looking for James Morrison

[heaross]

In one of my family lines I have a James Morrison b. 1849 in Campbeltown Argyll, parents are David Morrison and Agnes Taylor. He married Catherine Mc Millan in 1870 in Campbeltown. I have Catherine in all the censuses until 1901, he was never in any of the censuses as Catherine was always noted head of the family and was a Seaman's wife. I would like to find his death.

[WilmaM]

Welcome to Talking Scot

Is Catherine Morrison always noted a married in the census returns you have, or does her status change to widow at any stage?

Do you have her Death certificate? does it say married to.. or Widow of..

Those are ways to track down a time span for James' death.

I can't remember what the procedure was for seamen at census time, I think I have noticed returns for a full ship's crew but maybe others thought they would be included in the home one so James was consistently missed out.

[Montrose Budie]

As a favourite character of mine is wont to say, - 'Something does not compute'!

Firstly, the James MORRISON who married Catherine McMILLAN in 1870 in Campbeltown was 38, so born ca. 1832, not 1849, and his parents from both his marriage register entry and his death register entry were John MORRISON and Marion or Margaret MORRISON MS McCUAIG, not David MORRISON and Agnes TAYLOR

Secondly, Catherine died before 1901 so could not be in the 1901 census.

To find her death, use the crosscheck search facility on www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk and search on both her married and maiden surnames. On the 1870 marriage she is shown as 31 so put 1839 +/- 3 in the year of birth field. There's 2 matches with one before 1901 !, and the info matches in terms of the spouse and the parents from the 1870 marriage entry.

She is shown as 'married to James MORRISON, Seaman' so he survived her.

for James' death take his age from 1870, 38, so born ca. 1832, and search in Argyll only, for a death +/- 3 on that year, i.e. assuming that he didn't move away from Campbeltown after his wife's death.

This time there's just the one match, a Master Mariner, and Widower of Catherine MORRISON. The informant, son John, got his grandpa's given name wrong, - James instead of John, and may have got his grannie's given name wrong, Margaret instead of Marion, but these two can be interchangeable !

Orraverybest

mb

[Montrose Budie]

And here's a curious thing. In the 1891 census there's a daughter Agnes aged 26; and 17 in 1881 ?.........

mb

[heaross]

Thanks everybody for your replies and HELLO. I'm going to the information out and get back to you. I had unexpected visitors last night , couldn't get back to you until just now. It looks as though I have the wrong James Morrison. On the 1871 census Catherine is noted as wife but no sign of James on the sheet I have, in the 1881 she is noted as head of the family again no sign of James, on the 1891 she is Mrs. Jas. Morrison Seaman's wife,on 1901 she is Catherine M. Morrison again head of the family no sign of James.I found a death on the marine register for a James Morrison who died in 1894 , and a death for a Catherine Morrison other surname McMillan who died in 1905. Do you think any of them match up. Pat

[Montrose Budie]

Hi Pat

Do you think any of them match up. Pat

That depends !

You've mixed up two different James MORRISONs and two different Catherine MORRISONs.

Whether or not both Catherines have the same maiden surname remains to be seen, but McMILLEN ain't exactly a uncommon surname.

I'm assuming that your interest is in the James MORRISON and Catherine MORRISON who married in 1870 except that this James' parents were John MORRISON and Marion or Margaret MORRISON MS McCUAIG.

Thanks everybody for your replies and HELLO. I'm going to the information out and get back to you. I had unexpected visitors last night , couldn't get back to you until just now. It looks as though I have the wrong James Morrison. On the 1871 census Catherine is noted as wife but no sign of James on the sheet I have, in the 1881 she is noted as head of the family again no sign of James, on the 1891 she is Mrs. Jas. Morrison Seaman's wife,................

That is the Catherine MORRISON MS McMILLAN who married James MORRISON in 1870, but she died in 1900. I'm not sure about the 1871 entry that you refer to, as I couldn't find an 1871 entry for the family.

If you could email me a scan of the 1871 entry that you have, I'd be interested, - 106200.1510ATcompuserve.com [replace 'AT' with @' ].

.........on 1901 she is Catherine M. Morrison again head of the family no sign of James.

As noted above, this cannot be the Catherine who married James MORRISON in 1870, as she died in 1900.

Just who she was and which Mr MORRISON she married I can't yet tease out of the tangled records involved !

I found a death on the marine register for a James Morrison who died in 1894

...........


Defintutely not the husband of the Catherine McMILLAN who married James MORRISON in 1870, as he died in 1912..............

.....and a death for a Catherine Morrison other surname McMillan who died in 1905.

Her parents being Neil McMILLAN and Flora McMILLAN MS McLELLAN, as opposed to the parents of the Catherine who married James in 1870, - Arthur McMILLAN and Rox (??) McMILLAN MS McMILLAN ........

A tangled web indeed..................

