streets in blantyre.....

[katyt]

Hi all,

I am posting on behalf of my parents who are hoping to find out more info about the following:

In 1901 John Patrick McCaffrie is living in 'Avenue, Priory' in Blantyre with his sister.
He went on to marry (Gertrude Curran, in Ireland) in 1905 and the couple returned to the Priory by Dec 1905 when their first child Andrew was born. This time, listed as 'The Avenue, Blantyre', (The father, JP, for some reason is listed as living in Mossgiel Cottage, Blantyre??? side question for now.)
When their last child (Joseph) died in 1916, the family is listed as living in 'Priory House, The Avenue, Blantyre'.

Supposedly, JP was an owner of 3 pubs/inns (he is listed as a Wine & Spirit Merchant).

Getting to the points...

1) My parents would love to go to Blantyre to visit & would love to see if The Priory/Priory House still exists. Can anyone tell me if it does? Plus where I could see it on a map?

2) How could we go about finding out more about the possible pubs he owned? Which trade directories should we look at? Are any of them online?

3) Is anyone else ineterested in the McCaffrie family?

4) Is it best for me to look at the scotlands people website for census images? is there anywhere else good for looking up info?

Sorry for all the questions & the long post, I am used to researching in England so feel I am starting again in Scotland!

Hope someone can help, kt:)

[StewL]

Drapadew

Although not from Blantyre, what a brilliant peice of social history you posted.

[drapadew]

Thank you StewL
Well katyt,
It would seem that you have been very lucky in your first try at Talking Scot .com First of all let me on behalf of the other members wish you a very pleasant stay with us,there are a lot of people would love to help you with any questions you may have.
Your luck it seems to me is in the 1881 census. I found three Families of McCaffrie.
Possible the only three in Lanarkshire if not Scotland.They lived according to the 1881 census at Mc Caffrie land in Blantyre.

John McCAFFRIE aged 38----Ireland-----Wine and Spirit Merchant
Agnes T Mc Caffrie aged 28----Ireland
Agnes M McCaffrie aged 3 ----Blantyre
Margaret J McCaffrie aged 2---Blantyre
John P McCaffrie aged 1month ---Blantyre.

The Avenue ran from The Main Street of Blantyre through a magnifincent tree lined avenue with about 12 fairly large homes(Blantyre size) the main house on the avenue was called Rhodesia house.I do beleive that your Priory House was one of the others.No more than a mile from here was the Priory mine(pit) also the ruins of the Priory Monastry, Est in the 1200's.

I shall be in Blantyre April this year and while I am there I will try and find some info for you(with your promission).
TDH

Searching.
Hart Dunsmuir Dunsmore Findlay Finlay Naismith Arbuckle Mitchell Meldrum Liddel Montgomery Robertson Lanarkshire

Ralston----------Renfrewshire-----Isle of Mull

Carroll Forrester Wilson Gallacher-----Ireland

Duplicate post removed - AndrewP

[Margaret]

Hello Drapadew
What a wonderful journey I have just had through the streets and history of Blantyre. Must say my wee Scottish Mum even though she went to New Zealand in 1917 as a 12 year old, still maintained all the scottish traditions ei: Malt and cod liver oil to keep us healthy and I am sure it help as you say we are still here. You mention the ration books, well we were fortunate in NZ and didnt have to have them so my Mum would post away wee parcels of goodies to the folk back in Scotland, when we arrived at Southhampton in 1949, I was as skinny as a bean pole (thanks to a big dose of measles during our trip) and the family wanted to know had mum been starving us to send food. I guess broken biscuits are a real treat when you dont have a lot of money coming in, we used to go up to the shop and get them to and pay a penny for a crust of bread with butter..oh the memories you have stirred up.
As you say I probably wouldnt remember much about Blanytre, my main memories are of hot lunches in the school hall, and getting dark early in winter, Christmas in the big shops in Glasgow, travelling around Scotland in my Uncles Camper which was a converted War Ambulance. It will be just wonderful to be able to walk around the place where my folks were
You mention your books, do you write family history?? or??? I do hope that you share these wonderful memories with your family like you are with us on TS.
Looking forward to the next eddition.

Just a couple of things I have just discoverd re family in Blantyre, my GGGrandad died in the Poor House in Govan but prior to that he had been living at Hendersons Building, Blantyre and my Dad's family moved and lived most of thier life in Hardie Street.
All the best

[katyt]

Hi Drapadew, thanks so much for the prompt reply, great info.

