Missing Father

[alistairmac]

Hi all,

Probably an impossible task, but I’m trying to find clues as to the identity of my grandmother’s father, so I thought I would run the story pass you. Any comments would be appreciated.

According to her birth record, my grandmother was born Theresa Connor McMahon on 16/1/1873 in the Clyde District of Glasgow. She is shown as being Illegitimate. Her mother was Elizabeth McMahon, a cotton factory worker. No father is listed. Elizabeth’s mother was Mary Connor, which I assume is where Theresa’s middle name comes from.

Five years later (17/6/1878), Elizabeth (now 24) married Archibald Kelso (23), a Yarn Warper. Archibald is listed as a bachelor and Elizabeth is a spinster. I’ve checked and can find no record of either of them being married before. I don’t believe that Archibald is Theresa’s father as there is no RCE annotation on her birth record and anyway, why wait 5 years? Elizabeth then had 3 children with Archibald before she sadly died in 1888.

My grandmother is listed as Theresa Kelso on the 1881 and 1891 census and she gives Kelso as her maiden surname on her marriage record to Edward McGowan (17/12/1891). Edward was a steamship stoker when they married and later he is a crane driver. Edward and Theresa have 6 children between 1895 and 1906, my father being the youngest.

The family fortunes seem to improve over time and I’m wondering if there is the guiding hand of Theresa’s biological father’s family at work. Theresa’s half siblings all carried on the Kelso/McMahon family tradition of working in the cotton mills. However, Theresa worked as a kitchen maid in the Station Hotel (now the Caledonian Hotel), Oban until she married. The patron of the hotel at the time was a Mrs Christina Campbell. Theresa’s eldest daughter’s middle name was Campbell and I did think that she was named after a member of that family. However, I have since discovered that Edward’s eldest brother, James, married a Catherine Campbell, so it is possible she was named after her. However, it does seem strange that Theresa is the only family member not working in the mills.

Although the McGowan family (8 of them) were living in a 2 bedroom tenement in 1911, the children all seemed to have had a decent education. The 2 eldest boys became engineering apprentices, the 3 girls all became registered nurses and my father went to university and became a pathologist. They must have had some financial help, but where did it come from? I’ve yet to find any other relatives not working in factories.

So, I guess my initial questions are:

Is it likely that church records might give a clue as to the identity of Theresa’s father? Elizabeth McMahon was born a catholic, but I can’t find a catholic baptism record on SP for Theresa. If the father was not a catholic, I guess she may have been baptised a protestant. Elizabeth’s later marriage was a Church of Scotland Wedding.

Can anyone suggest a way to find out which schools/colleges the McGowan children attended?

Any other suggestions/comments would be appreciated.

Thanks
Alistair

[LesleyB]

Hi Alistair
A few questions...

According to her birth record, my grandmother was born Theresa Connor McMahon on 16/1/1873 in the Clyde District of Glasgow.

Is there a precise location given on the birth record e.g. a street name? Without that it may be difficult for our members to suggests possible churches or schools. I take it there is no RCE on the birth entry?

As far as I remember many school records are kept by the Mitchell Library, so once you know the area to look for, it may be worth spending some time there - not sure where you are based.

Five years later (17/6/1878), Elizabeth (now 24) married Archibald Kelso (23), a Yarn Warper.

Where did she marry? What church is mentioned in the line "According to the forms of the..." You mentioned Church of Scotland- which church and where? I'm guessing the space for father's name is blank?

Although the McGowan family (8 of them) were living in a 2 bedroom tenement in 1911, the children all seemed to have had a decent education. The 2 eldest boys became engineering apprentices, the 3 girls all became registered nurses and my father went to university and became a pathologist. They must have had some financial help, but where did it come from? I’ve yet to find any other relatives not working in factories.

A similar pattern occcurred in a branch on my tree - I think it may just be the times they were living in, when hard work paid off and there were more opportunuties to improve oneself.

Is it likely that church records might give a clue as to the identity of Theresa’s father?

I'm not sure that RC churches kept the equivalent of Kirk Session records - I'm sure someone who knows will advise, and it may be a bit late for that kind of info in CoS records. You'd need to know the precise church first.

Elizabeth McMahon was born a catholic, but I can’t find a catholic baptism record on SP for Theresa. If the father was not a catholic, I guess she may have been baptised a protestant.

Only a personal opinion, but I think that may be unlikely. Note that the coverage of Catholic records on SP does not include all Catholic churches - SP says on the site: "**If the records were available to the Scottish Catholic Archives, they were digitised and indexed. In the post-1855 period, the collection of records is far from complete."
Again, if you had an idea which precise church was nearest to where your gr grandmother lived, you could then go about finding out where those records are kept, or where they can be viewed, if that is possible.

Sorry to be a wet blanket, but I think you have a very difficult task there. Finding missing fathers can be very difficult as there are so few clues to work with. You may strke lucky, but I suspect, having some experience of a similar kind of search, that it may require a lot of digging about in archives, with no guarantee that you will find anything, but I suspect you are already aware of this!

Best wishes
Lesley

[alistairmac]

Hi Lesley,

Thanks very much for your reply. Realistically, I don't think I'll ever know for certain who Theresa's father was, but it's very interesting trying to find out! One of the reasons I think there was a mystery benefactor involved is that my mother (who is still with us) remembers being told that my father was helped out by an uncle, who was a doctor, in the early part of his life. I have yet to find any relative of his who fits this description.

To answer your questions:

According to Theresa's birth record, she was born at 71 King Street, Glasgow. Her mother (Elizabeth) incidentally was baptised a catholic at Glasgow, St. Andrews.

I'm based in Toronto, Canada at the moment, but I hope to organise a trip to Scotland next year to do some digging.

Elizabeth and Archibald were married in 1878 at 88 Cavendish Street, Glasgow according to the forms of the Church of Scotland. When Theresa heself married in 1891 it was to the forms of the United Presbyterian Church (27 Stockwell st, Glasgow). Theresa named Archibald Kelso as her father, but as I mentioned yesterday, I don't believe that he was her biological father.

Thanks again for your help and comments

Cheers
Alistair

[nelmit]

Your best chance of finding anything is a check of the poorhouse applications. There is a high chance of an application from Elizabeth as she was living at King Street when Theresa was born. I've seen many applications from girls who give the father's name of their illegitimate child.

I should be going to The Mitchell library late September if you want me to have a look.

Regards,
Annette

[SarahND]

Hi Alistair,

Realistically, I don't think I'll ever know for certain who Theresa's father was, but it's very interesting trying to find out!

I think this is a sentiment we can all understand! Much of the fun is in the process

Still, I hope you find him! Annette's idea is a good one.

All the best,
Sarah

[alistairmac]

Hi Annette,

If you don't mind having a look when you are next at the Mitchell, that would be fantastic. Do you need any more information? Shall I post the birth record to the gallery?

Thank you

Alistair

PS thanks Sarah!

[nelmit]

Hi Annette,

If you don't mind having a look when you are next at the Mitchell, that would be fantastic. Do you need any more information? Shall I post the birth record to the gallery?

Thank you

Alistair

PS thanks Sarah!

I'll have a look next time I go - I've probably got enough info but if you post the birth entry to the gallery that would be helpful.

I hope I'm not raising your hopes in vain but it's definitely worth a shot.

Regards,
Annette

[alistairmac]

Hi Annette,

I've posted Theresa McMahon's birth record to the gallery.

Don't worry, you are not raising my hopes!

Thanks again

Alistair