855, these baptismal records don't offer much more in the way of detail, but I'm quite certain based on the records I've found that Catherine and Isabella were both daughters of the same Roderick McKenzie and Margaret Finlayson. This represents one of those a-ha! moments genealogists love.
Was Roderick McKenzie a cousin to my 2nd great grandmother Margaret McKenzie (abt 1798-1865)? I know they weren't siblings, as other records show they had different fathers.
The never ending story continues....
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