These are def the people my parents are interested in, the John P you mention is my father's grandfather.
The family story goes that he inherited a successful business from his father/aunts then drank the profits. His wife left him and took the kids back to Ireland in the 20's. I found a reference on the NAS site re his bankruptcy in 1937 which ties in with the story.

If I may be so cheeky, can I ask you to send me the other 1881 Mccaffries?
Also, did they list their address as 'McCaffrie Land' in Blantyre? What was next to it? i.e. could it be a house that they later renamed 'The Priory'?
thanks again.

Any tips on finding a similar trade directory to Kellys for Scotland? prefereably online, but searchable paper copies would be good too.

Plus, my parents would like to include a trip to the NAS, any tips/advice on visting there?

thanks again , kt:)

[AndrewP]

Plus, my parents would like to include a trip to the NAS, any tips/advice on visting there?

For a first visit to the NAS have some formal identification with them. That is needed to for them to be issued with readers' tickets.

The NAS in General Register House, Princes Street is well served by public transport. Many buses from most parts of Edinburgh and around stop very close to there. The main railway station, Edinburgh Waverley, is almost across the road from there.

Parking a car in the city centre can be an expensive business, and the one-way systems off-putting (even for locals), so I would advise against taking a car into the city centre during the working day times.

All the best,

Andrew Paterson

[drapadew]

KY
55Newlands Bothwell.
Charles McCaffrie 45 years Ireland---Coal miner
Maryann McCaffrie 44 years Ireland
John McCaffrie 21 years Rutherglen Scotland--Coal miner
Charles McCaffrie 18 years Rutherglen '''' ---Coal Miner
Annie McCaffrie 15 '' '' ''
Mary McCaffrie 5 '' '' ''
Margaret McCaffrie 3 '' '' ''
Roseann Mc Caffrie 4 months Bothwell ''


CHALMERS BUILDINGS BLANTYRE.
Thomas McCaffrie 75years Ireland----General Labourer
Margaret McCaffrie 76 '' ''
Margaret Murphy 10 '' Hamilton Niece.

As you can see no McCaffrie land with any of these two,but you can bet that all three are a part of the same family.

There was a Kellys pub in Blantyre at one time,see if I can find out more on my trip.

Any time I visit the NAS I always stay at the Ibis Hotel on Hunter Square just of the Royal Mile, very convenient for the NAS,little bit of a hill up the North Bridge, so if your folks are getting on in age, it might be worth while jumping a Taxi.
If you are coming by car,the hotel has some parking slots in a garage on New Street about quarter of a mile from the hotel.
I always park my car there and walk or taxi while in Edinburgh.Nice little drive from ESSEX.
IBIS Hotel NUMBER 0131 240 7000.
TDH

[nancy]

Hi Drapadew,just as Margaret says,what a wonderful journey through the history of old Blantyre!I feel i know it as much as old Paisley! I just loved the big jars of malt and bottles of orange juice.Evey time my mum went out to the loo,my pals and I would be in at the malt (no not the whisky,dww) the bigger the spoon the better I'm sure she must have known as we must have left big sticky trails all over the place! Happy days! I tried to get my grandkids to take malt,but no can do,they hated the smell of it.How about the liberty bodice? Who remembers that?There were only a couple of people in my class wore them YES INCLUDING ME When the school nurses came round to give medicals they used to say."wish all the mums were as health conscious as yours,giving you vitamins and dressing you warmly"
Then we thought we were the cats pyjamas I think i'll go and walk the dog as all these memories are making me feel OLD Well i'm not really THAT old Honest Cheers Nancy

[drapadew]

Well thank you Nancy for your kind remarks.
As for the liberty bodice,well me mum would not allow us boys to wear the bodice, she said that we looked cute enough without it.And as for the malt I am very partial to a drop of the single stuff myself.Hic!
I' shink U'll let the dug tac me fur a schtrool.
RESEARCHING
Hart,Dunsmuir,Dunsmore,Naismith, Findlay,Finlay, Liddle, Montgomery,Pollock,Gilchrist, Frame,----Lanarkshire
Ralston-------Renfrewshire, Ayrshire, Mull of Kintyre.
Carroll, Wilson, Forrester, Gallacher,----------Ireland

[LesleyB]

Hi Nancy

How about the liberty bodice? Who remembers that?

I do! I had those as a small child. I didn't know anyone else who wore the things, but then I don't think we spoke much about underwear in thsoe days! As far as I remember it was a kind of glorified vest with little capped sleeves, possibly made of a thin woolen material? Can anyone clarify please? I think I may have them mixed up with wooly vests which I was required to wear.

Best wishes
Lesley