When maternal and paternal ancestors intersect

After finding no trace of her in Edinburgh for several years following the 1851 Scotland census, this year, I found that Margaret Falconer (abt 1835-aft 1901), eldest child of my maternal 2nd great grand aunt, Ann Smith (abt 1811-abt 1851), married twice, had children and emigrated to Canada. As is happening increasingly, this discovery came about through AncestryDNA's Thrulines feature, on a nephew's AncestryDNA. I wrote about the family of Ann and her husband Angus Falconer (1815-1872) here.

Starting with the ThruLines connection, I was able to build out Margaret Falconer's descendants through the usual statutory and other records. By her first husband, David Leckie (1831-1867), Margaret had three children. Margaret remarried the following year to John Fraser (abt 1835-aft 1901) and they had a family of five children by 1879. After the 1881 census, John Fraser and his stepson, David Leckie (1866-1936), left for Canada. The following year, Margaret and the rest of the family (Isabella and Anne Leckie, Catherine, Margaret, Mary, John and James Fraser) emigrated from Edinburgh to Canada. The family settled in Manitoba.

'Manitoban' passenger list arrivals 5 May 1882, Quebec City

As I built out Margaret's children's trees and descendants (as we genealogists can't help ourselves but to do this), I came across a familiar family name. Margaret's granddaughter, Nellie Dorothy Curtis (1844-1933), who is my 3rd cousin once removed, married a man named Harold Morton Archibald (1877-1960), whose father, Edward Archibald, was born in Nova Scotia.

Anyone who is remotely familiar with Nova Scotia genealogy will know that the Archibalds there are many. Four Archibald brothers -- David, James, Samuel and Thomas -- are counted among Truro and Stewiacke's New England Planters, arriving in Nova Scotia from Ulster via New Hampshire in 1762. Chapter five of Thomas Miller's 1873 book, Historical and Genealogical Record of the First Families of Colchester County is devoted to the Archibald brothers, who each had very large families. The Archibalds warranted 75 pages in Miller's book, far more than any of the other first families.

I have no direct Archibald ancestors, but I've have found dozens of Archibald cousins in my family tree on my father's side. This is a case of where worlds collide.

I traced Harold Morton Archibald's ancestry back to Samuel Archibald (abt 1719-1774). As it happens, Harold and I are 4th cousins 2x removed. Harold's and Nellie's ten children are my 4th cousins.

And Margaret? I haven't found a record of Margaret's death so far, but I'm sure that will emerge eventually.

So far, there is just one connection with a descendant of Margaret Falconer among the Ancestry DNA tests I manage. But that one connection helped me to build out that line. Margaret's Leckie children have been easy to trace. Less so, her five Fraser children. So far.

The never ending story continues....




© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

Alexander Ross married the girl next door: the 1841 census

I love connecting dots that lead to an exciting discovery, especially when it comes about in an aside made by another researcher who was writing to me about several overlapping genealogy matters.

It turns out that when the 1841 census of Scotland was conducted in Abernethy and Kincardine, my 2nd great grandparents-to-be lived next door to each other, each with their widowed mother. Stuff you can't make up. Really.

The census handwriting isn't 100 per cent clear, but is decipherable. Previously, I had relied on the 1841 census transcriptions available on FreeCen and Ancestry, not stopping to pay attention to the fact that the parish numbers (90A if you're interested) for both families are the same. I happily purchased the image from Scotland's People this morning.

1841 census of Ross household at Ryduack and Smith household at Straaneruie

First up are the Rosses of Ryduack: Alex, his mother Marjory and his sister Mary. Below that are the Smiths of Straanruie: Isabella and her mother Margaret, who share their cottage with four other people. Both households each have a farm servant, who were both Grants. Are the Grants connected to my Smiths and Rosses? Time will tell.

What's notable in the Straanruie household is that Margaret Smith's son-in-law, John Dow, was then visiting. John had married my 2nd great great aunt, Grace Smith in 1838.

