Fancy a Challenge?

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Gloswegian
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Joined: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:24 am
Location: Gloucester (Ex Glasgow)

Fancy a Challenge?

Post by Gloswegian » Fri Aug 28, 2009 9:24 pm

Ok,

I thought I was ready to fly solo so I posted a "how do I " on TS and away I go. I've just crashed into a field with no map! [help]

I'm looking for anything on my GGG Grandfather James Robertson.

I know he married Jean Urquhart on 4 June 1837 in Boyndie.
I know from his sons marrage cert in 1871 that he was a salmon fisher in Whitehills and that by 1871 he was deceased. This is confirmed by the death cert of his wife Jean on 23 Feb 1871 as she is a widow and a pauper on her death.

I have tried everything I know so I need some help.

I can't find him on any census. I don't know his age on marrage so I can't find a birth or death and I don't know the names of his parents.

All the tips and hints depend on knowing something but this man seems to be an enigma.

Where do I go next? Any suggestions would be very welcome, but getting an insight into your thinking would help me even more for future research.

Help!

Gordon ](*,)

LesleyB
Posts: 8184
Joined: Fri Mar 18, 2005 12:18 am
Location: Scotland

Post by LesleyB » Fri Aug 28, 2009 9:58 pm

Hi Gordon
First thing to try to establish is when he was last "seen" alive - if he is not on the census due to being away from home to do with fishing (have I got the correct guy here???), then you can at least make some estimate from the date of birth of the last known child (providing you are sure the child is his...but we'll leave exploring that avenue for now!! :lol: You may need to check the birth entry of the last child on SP just so you know rather than guessing! ). That gives you a smaller window... then, checking his wife on the census, when does she show as a wife, and when as a widow? That narrows it down again. Was she a widow in 1861? 1851?

You should be left with a dates "window" in which you are pretty sure his death occurred.

Best wishes
Lesley

nelmit
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Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2004 11:49 pm
Location: Scotland

Post by nelmit » Fri Aug 28, 2009 10:14 pm

According to the 1851 census Jean was a widow.

From FREECEN -

Piece: SCT1851/149 Place: Boyndie -Banffshire Enumeration District: 2
Civil Parish: Boyndie Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: -
Folio: 118 Page: 19 Schedule: 86
Address: Banff Road

Surname First name(s) Rel Status Sex Age Occupation Where Born Remarks
URQUHART Isabella Wife M F 68 Midwife Banffshire - Cullen
ROBERTSON Jean Dau W F 48 Washerwoman Banffshire - Cullen
ROBERTSON William Grnson - M 13 Scholar Banffshire - Boyndie

It might be worth contacting Aberdeen archives to see if they have any poorhouse applications or minutes for the area at that time.

Regards,
Annette

Tracey
Global Moderator
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Post by Tracey » Fri Aug 28, 2009 10:26 pm

Piece: SCT1841/149 Place: Boyndie -Banffshire Enumeration District: 1
Civil Parish: Boyndie Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: -
Folio: 1 Page: 15
Address: Whitehills

URQUHART Jane F 35 Various Kinds Of Labour Banffshire
WATSON Elizabeth F 13 Banffshire
ROBERTSON William M 3 Banffshire


Piece: SCT1851/149 Place: Boyndie -Banffshire Enumeration District: 2
Civil Parish: Boyndie Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: -
Folio: 118 Page: 19 Schedule: 86
Address: Banff Road

URQUHART Isabella Wife M F 68 Midwife Banffshire - Cullen
ROBERTSON Jean Dau W F 48 Washerwoman Banffshire - Cullen
ROBERTSON William Grnson - M 13 Scholar Banffshire – Boyndie

If this is her it looks like she is widowed by 1851.
Scotland - Donaldson / Moggach / Shaw / Geddes / Sim / Gray / Mackie / Richards / Joel / Coull / Mckimmie / Panton / McGregor
Ireland and Scotland - Casey / McDade / Phillips / McCandle / Dinely / Comaskey + various spellings

Gloswegian
Posts: 60
Joined: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:24 am
Location: Gloucester (Ex Glasgow)

Post by Gloswegian » Fri Aug 28, 2009 11:20 pm

On checking, it looks like the deaths are missing from OPR's from Boyndie so thats a wall.

