Why Katie Fraser McKeigan went from Canada to Kentucky

My first cousin 3x removed was Edinburgh-born Margaret Falconer, about whom I wrote here. She was the eldest daughter of my 2nd great grand-aunt, Ann Smith. While drilling down into the lines of Margaret's children from time to time this year, I came across records and an obituary for Catherine Elizabeth Fraser (1869-1932), her eldest daughter by her second husband, John Fraser, in Louisville, Kentucky. Catherine, or Katie, was also born in Edinburgh, travelling to Manitoba in 1882 with her family.

Wait! What? Now, here was a mystery. How did Katie end up in Kentucky, living at the same address as one W. H. McKeigan, and who was that? Through statutory and newspaper records, learned her story.

Nanaimo Daily News 9 Apr 1895

Catherine (or Katie) married a Nova Scotia man, Daniel McKeigan, in New Westminster, British Columbia on 29 May 1892, when she was 23. She had gone from Manitoba to British Columbia, apparently on her own, leaving her family. I haven't found Catherine on the 1891 Canada census, but her marriage registration notes that her residence at the time of her marriage was still Brandon, Manitoba, where her family then lived. As we know, people were often overlooked in censuses in those days.

Daniel was born on Cape Breton in Nova Scotia and was a miner. Cape Breton is where many Scots who came to Canada settled in the 19th century. He was a miner, working near Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island. How and where Dan and Katie met is a mystery. New Westminster is on the mainland. Nanaimo, where they made their home, then was reached only by ship or ferry.

Katie and Dan quickly had their first child, John Falconer McKeigan, in 1893, and Katie was pregnant again when disaster struck in April 1895. Dan was killed instantly by falling rock in the mine shaft where he was working. The story at the right goes on at some length describing the incident and recovery efforts.

Katie stayed on in Nanaimo after Dan's death, and gave birth to their second son a few months later.  I didn't find Katie and her sons again until the 1916 Prairies census, when they were living in Winnipeg, where Katie ran a boarding house. Katie's eldest son, John, died in 1920 there in 1920. She and William are still in Winnipeg when the 1921 census was done.

But then I found Katie in the 1930 US census in Louisville, Kentucky, and according to that census she arrived there in 1924. She was by then working as a housekeeper at a boys' home. I then found her listed in a few Louisville city directories through the 1920s, which is how I learned that she had gone there from Winnipeg with her son William in 1924.

I was at loss to understand why Katie and William went to Louisville, until I found Katie's 1932 obituary, above. Besides her son, Katie was survived by a brother, Rev J. F. Fraser, formerly of Louisville and then of New York.

Yes, it was one of those lovely a-ha moments we so love in genealogy. J. F. Fraser was Katie's younger brother, John Falconer Fraser, whom I hadn't yet begun to research.

There will be more to come about the Reverend Fraser.

And what of Katie's son, William? He made his home in Louisville, dying there in 1964. I learned more about his life from his obituary, seen below.

Back to Katie's mum, Margaret Falconer Fraser. I'm getting closer to finding out when Margaret and her husband, John Fraser, died, having found them in the 1906 census of the prairie provinces, living in Nanton, Alberta, a farming community, with their youngest son, James D. Fraser (Aside: Alberta statutory records are really the most awful to research).

Louisville Courier-Journal, 4 Feb 1964

The never ending story continues ....







© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

From Scotland to Quebec: Alexander Dalziel & Rachel Cook

Alexander Dalziel (pronounced Dee-yall) is the second of three Scots ancestors of my Québécois sister-in-law, nephew and niece, who settled in Quebec. From Alex's 1812 burial record when he was said to have been about 51 years old, we can ballpark his birth as about 1761. Alex was born in Scotland, but we don't know where, and we have no confirmed information about his parents. We don't know what circumstances drew him to Quebec, but he was there by 1790.