Ryduack on ordinance map

Another researcher directed me to the National Library of Scotland's 1867-79 ordinance map of the area in which Ryduack and Straanruie are mentioned, and explained that these places were about five miles apart in the Abernethy Forest, which is in the mid-to-top of the right side of the map. To find these places, look for the river Duack from Ryduack to south of the Duack Dam. Straanruie is almost due south of that. These pull out shots may help you locate, if you're really interested. No?

Ryduack and Straanruie were both the property of the Earl of Seafield in 1841. I suspect the lands and those surrounding are still held by the current Earl of Seafield, the 13th of his name, in Game of Thrones parlance, who still today owns vast swaths of land in the Strathspey area. Both place names are old Scots Gaelic. The original spellings left transcriptions through the years open to the imagination, when the skills of census takers and ordinance map scribes did not include accuracy and spelling.

Straanruie on ordinance map

Tomgown (or Tomghobhain in Gaelic) in the district of Tulloch, birthplace of Isabella, can also be found on the larger map.

My 3rd great grandmother, Margaret Davidson Smith, was a widow by 1841. I don't know when Donald Smith died, but it is safe to say that it was before the census was done. Here's a post about their family.

Marjory McDonald Ross, my other 3rd great grandmother, was also a widow. Her husband, Duncan, died in 1824. I wrote about their family here.

So, Alexander married the girl next door, only next door in this case was about five miles apart. Did the families visit by boat or by foot through the forest?

The ordinance survey name books collected between 1868 and 1876 and now held by ScotlandsPlaces describe both Ryuack and Straanruie.

Ryduack description, ScotlandsPlaces OS1/16/1/68

 Straanruie description, ScotlandsPlaces OS1/17/1/73

The third word in the description of Straanruie, cothouses, means a home for cottars, who usually had small pieces of land which they worked while also doing work for their land-holder, who was likely the local tenant farmer.

You're wondering when my 2nd great grandparents Alexander and Isabella got married, aren't you? So am I. So far, I haven't been able to find a marriage record. Their first child for whom there is a baptismal record was born in 1846.

Special thanks to three other family researchers who are wealths of information about all things Scotland, genealogy related.

The never ending story continues....




© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

Are you sure? Is it this Donald Smith or that Donald Smith?

Experienced genealogists know well the peril of integrating people found in another person's unsourced family tree into their own, and then using that unsourced tree as their source. This is a big red flag, and often creates an endless loop of wrong information. It happens even more now, with the explosion in the popularity of genealogy as a hobby. I go out of our way to always avoid this black hole.

Now, imagine how much further complication is introduced when you're working with a name like Donald Smith. Well, I don't have to imagine, because my 3rd great grandfather is Donald Smith (abt 1774-bef 1841).

not my 4th great grandparents

Some Ancestry trees are linking my Donald to an unrelated couple as being his parents. Because of this, with the introduction of the otherwise fabulous Ancestry ThruLines earlier this year, I'm now seeing a Donald Smith, farmer, Cnoc of Croughly in Banffshire and a Janet Stuart as being my potential 4th great grandparents. But they're just not. And my Donald is not their son. There are no source documents attached to the trees in which these people are found, except for "Ancestry trees".

Now, I'm the first to admit that I don't know who my Donald Smith's parents are, but they're definitely not Donald Smith, farmer at Cnoc of Croughly and Janet Stuart. Their son is another Donald Smith, specifically, one Donald Smith, who was born and baptized on 14 Sep 1775 at Kirkmichael, Banffshire. There's a baptismal record saying so. This Donald Smith married another Smith (I know!), Margaret Smith, who was born and baptized in 1779 also in Kirkmichael, Banffshire. As a matter of interest, this Margaret Smith's mother was also a Smith. This Donald and Margaret had a family of at least seven children:

Cnoc -- or Knock -- of Croughly was a place in Banffshire in Scotland, I learned from Scotland's Places. In the 18th century, this and Ballcorach in Kirkmichael, Banffshire, where the above family were born, would have been a fair distance from Tulloch, in Strathspey, Inverness-shire.