Annette says:
It might be worth contacting Aberdeen archives to see if they have any poorhouse applications or minutes for the area at that time.
Has anyone any experience of the service from Aberdeen archives? Do I really just send them an e-mail with the details and then they have a look on my behalf? Do I have to go there in person? (not really an option after this summers road trip north!)

Anyone hazzard a guess who the Watson girl is? [crystalball]

gzmcwherter
Posts: 41
Joined: Sat Jun 11, 2005 4:18 am
Location: San Francisco

Post by gzmcwherter » Fri Aug 28, 2009 11:28 pm

Hmmm...
The 1861 census has the relation field as Head, whereas the 1851 census has her as Wife. That would lead me to believe the husband is still alive at the time of the 1851 census. (Ancestry does not transcribe the condition field, but I'm assuming it is Mar in 1851 and Wid in 1861).
Regards,
Gina

nelmit
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Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2004 11:49 pm
Location: Scotland

Post by nelmit » Fri Aug 28, 2009 11:49 pm

Gloswegian wrote:On checking, it looks like the deaths are missing from OPR's from Boyndie so thats a wall.

Annette says:
It might be worth contacting Aberdeen archives to see if they have any poorhouse applications or minutes for the area at that time.
Has anyone any experience of the service from Aberdeen archives? Do I really just send them an e-mail with the details and then they have a look on my behalf? Do I have to go there in person? (not really an option after this summers road trip north!)

Anyone hazzard a guess who the Watson girl is? [crystalball]
Jane's daughter :?: - looks like she also had a son James (who was living with his gran in 1841).

JAMES WATSON OR URQUHART Pedigree
Female

Event(s):
Birth:
29 MAY 1830
Christening:
21 SEP 1830 Boyndie, Banff, Scotland

Parents:
Father: JAMES WATSON Family
Mother: JANE URQUHART

You've fair got your work cut out with this family Gordon but you're getting there.:lol:

Regards,
Annette

speleobat2
Posts: 1646
Joined: Tue Apr 03, 2007 3:14 pm
Location: USA--Alabama

Post by speleobat2 » Sat Aug 29, 2009 12:41 am

Here, this might help:

http://www.abdnet.co.uk/genuki/BAN/Boyn ... Cemeteries

This will get you to a page with much information on Boyndie and Banffshire including the poor law records, cemeteries, etc.

Carol :D
Looking for: Clerihew, Longmuir/Longmore, Chalmers, Milne, Barclay in Newhills,
Munro, Cadenhead, Raitt, Ririe/Reary

Gloswegian
Posts: 60
Joined: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:24 am
Location: Gloucester (Ex Glasgow)

Post by Gloswegian » Sat Aug 29, 2009 8:40 am

You've fair got your work cut out with this family Gordon but you're getting there.
I knew I should have stuck to rocket science :wink:

I'm strangely glad no-one has found a trace of James apart from what I have found already. It gives me a bit of confidence that i'm starting to look in the right places. I think the answer may lie elsewhere as to his whareabouts and the fact that he seems to be reticent to appear on any official documents! :shock:

I hope the Aberdeen archive turns something up [sherlock]

Thanks all
Gordon

Gloswegian
Posts: 60
Joined: Thu Aug 20, 2009 9:24 am
Location: Gloucester (Ex Glasgow)

Post by Gloswegian » Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:19 am

gzmcwherter wrote:Hmmm...
The 1861 census has the relation field as Head, whereas the 1851 census has her as Wife. That would lead me to believe the husband is still alive at the time of the 1851 census. (Ancestry does not transcribe the condition field, but I'm assuming it is Mar in 1851 and Wid in 1861).
Regards,
Gina
The 1851 census shows Jean as a daughter and her mother Isabella as the wife. Would this not indicate that she was living with her mother and her father was absent but still alive? There is a marital status next to Jean but I could not state if it is a W for widow or not. It could be an M....can anyone clarify?

Gordon

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