Orraverybest

mb

[heaross]

Sorry about the delay, I sent you a reply last night but it looks like you didn't get it. I'll try again, I found the death of Catherine Morrison/McMillan in 1900 she died in 1900 as you said, wife of seaman James Morrison still alive, he registered her death, parents were Arthur McMillan and Rose Cullen. The address on the death cert. is 22 Shore Street Campbeltown as it is through all the censuses. In the 1871 census you asked about the address is Shore Street and she is about 31, estimated birth 1840, she is at the address with 2 nieces, noted as wife. I get most of my censuses from Ancestry.com, but there might be a page i've missed with James on it. Not very good at passing copies through to other people, never remember how to do it. I wonder if this is the correct Catherine, if so, just to find the correct James. Regards Pat.

[Montrose Budie]

Hi Pat

A tangled web indeed, not helped by MORRISON and McMILLEN, apart from SMITH and the like, being two of the most commonly occuring surnames in Argyll.


First the family of David MORRISON and Agnes TAYLOR, -

Father: David Morrison, Mother: Agnes Taylor
Married 13 DEC 1845 St. Quivox And Newton, Ayr, Scotland

JAMES MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Christening: 04 OCT 1849 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

ROBERTSON BLACKWOOD MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 29 MAR 1851
Gender: Female Christening: 21 JUL 1851 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

JEAN MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 17 SEP 1853

JEAN MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: DEC 1855 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

DAVID MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Birth: 17 NOV 1855 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

AGNES MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 05 MAR 1858 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

JEAN MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: DEC 1855 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

ROBISON BLACKWOOD MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 27 MAY 1861 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

FLORA MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 14 SEP 1863 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

JAMIMA MORRISON - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 01 NOV 1865 Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland

There's one missing, - William, b. 1846/47, Seaman, who married Catherine VETTERS in Campbeltown in 1867. On the relevant 1871 census entry, William is shown as born in Ayr, - see the place of marriage of the parents!

I haven't looked for a marriage of James MORRISON as the name is so common. Certainly, there is a Marine Register death in 1894 of a 48 year old which is not far out in terms of age; and there's nothing in Argyll that matches on age for a death.


Of the possible Catherine MORRISONs, there's the 1875 marriage in Killean of Archibald MORRISON, ploughman (parents Donald MORRISON and Margaret BEITH) to Catherine McMILLEN. He died in 1883 and she is the Catherine M MORRISON who turns up in the 1901 (and 1891) censuses, along with daughter Mary, - her birth record is very faint and difficult to read, but fits in terms of location and year. The couple had at least two other kids, Flora and Margaret who aren't with their mother in 1891 or 1901.


Then there's James MORRISON, Fisherman (parents John MORRISON and Marion McLEAN) and who married Catherine McCORKINDALE in Saddell, a parish bordering Campbeltown parish, in 1861, who greatly complicated things by moving to Govan with their large brood sometime between 1881 and 1891.


Finally there's Neil MORRISON, variously carter and distillery worker, (parents Duncan MORRISON and ???????) who married Catherine CAMPBELL in Campbeltown in 1855. No trace of his death, but there's an 1894 Seaforth Highlanders death that matches on age.


There are, in fact, a couple of others in Argyll, but a long way from Campbeltown with no sign of a connection down to the end of Kintyre.


All the above came up during a check of the line forward from the 1870 marriage of James MORRISON, Seaman (parents John Morrison and Marion McCUAIG) to Catherine McMILLAN as shown in an erlier post in this thread. That line checks out completely, the only missing jigsaw piece being the 1871 census entry, but I'll come to that in my next post !, but I may be be able to do this before the Scottish Cup match (football/soccer) due on TV in a short while ...................

Orraverybest

mb

[Montrose Budie]

Sorry about the delay, I sent you a reply last night but it looks like you didn't get it. I'll try again,

Nothing received on my email at 106200.1510ATcompuserve.com .

I found the death of Catherine Morrison/McMillan in 1900 she died in 1900 as you said, wife of seaman James Morrison still alive, he registered her death, parents were Arthur McMillan and Rose Cullen. The address on the death cert. is 22 Shore Street Campbeltown as it is through all the censuses.

Good to hear !

For his death just search in Argyll based on a close match to his year of birth as calculated from their 1870 marriage register entry on www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk .

In the 1871 census you asked about the address is Shore Street and she is about 31, estimated birth 1840, she is at the address with 2 nieces, noted as wife. I get most of my censuses from Ancestry.com, but there might be a page i've missed with James on it. Not very good at passing copies through to other people, never remember how to do it. I wonder if this is the correct Catherine, if so, just to find the correct James.

Found it! Let that be a lesson re searching for a 'Catherine' as she's shown as 'Cathrine'.

A wildcard search on ?ath*rin* will pick up this and other variations including those starting with a 'K'.

The 1871 nieces are more problematic, being shown by Ancestry as Cathrine HANDSON, 19 and Janet HANDSON, 8. Sad to say, but a typical Ancestry ****up, as the surname is actually, quite clearly, DAVIDSON. A look at one of the births shows the parents as William DAVIDSON and Janet McMILLEN, thus confirming that this is the correct Catherine, her husband James presumably being at sea!

Orraverybest

mb

[heaross]

I found William Morrison the son on the censuses from 1871 until 1901 on them all their address is Shore street the same as James, it looks like I have the correct James as I presume they are 2 brothers also William being the oldest has children named after the parents David and Agnes. William was missing in only one census 1881, it was just Catherine and the children. Thanks very much for all your help, you're a star. Regards Pat.