I wrote about the children of my 3rd great grandparents, Donald Smith (who was a stonemason) and Margaret Davidson here but here's a chart too.

I know these are small images, but I use these to illustrate the overlapping similar names in both families. Aside from the fact that both families are led by couples named Donald and Margaret, there are Anns, Donalds and Peters in both families.

Naturally, the similar names would lead some to think that they've got the right family when they come across Donald Smith and Margaret Smith of Ballcorach in Kirkmichael, Banffshire. But this is not the right family. Here's what Scotland's Places says about Ballcorach's location.

Scotland's Places - about Ballcorach, Banffshire

And here's the description of Tulloch:

Scotland's Places - about Tulloch, Inverness-shire 

I have a paper trail of my Smiths, including baptismal, marriage and death records and censuses. I've also found a similar paper trail for the children of Donald Smith and Margaret Smith. These are two, separate and distinct families living in adjacent counties but not close, as the crow flies, as they say.

The kicker that the Balcorach Smiths are not the parents of my 3rd great grandfather, Donald Smith of Tulloch was finding the Will of Donald Smith of Ballcorach. His bequests to his children by name did it for me, in terms of confirmation.

With special thanks again to Scottish genealogist Jenny Blain for her much appreciated research assistance and on the ground knowledge too.

The never ending story continues....




© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

Found! Isabella Smith's baptismal record

I'm lucky to live near the excellent Toronto Reference Library and that it is a partner library of FamilySearch, the genealogical records mecca based in Utah.

A few weeks ago, I took myself to the Toronto Reference Library to look at the image attached to the FamilySearch baptism transcription of my maternal 2nd great grandmother, Isabella Smith (1817-1915).

Jackpot! I found the Old Parish Record that confirmed details about both Isabella and my 3rd great grandparents, Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson.

I needed help making out the specific place name before the word Tulloch seen above. I learned that this is Tomghobhain, Gaelic for Smith Hill, a place that is mentioned in this Electric Scotland page, In the Shadow of Cairngorm, which also mentions Abernethy, and place mentioned in many of my Ross and Matheson records.

I knew from Margaret Davidson's obituary, which you can see here, that Donald Smith was from Tulloch. In another great online resource, Scotland's Places, Tulloch is described as:

 "a well-known district on the west side of the River Nethy in the County of Inverness".

Nethy is a place where many of my ancestors lived.

Slowly the pieces of the puzzle of my Smith ancestors is starting to unravel.

With special thanks to Scottish genealogist Jenny Blain for her much appreciated research assistance.

The never ending story continues....




© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

Gathering new found Scots cousin ancestors 4: Grace Smith & John Dow and family

Grace Smith (1814-1891) was my 2nd great grandmother Isabella's older sister, part of the family of Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson. I never knew about Isabella's family until just a few years ago. According to several censuses, Grace was born in Abernethy, Inverness in about 1814. I have nothing more specific than that.

On 23 June 1838, in Inveraron, Banff, Grace married John Dow (1812-1884), who went on to become a farmer at Cardockhead, Knockando in Moray. According to the Old Parish Records marriage register found on Scotland's People, at the time of their marriage, both were in service. Grace was indicated as being from Cromdale. A new clue, as I'm now seeing that my Smiths moved around a fair bit. Grace and John had eight children:

• James (1840-1916), who was a brewer (I'm assuming a whisky brewer, given that he lived for many years in Aberlour, home of one of those many fine Highland whiskys.)
• William (1842-1913), an insurance agent
• Margaret (1845-1893), who was in service
• Ann (1847-1928), who cared for her own large family
• Donald (1850-1898), who was a carpet salesman
• Janet (1852-1917)
• Peter (1854-1931), a school master
• Grace (1857-1932)

Their children in turn married, and gave their parents many grandchildren. Some of those served Great Britain in the Boer War, First World War and Second World War and some lost their lives doing that. Others became educators, doctors and nurses. So far, I've connected with just one Dow descendant, thanks to AncestryDNA. Hope springs eternal that I can learn more about their stories.

The never ending story continues ....

© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2019 All rights reserved

Margaret Davidson's death notice

Things happen when you least expect them. While on FamilySearch, I found mention of a new source document, a published death notice for my 3rd great grandmother, Margaret Davidson Smith (abt 1778-1863). This appeared in the 5 Mar 1863 issue of the Inverness Courier:

I wrote about the discovery of details about my third great grandmother Margaret here I had learned from censuses that Margaret was a midwife and I knew that she died at her son Peter's home.

The death notice includes a new clue about my 3rd great grandfather, Donald Smith: he lived at Tulloch in Strathspey, which is in the Aviemore area of the Highlands. Was Tulloch an estate? An area? I don't know. I know for certain that he died before 1851. He may also have died before 1841, as I can't find him on that census either. Browsing the Inverness Courier, I see there was a cholera epidemic in the area in the summer of 1832. Could that have claimed Donald's life?

Death notices in Scotland for my ancestors are so rare. This is a wonderous find.

The never ending story continues...



© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2018 All rights reserved

Gathering new found Scots cousin ancestors 3: Peter Smith & Jane Allan and family

My 2nd great great uncle, Peter Smith (1821-1863) was one of two sons born to my 3rd great grandparents, Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson.

According to censuses, Peter was a letter carrier in Edinburgh. We know that he married Jane Allan (abt 1822-1888) in Urquhart, Morayshire on 28 Oct 1846. It was there that their first child had been born on 6 Aug 1846. By the time that child, wee Margaret, died on 5 Dec 1847, they were living in Edinburgh. The children of Peter and Jane were:

• Margaret (1846-1847)
• Daniel (1849-1849)
• Alexander (1850-1890)
• Peter (1851-1857)
• Mary (1853-1901)
• Jane (1855-1925)
• Grace (1858-1918)
• Keith Scott (1860-1861)
• Ann (1861-1870)

Yes, only four of Peter and Jane's children lived to adulthood. From what I've found, of his children who lived to adulthood, only Jane married and had a family. Jane married a man named John Brown in 1880, who was a confectioner. They had three children and lived all their lives in Edinburgh.

Peter's mother Margaret Davidson had spent her final years living with Peter and his family, and had died less than three months before her son. Such sadness there must have been in Peter and Jane's household. Edinburgh was also the home of his sister Anne and her husband Angus Falconer.

Peter was only 41 when he died from liver disease at his home, 42 Buccleuch Street. The cause of death was recorded as liver disease, the symptoms of which developed just six weeks before his death. We have no confirmed record of his father's (my 3rd great grandfather's) death, but I wonder if he had similar health issues.

The never ending story continues....




© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2018 All rights reserved

Gathering new found Scots cousin ancestors 2: Anne Smith & Angus Falconer and family

My 2nd great great aunt, Anne Smith (abt 1810-1852) was the eldest daughter of my 3rd great grandparents, Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson. According to censuses, Anne was born in Kingussie in the Highlands, which is where her mother was born and raised.

By about 1834, Anne had married Angus Falconer (1815-1872), also of Kingussie. A record of their marriage in Scotland's Old Parish Records has not survived, but the first of at least seven children was born in about 1835. They were:

• Margaret abt 1835 - ?
• Mary abt 1837-1901
• Alexander 1839-1899
• Donald aka Daniel 1842-1901
• Duncan 1845-1881
• Christian 1847-1900
• Eliza Ormiston 1850-1930

By 1842, when their son Donald (aka Daniel) was born, Angus and Anne and their family were living in Midlothian -- in Edinburgh and thereabouts. Angus' occupation reported in censuses was sheriff's officer and justice of the peace. Did better employment opportunities drive them from the Highlands? Probably.

I quickly found marriage and other records for Mary, Alex, Donald (who went by Daniel for unknown reasons) and Duncan. Christian never married. Just a few days ago after searching unsuccessfully for a long while, I found Eliza Ormiston's marriage and her family. The life of the eldest, Margaret, remains a mystery. So far. I've got a couple of leads, but need to narrow down the right Margaret Falconer in my searches.