On 25 May 1790, Alexander married another Scot, Rachel Cook, at St Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Quebec City. The church still stands today, and is the oldest English-speaking congregation of Scots origin in Canada, according to the church's website.  Church records tell us that he was the gardener of Adam Mabane, a Scots-born physician, judge and councillor who had come to Quebec with British forces in 1760 as a surgeon's mate. Mabane died in 1792, but until his death in 1812, Alex's occupation in the church register was always recorded as gardener.

Rachel may have been born in 1769 in Fife, Scotland, to Thomas Cook and Rachel Kay.

Alex and Rachel had at least seven children between 1791 and 1805, most born in St-Henri, a farming community south of Levis, across the St Lawrence from Quebec City. I wonder how long that horse and buggy took into Quebec City. I've found baptisms for most of the children at St Andrew's.

A daughter died young, and two sons died as young men. Rachel died just two weeks after the birth of her last child. Alex's and Rachel's four surviving children (John, Rachel, Margaret and James) married and had families of their own. Their sons were farmers in St-Henri. Their eldest daughter, also a Rachel, married a man named Gardener at St Andrew's Presbyterian Church. Her siblings married in the Catholic Church at St-Henri, and all of their children were baptized as Catholics.

Quebec Mercury 4 May 1805 - source: BAnQ

Rachel's May 1805 death was reported in the Quebec Mercury newspaper. That notice was also picked up by the Columbian Sentinel, a Massachusetts newspaper. She was about 36 years old. Perhaps she or Alex had family in Massachusetts.

St Andrew's Presbyterian Church register

Alex never remarried. He died in April 1812, almost eight years after Rachel, in St-Henri.

Alex and Rachel are buried in the cemetery at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church. I wonder if their grave markers are still visible. Next time I'm in Quebec, I'll have to check.

My sister-in-law, niece and nephew descend from Alex through their father and grandfather, from Alex's eldest son John Dalziel (1791-1876)'s daughter Reine.

St Andrew's Presbyterian Church register

  The never ending story continues ....





© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

We Remember 5: the grandsons of Grace Smith Dow

Three grandsons of my 2nd great grand-aunt, Grace Smith (1814-1891) and her husband, John Dow (1812-1884) died during military conflicts.

Banffshire Journal 31 Dec 1901

The Boer War, between 1899 and 1902, was between the British Empire and the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. Almost 21,000 military personnel lost their lives. 2nd Lieutenant John Dow (1878-1901) served with the 2nd Scottish Horse. He was killed in action on 20 Dec 1901 in South Africa, when he was just 23 years old. He was the only child of Grace and John's youngest daughter, Grace (1857-1932). It's not clear when he signed attestation papers for military service. Was it when the Boer War broke out or later? His death notice notes that he had previously worked in law offices in Moray, but I don't believe he was a solicitor himself, because of his youth. But would he have become a solicitor if not for the Boer War?

I've found no information about John's burial, but I suspect this would have been in South Africa.

The British National Archives report that 886,000 military casualties during the First World War. Among these were two of John's cousins who were also brothers, the sons of Grace and John's son, teacher, schoolmaster and justice of the peace, Peter Dow (1954-1931) and his wife, Marjory MacPherson.

Aberdeen Weekly Journal 22 Nov 1918

Captain John Dow (1889-1918) worked as a surgeon at the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in Aberdeen before he entered military service. He was part of the Indian Medical Service.

John died on 5 Nov 1918, just six days before Armistice, from influenza. This was during the peak period for the Spanish Flu. Imagine how run down John must have been, from long hours in operating rooms. He died at Shiraz in modern day Iran, and was buried in Tehran. He was 29.

David Edward Dow (1892-1917) was just 25 when he was killed in action at Rouex on 17 May 1917. He was a banker and served with the 2nd Lieutenant with the 6th Seaforth Highlanders. He is buried at Calais.



David and John had one other brother, Donald James, who also served in the First World War, first as a captain in the Ghurka Rifles (India), and as a Lieutenant in the 6th Seaforth Highlanders. He survived.

I have found no photographs of these young men, who are all second cousins twice removed to me. None were married and they left no children.  They are part of the lost generation.

The never ending story continues.....





© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved