Coincidence? .....

[elmca]

I was just looking through a census return looking for g.g.g.grandparents on my grandfather's side.....I found them alright but looking further down the list of names I also found my g.g.grandparents on my grandmothers side. They were obviously neighbours. I felt quite chuffed with myself Anyone else came across this?!

[Ina]

I came across a lucky find while at NRH a few weeks ago. Found the marriage of my g grandfathers two sisters on the same page. They were both married on the same day.

Ina

[elmca]

Hi Ina, buy one get one free eh?! It's seems ironic when you've spent so much time searching for details and then you find 2 or more together. I also found that my grandmothers family and my grandfathers family lived in the same street years before my grandparents met and married. I hadn't known that. How's the weather in california?!! elaine

[Thrall]

Hi Elmca, perhaps a find like yours does not always make for easier sorting of the relationships. In my case I found my gr.gr. grandfather Charles McLean, Clerk, and another McLean, James, Tailor, getting married in Glasgow in 1841, same church, same day, and next they are registered as immigrants as one family on arrival at New York with their respective spouses on the good ship Roscoe. Conclusions? Brothers or cousins? Have not found a trace of the other family since, in US censuses, nor mine except gr.grandfather´s marriage and census return in Glasgow, 1871, and death of his mother-in-law there 1880. Hence, they departed for the Argentine. Thats a lot of censuses in UK and US that they don´t appear in but nae doot gives me something to work on in my retirement, and then, ten years on frae noo, there will be all the UK 19th.century censuses on line, OPRs, and 1911 census too. Plenty of material to get absorbed in there - and a few fifth cousins it would have been good to meet, resting by then unfortunately under the green stuff!

Good hunting all the same, and let coincidences rule at least
occasionally.

Thrall

[elmca]

Hi Thrall, in my case it was pretty much cut and dried as to who was who but I can see the problem you are having! I don't suppose the witnesses to each marriage gave any clues? I have found that each and every detail on these certs must be taken into account, I have found brothers/sisters as witnesses at marriage but had a long and difficult hunt to find them anywhere else (did eventually). I have only one ancestor who emigrated (to Canada) and that family have given me a huge headache, he actually returned to Scotland and fought and died in WW1 but his wife and child returned to Canada and the problem is from there on......we have to be patient in this 'meet the ancestors' project don't we and as you say, eventually the info will be there for all to see......have a good day

[Jack]

Hi Elmca,
This is about another sort of coincidence - this one's here on TalkingScot.

Have you noticed that Bobj-Kirk also has ALLAN / SMELLIE ancestors in Lanarkshire?
(John SMELLIE marr Janet ALLAN 6 Nov 1841, Old Monkland)
--
http://talkingscot.com/forum/viewtopic. ... ht=smellie
--
Don't know if they are any relation to you though, and maybe you're already in contact with Bob.

Jack

[elmca]

Thanks for the thought Jack, I can't say there is no link as you just never really know do you? I have quite a long list of the Smellie family I am looking into from St Patricks Graveyard in Dalzell Estate Motherwell but I don't see a John Smellie and Jean/janet Allan. I will probably drop a line to Bob though to let him know what I have here.