Mary married a man named a grocer and purveyor, in 1863 in Edinburgh, where they made their lifelong home. They had a family of at least ten children, three of whom died as young children. Some stayed in Scotland and a couple went south to the London area. One son emigrated to Australia, marrying and having a family there. One daughter became a nurse and made her home in South Africa, marrying and having a family there.

Alexander became a hairdresser in Glasgow, married, and fathered two sons, who also became hairdressers.

Donald/Daniel married and had at least five children in Edinburgh, but censuses tell us that he and his wife lived apart for several years. There appears to have been no divorce. I've had little success so far researching all of  their children. One daughter's husband was killed in action in 1917 in Belgium during the First World War, leaving her with two small children. I found the marriage of one son, but none for the other three sons.

Duncan was a ship steward who died at just 36, leaving behind a widow and four young children. His only daughter emigrated to Toronto with her husband in 1926, following several of their ten children who had preceded them here. I wonder if I've crossed paths with any Falconer cousins here in Toronto.

Eliza Ormiston married a man who was a commercial traveller, the censuses say, and together they had at least seven children, one of whom died at birth. A travelling salesman if you will. They moved south to London with their four eldest in about 1880. I wonder where the name Ormiston came from....the Falconer side or the Smith side? I've not encountered it elsewhere in my research.

Anne died in her early 40s in 1952 in Banffshire, old parish records on Scotland's People tell me. Angus survived her by 20 years, dying in Leith, outside Edinburgh in 1872. Their children gave her many grandchildren, and me many more cousin ancestors.

Their youngest, Eliza Ormiston, was less than two years old when Anne died. I found her living with Anne's sister Grace Smith Dow and her large family in Moray when the 1861 census was done. I found Anne's widower in Leith in 1861, with their youngest son, Duncan.

I wonder if the siblings remained close in adulthood. They seemed scattered. Did the Falconers know their other cousins, including my great grandmother Annie Ross? Questions never end in genealogy research, do they?

The never ending story continues....







© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2018 All rights reserved

Gathering new found Scots cousin ancestors 1: Grace Smith & John Dow and family

My 2nd great grandmother Isabella Smith's (1815-1915) older sister was my 3rd great aunt, Grace Smith (1814-1891). For the past couple of months, I've been gathering the names of auntie Grace's many family members and descendants. Grace married John Dow (1821-1884), a farmer, on 23 Jun 1838 at Inveravon in Banffshire. They made their home in Knockando, Moray, where I think Peter's family had been for many years.

Grace Smith Dow's death registration

Between the catalogues of Scotland's People, Find My Past and Ancestry, I've learned many details about these cousin ancestors. The best and richest resource has been Moray Council's Local Heritage Service Index, which has countless nuggets of information and facts including at times a brief biography listing occupation, children, awards etc. If a newspaper notice appeared in relation to a marriage or death, the date and publication are also listed. I haven't even started to check for newspaper stories.

I've learned that Grace and John's children and grandchildren were school masters, physicians, brewmasters, distillery managers, soldiers, hairdressers, nurses, servants, salesmen, shop assistants, postmen, gardeners, coppersmiths, construction workers, and more. One son became the local justice of the peace. Most stayed in Scotland, but some moved south to England. Some migrated to Canada--Toronto! Many had children, some had none.

One grandson, John Dow (1878-1901) was killed in action in the Boer War, losing his life in the Transvaal. He was a lieutenant in the Seaforth Highlanders. Two other grandsons (brothers), Captain John Dow (1889-1918) and 2nd Lieutenant David Edward Dow (1892-1917), served in the Royal Army Medical Corps and the Seaforth Highlanders respectively, and were Great War casualties.

Remarkably for the time--the early 20th century--four of their granddaughters went to medical school and became physicians:

• Marjorie Johnann MacPherson Dow (1865-1956)
• Griselda Annie Dow (1891-1936)
• Elizabeth May Dow (1894-1969)
• Dorothy Janet Dow (1899-1949)

Griselda, Elizabeth and Dorothy were sisters, and siblings to John and Edward who died in the Great War. What a remarkable family.

