OPR records

[rosieb]

Hi, Talkings Scots Forum, this is my first post so hope I am in the right place! I am having difficulty tracing my gg Grandfather Alexander McNeil,
(various sp), who was a gamekeeper in the early 19th century in Scotland.
There is an OPR record for his marriage to Charlotte Reid in 1828 in Eaglesham Renfrewshire and also a proclamation of their marriage from Stevenston Ayrshire. I believe Charlotte was born there in 1800 in Dalry and have found records for all her family.
Their first child Donald is also recorded as being born in Eaglesham in 1829.
Their second son John,my gGrandfather, was born in Stevenston in 1831, (no opr record)
The family next appear in the 1841 census for Drymen Stirlingshire parish 477, address 34 village, includes
Charlotte, 35 and children Donald, 12, John, 10, Margaret, 7 Agnes, 5 and Alexander 2. So 3 more children born in Stirlingshire.
There is an OPR record for Margaret Carmichael McNiel born 1834 but I can't find any for for the the 2 youngest. Future census records give there birth place as Gartmore Dumbartonshire which may have been an estate near Drymen. Alexander McNeil, their dad, is not on the 1841 census. (Perhaps not at home)? There are no more records for Alexander so I assume he must have died sometime between 1839 and 1851. Charlotte Reid McNeil doesn't appear again either so she must have died between 1841-1851 and 5 children were left orphans in Drymen presumably!

After many months of research I found all 5 children relocated in Ayrshire, in different homes where they were brought up by Charlotte's various sisters and 1 brother, lived long lives and had many descendents, of which I am one. I still do not know though who Alexander's parents were, where he came from and how and where and when he and Charlotte died. Can anyone suggest anywhere I may be able to find anymore information. Sorry if this has been rather long winded! Thankyou

[speleobat2]

Hi rosieb,

Do you have access to Ancestry.com? There is a public family tree called the Hill Mullen Family Tree which has Alexander McNeil married to Charlotte Reid with parents being Donald McNeil and Agnes Ure.

Carol

[rosieb]

Thanks Carol, it's actually mine! Just found this family on scots origins the other day and given that the dad's name is Donald and their first son is Donald, I thought I'd give it a try to see if anyone came up with a link. I followed it up and can't find any records to link them as yet with my gamekeeper! Should probably remove them till I get more evidence!

Thankyou so much for your interest! Cheers

[nelmit]

I don't know how you could prove this one but if you go by the Scottish naming pattern there is an Alexander McNeil born to a Donald McNeil and Agnes Ure at Buchanan, Stirling in 1798. A sister Agnes was born at Drymen in 1800.
(just had a proper look at previous posts and see you already know this)

This looks like Agnes and her mother in 1851 at Glasgow -

William Mcfarlane 55
Agnes Mcfarlane 51born Drymen
Mr. Agnes Mcneil 84 born Perth

It's a pity there is no OPR birth for Alexander's daughter Agnes to see if she had a middle name of Ure.

I will have a look at the poorhouse records just in case either Agnes has an application (unless you are near Glasgow and can go yourself) although the earlier records are pretty sparse.

Regards,
Annette

[speleobat2]

Hi again,

Is there a way to contact the person who owns the family tree on scotsorigins? Maybe they have information from family members or from a gravestone inscription.

The naming pattern certainly makes this look like a good possibility, but Annette is right that it's going to be hard to prove up without some source outside the OPR's. I have more than a few of these in my tree so you are far from alone!

Carol

[kennethm]

Hi Rosie,

It might be likely that if your gg Grandfather Alexander McNeil was a gamekeeper, he'd be employed by Archibald Montgomerie, 13th Earl of Eglinton, 1st Earl of Winton (1812-1861) on his Eaglesham Estate. Linn Cottage in Montgomery Street is where the Earl had his kennels but couldn't be sure whether or not if this is where Alexander and his family would have resided. Presumably there would have been several gamekeepers on the estate. Polnoon Lodge was originally built as a hunting lodge in the early 18th century by Alexander, 9th Earl of Eglinton. It's not much I know but hopefully it'll be of interest.

Regards,

Kenneth

[rosieb]

Thanks for the info. Kenneth, it may have filled in another missing link. I hadn't made the connection between the estates at Eaglesham,(Renfrewshire) and Eglinton (Ayrshire). So both belonged to the Montgomeries early 19th century?
Charlotte's father John Reid was a master gardener who moved to Cunningham district Ayrshire abt 1812. There is a strong possibility he would also have been employed by the Montgomeries on their Eglinton estate. If Charlotte's father John and Alexander the gamekeeper, shared the same employer, this could explain how they met and married in Eaglesham in 1828. So I have the gamekeeper and the gardeners daughter, the plot thickens! Next step to find out if the Montgomeries/Cunninghams had any connection with the estates around Drymen in Stirlingshire! Thanks-will keep you informed.

Thanks also to everyone else who has contributed, I am following up every suggestion. Yes the naming pattern for the McNeils from Buchanan, Stirling are so strong I am tempted to reinstate them.

[kennethm]

Hi Rosie,

Thanks. That's an interesting connection.

You might find an article about Eglinton Castle including the estate and gardens at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eglinton_Castle

of interest. There are some images of the castle and estate from around the early 19th century at the time John may have been there.

Also I've written an article about the history of Eaglesham at:

http://www.geograph.org.uk/article/Eagl ... ed-Village

Many of the buildings still exist today so you'll be able to see what the village was like when Alexander and Charlotte lived there.

It'll be interesting to discover if there's a connection with the Drymen estates.

Kenneth