Did my great grandmother Annie Ross know her Dow cousins? She was Isabella's daughter and was born in Forres, Moray. Some of my Matheson ancestors lived at times in Moray. The places in Moray don't have huge populations, even today. I have to think that my Ross, Smiths and Matheson ancestors kept in touch with each other and probably some lived near each other.

The never ending story continues....


© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2018 All rights reserved

Found: the Family of Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson

Having spent several hours on Scotland's People over the last couple of days, I've partially smashed yet another brickwall, a feeling that will never get old, and have found more cousins.

I wrote about my 2nd great grandmother Isabella Smith Ross McLeod here. But I lacked solid proof that Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson were Isabella's parents. A DNA cousin had found their names on another family tree, and they were listed as her parents on baptismal record transcript.but it was time to get that essential primary source document. Luckily, Isabella's statutory death registration found yesterday on Scotland's People confirmed that Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson were definitely her parents. I learned that Donald had been a mason, and given that Isabella had lived a good long life of at least 91 years, they were of course both deceased when she died in 1915. I still can't find a marriage record for Donald and Margaret.

The confirmation of Donald and Margaret sent me on several collateral searches. First, let's list their children, as I've found them:

• Anne, born abt 1810 in Kingussie, Inverness. She married Angus Falconer abt 1833. They had at least seven children before Anne died after 1851 in Edinburgh.
• Grace, born abt 1814 in Kingussie, Inverness. She married John Dow on 23 Jun 1838 in Banffshire. They had eight children in Knockando, Moray, where Grace died 8 Nov 1891.
• Then came my 2nd great grandmother, Isabella on 7 Sep 1817. 
• Peter, born 12 Jul 1821 in Abernethy and Kincardine. He married Jane Allan on 26 Oct 1846 in Urquhart, Moray. They had eight children before Peter died on 13 May 1863 in Edinburgh.
• Donald, born 23 Nov 1823 in Abernethy and Kincardine, seems to have died young. I still can't find anything more about him. 

The births of Donald and Margaret's children range over 13 years. There must have been other pregnancies between these live births. Their children gave them at least 28 grandchildren. I'm still adding all of those new cousins and their descendants to my family tree.

As I pored through records, documents and family trees, I found Margaret and my 2nd great grandmother in the 1841 census in Inverness, where I also found in that household a future son-in-law (John Dow) of Margaret's. I found that Margaret lived with her daughter Anne Smith Falconer and her family in Edinburgh when the 1851 census was done. Following Anne's death sometime after that census, Margaret seems to have moved to her son Peter Smith's Edinburgh home, as the 1861 census has Margaret living with him and his family. 

I found a note on another family tree that Margaret died in 1863 in her son Peter's home. A statutory death record on Scotland's People confirms that Margaret died on 1 Mar 1863, aged 85, from old age. The death was reported by Peter, who died two months later. But the best part? The record provides Margaret's parents' names: Donald Davidson and Ann Green, my newest 4th great grandparents. 

I'm thinking that Donald died before 1841. Scotland only began a centralized, statutory collection of BMDs in 1855. Before that, there are only old parochial registers (OPRs) to rely on. Sadly, these are far from complete, with many not standing the test of time. I've not found a record of Margaret and Donald's marriage. And then there is the name "Smith". Don't get me started.

I'm so impatient for new DNA matches to come to light, what with all the new names I've added to my family tree this week. This is one of those times when I have to remind myself to manage my expectations.

The never ending story continues.....


© Margaret Dougherty 2016-2018 All rights reserved

Grace Darling, 19th century national heroine

In this post I noted that one of my maternal great grandmother's sisters' name was Margaret Grace Darling Ross. I've always assumed that these were family names passed down through either the Ross or Smith families. I even used them trying to research further back.

Then I heard from an English friend this week who was reading my blog. She presumed I knew that Grace Darling was an English national heroine. Er, no, and kicked myself yet again to never make assumptions in family history. (Borrowing a line from Game of Thrones, you know nothing Margaret Dougherty.)

Off I went to research Grace Darling (1815-1842), aided by my friend's inclusion in her message of this link detailing Grace's story. In 1838, Grace and her lighthousekeeper father, William, were responsible for the rescue of nine passengers who survived when the paddlesteamer Forfarshire hit rocks at the Farne Islands off the coast of Northumberland in a gale enroute from Hull, England, to Dundee, Scotland and sank.

Grace Darling

Grace quickly rose to fame as word of her exploit spread far and wide. People wanted to fete her constantly, and it grew too much for her. She died, probably from tuberculosis, four years after this event.

Were many young girls in Scotland named to honour Grace? Or was there still some remote family connection to the Forfarshire? Did my 2nd great grandparents Alexander Ross and Isabella Smith honour the memory of Grace because a family member had been among the Forfarshire's crew or passengers? Had a family member helped to build the Forfarshire in Dundee in 1834?

What I do know is that my great great aunt, Margaret Grace Darling Ross, included the name Darling in at least one of her own daughters' names, Jessie Darling Mary Gillies (1880-1931).

The things you learn.

The never ending story continues...

Isabella Smith Ross McLeod

My maternal 2nd great grandmother Isabella was born on 7 Sep 1817 in Abernethy & Kincardine, Moray, Scotland to Donald Smith and Margaret Davidson (FamilySearch has her baptismal record confirming this) and seems to have been their eldest and only surviving daughter.

Isabella had two brothers, Peter and Donald. I can find nothing on Donald after his 1823 baptism, but have researched Peter (1821-bef 1871) and his family through the 1851 and 1861 censuses.

I can't find anything confirming my third great grandparents' (Donald and Margaret) births, marriage or deaths -- discoveries yet to be made -- but Margaret appears in her son Peter's household in the 1861 census, in Edinburgh. Her occupation is listed as a retired midwife. Margaret was born in Kingussie & Insch in Inverness-shire about 1779. Kingussie is on the same rail line as Nethy Bridge, where my ancestors lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Nethy Bridge, Inverness-shire, Scotland,
c 21st century

As noted in my last post, I don't have the date that Isabella married Alexander Ross, but the births of their children are chronicled. You'll see in my last post that their last child, Alexandrina. was born on 13 Apr 1856.

But Alexander had died by this point. I know this because on 10 Jan 1856, Isabella married Angus McLeod (b abt 1813), a sawyer. This was four months before the birth of her daughter, Alexandrina Ross.

Isabella and Angus soon started a family, but again, Isabella lost a husband when Angus died on 18 Mar 1857, eight months before the posthumous birth of their son, John (1857-1880). What are the chances of such back-to-back life altering tragedies to strike in under two years?

It must have been extremely difficult for a woman with no husband and three daughters under ten years old and a baby on the way.

So there Isabella was at the end of 1856, with five children under ten, including two babies, to support and care for, without a husband. She never married again. Did Isabella have family nearby in Nethy Bridge?

• The 1861 census shows her living with her two youngest children. Her three older daughters were most likely all in service at young ages.  
• The 1871 census shows her living alone at Seafield Place, which appears in many Matheson records, in Nethy Bridge
• The 1881 census shows her living with a Ross sister in law and her grandson, and working as a general servant.
• The 1891 census shows her heading a household that included her daughter Margaret Ross Gillies (1847-1932) and four of her children

When Isabella died at Seafield Place on 23 Jan 1915, she was 97 years old. I think that Isabella was made of very strong stuff to have lived the life she lived. I'm proud be her descendant.

The never ending story continues...

Brick Wall: Alexander Ross

According to the 1851 Scotland census my maternal great grandfather, Alexander Ross was born Abernethy, Elgin in Scotland. The problem in narrowing this down is that there are eight different Alexander Rosses recorded as being born in Moray between 1812 and 1817, all to different parents, of course. It's a big brick that I've yet to smash.

Not that I haven't tried. By the mid-1840s (another record that remains missing), he and Isabella Smith were married. They had at least four daughters:

1. Marjory b 26 Jun 1846, Abernethy & Kincardine d aft 1874
2. Margaret Grace Darling b 15 Dec 1847, Nethy Bridge, Abernethy  & Kincardine d 20 Jan 1932, Nethy Bridge, Abernethy & Kincardine
3. Annie b 28 Nov 1849, Forres, Morayshire, d 24 Dec 1922, Nethy Bridge, Abernethy & Kincardine (my great grandmother)
4. Alexandrina b 13 Apr 1856, Edderton, Ross and Cromarty, d 7 Jul 1872, Nethy Bridge, Abernethy & Kincardine

Alexandrina was a popular name at that time, as Queen Victoria's given names were Alexandrina Victoria. It was only after her 1837 accession to the British throne that she announced that she would be known as Victoria. The above Alexandrina, my great great aunt, was named after her father, but perhaps also Victoria. She was clearly born posthumously though, as Isabella married for a second time on 10 Jan 1856 to Angus McLeod in Cromdale, Inverallan and Advie in Inverness-shire.

I've never been able to locate a death record for Alexander. That's right. I can't find his birth or death records.

Alexander was a farmer, living at the address of Ryduack in Abernethy and Kincardine, Inverness-shire when the 1851 census was done, listing him, Isabella and their three eldest daughters.

Naming traditions in Scotland and Ireland typically, but not always, followed a pattern. The names of Alexander's daughters (isn't Margaret Grace Darling a grand moniker!) offer no clues in narrowing down his own parents from the eight possible Alexander Rosses. 

Scottish records are very difficult to find. One reason is that parish names changed through the years. As just one example, read about the former civil parish of Abernethy and Kincardine, which is mentioned above, and is where several of my ancestors lived, here. 

The never ending story (and hunt!) continues....

On my Scots side .....

Continuing to introduce the cast of characters from my ancestry, my grandfather John Matheson was born to Frank Matheson and Annie Ross in 1884 at Clash Dhu, Rafford, Elgin, Morayshire, Scotland. This was Frank's second marriage. He lost his first wife, Isabella McKenzie, in 1871 following the birth of their third daughter. Frank maintained the family's births, marriages and deaths in his three volume (!) Church of Scotland bible, which was one of my initial sources for my Scotland ancestors.

My Scots ancestors were Highlanders.

Annie (1849-1922) was the third daughter of Alexander Ross (abt 1817- abt 1855) and Isabella Smith (1817-1915) and was born at Forres in Morayshire. Growing up, my mother told us, usually every time we passed Strathcona Avenue in Westmount (a town within Montreal), that we were related to Donald Smith, Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal. But honestly, with a name like Smith (!) how on earth will I ever lend credence to that family story? Still, I've learned from experience to never ignore stories passed down.

Scottish records, I have to say, are very difficult to find. I've done searches for both my ancestors and those of extended family and friends. Those that do exist are housed by Scotland's People and available for a fee. But a few years ago, I hit a goldmine of information, discovering the names of Frank's parents and his many siblings, about whom we knew nothing, thanks to Family Search, where I found all their baptismal records. Lots of people shy away from this site, because of it being part of the Church of the Latter Day Saints, but it is so excellent. I've found many solid sources, discoveries and leads on Family Search.

My recent Matheson ancestors were crofters before the industrial age, when the railways became a main source of employment in the late 19th century. My direct ancestors beyond my great grandfather Frank and his parents remain unknown. Were Mathesons at Culloden in 1746? I visited there in 2011. One of the most moving places on this earth. How were my ancestors affected by the Highland Clearances?

The motto of Clan Matheson in English is do and hope. My mother Isobel Matheson Dougherty was very proud of her Scottish ancestry and helped to establish and create awareness of Clan Matheson in North America in the 1970s. One of my brothers carries Ross as a middle name, the other has Andrew as a middle name, both in honour of their Scots ancestors.

The never ending story continues ...

Matheson ancient dress tartan

Matheson crest and motto