Genealogy mistakes to avoid #4 - Ignoring the occupation

When trying to match our family up with the records it can be a real challenge when they have common names and lots of cousins in the same parish also have the same names. It can be a real tangle. 

Sometimes we’re so focused on the names we forget about the occupation. Although people did sometimes change their occupation, it’s fairly unlikely that a married man would change occupation from a stone mason to a shoemaker. Both of these occupations would require an apprenticeship. Our ancestors would have served as an apprentice as a teenager and perhaps into their early 20s before they got married. How would a married man with children afford to be able to serve an apprenticeship and switch professions as we can today? 

Of course, some occupations are the same but described differently. A shoemaker in one record may be described as a cordiner in another. A shipwright may also be described as a joiner. Or you may find a grocer being described as a victualler. If you come across an occupation that is uncommon today, check out the Dictionaries of the Scots Language to discover what it was.

40,000 Scottish Mental Health Records

We have been working along with a very hard working team of volunteers and we have now reached a milestone in our project to index Scottish mental health records. We have indexed the first 40,000 entries.

If you have not used these records before you will be amazed by them. Sometimes the stories are sad, sometimes reassuring, but there are so many stories to tell. For example here is an excerpt from the entry of Jean McTavish or McAlpine. Jean was aged 60 and a widow, it seems that the ‘supposed cause’ of her health problem was intemperance. Below is an account of what a doctor observed. It seems she imagined herself to be only 26 years of age, and that she was a bird.

Reading these records makes the people come to life in our minds, I can almost picture poor Jean in front of the official, looking rather older than her 60 years perhaps, but all the while believing she was only 26. Granted, this record does not answer all our questions, but it makes Jean real. It tells us more than the basic records and it preserves the memory of poor Jean for her descendants.

Search at www.scottishindexes.com

A good dig through dusty documents!

One of the things I love about being a genealogist is that every day is different, you can never know exactly what you’ll find. I was looking through some Dumfries Sheriff Court processes the other day (on the hunt for ‘paternity’ cases) and came across a case innocuously entitled Jones v Lochmaben. As this bundle of folded papers tied up with string was larger than the others and appeared to contain some sort of notebook I untied the string to have a nose inside. 

This lengthy case was regarding the ‘Nuisances Removal (Scotland) Act 1856’. It would seem that far from being the picturesque holiday destination that it is today, back in 1866 Lochmaben had a big problem with dung, pigsties and general filth.

Amongst the items was a large document entitled: “Report of list of Nuisances in the Burgh of Lochmaben on 6th and 7th November 1866”.

Within are contained the names and addresses of 182 households, detailing the condition of the property. I found this item fascinating, it tells us so much about the town that after reading a few entries you could almost smell the place!

Here are some excerpts: 

No. - 140

Date of Inspection - 7th [November 1866]

Name and Occupation of Occupants of Premises - Ebenezer Brown Hill, Free Church Manse 

Description of Nuisance - An accumulation of dung and filthy stagnant water and very dirty yard.

Remarks - [In pencil] None*

No. - 141

Date of Inspection - 7th [November 1866]

Name and Occupation of Occupants of Premises - John Clark, Schoolmaster 

Description of Nuisance - A necessary* containing in and about it a great accumulation of filthy matter.

Remarks - [In pencil] None

No. - 167

Date of Inspection - 7th [November 1866]

Name and Occupation of Occupants of Premises - Robert Thorburn, Labourer.

Description of Nuisance - One Pigsty containing one Swine and an accumulation of Dung at Back of House.

Remarks - [In pencil] Nuisance

No. - 176

Date of Inspection - 7th [November 1866]

Name and Occupation of Occupants of Premises - John Green, Carter

Description of Nuisance - A House unfit for Human Habitation Occupied by Green. Having only one small apartment and his Family consists of Himself, Wife and 7 children. The House is Thatched on roof and they Occupy one Small apartment in which there is 3 Beds and where they all live both night and day. No ventilation. Bad House. 

Remarks - [In pencil] Nuisance.

No. - 178

Date of Inspection - 7th [November 1866]

Name and Occupation of Occupants of Premises -Barnard Kelly, Hugh McGauchie, William Helon

Description of Nuisance - All keep Lodginghouses with no Rules and Regulations formed for their Guidance and Conduct. 

Remarks - [Blank]

The dusty documents make your hands quite dirty!

I hope I am not alone in being fascinated by this document and as we continue our research in the Sheriff Court records of Scotland I hope to come across more wonderful accounts like these. 

This particular record does not neatly fit into our existing collections, so for the time being we have created a PDF index to this specific record which you can download for free from our website; just click this link.

If you are researching your Lochmaben forebears and see an entry relating to your family please get in touch and I will email you the full account relating to them.

*We presume the ‘necessary’ was the toilet… it’s mentioned as a ‘necessary’ quite frequently.

*The remarks in pencil we believe to have been added at a later date, perhaps on a subsequent inspection.

Help pages added to our website

Over the last few weeks we have been busy adding various indexes to our website. We have now also added some guides and some details about what sources are in our index.

We have a guide for each resource:

Prison Index Guide

Non-OPR Parish Records Index Guide

Sheriff Court Paternity Cases Index Guide

Early Census and Population Lists Guide

1841-1861 Census Indexes Guide

If you come up with a question whilst searching please email me and I will do my best to answer it and add  it to my list to help other searchers.

Search on-line today 

www.maxwellancestry.com

Maxwell Ancestry, a member of the Scottish Genealogy Network

Dumfries prison register

We have begun indexing the prison registers for Dumfries. As each year is indexed we will make it available on our website. We have 1841 and 1842 online so far and hope to add 1843 today or tomorrow.

The Dumfries register has some interesting characteristics. For example the description is a lot more ‘human’ than that which we have seen in other prison registers. In many prisons the description/marks column is left blank unless the individual had a tattoo, obvious scar or something similar. In Dumfries however it seems to have almost always have been filled in (for the years we have inspected so far) and gives such descriptions as “common”, “squints”, “stout”, “pock pitted”, “nearly blind in right eye” and even “white spots on his head”! Certainly a way to really learn more about your ancestors… if you dare!

The online index is free and we charge just £5 for a full transcription: Come and search today!

www.maxwellancestry.com/prison

Sheriff Court records

If you have been doing genealogy for more than five minutes you will have discovered that our Victorian ancestors were not quite as well behaved as we may have have been led to believe. The number of children born outside marriage, or within weeks of the marriage astounded me when I began researching.

This can present a real challenge to the family historian. In Scotland a marriage certificate after 1855 will sometimes give both parents’ names even in a case of illegitimacy. Sometimes, though, even with a name of the father, finding him can be more than a little challenging, as so little information is given about him. This can lead to the inevitable brick wall.

There are various ways to overcome this, one being the Kirk Session records of the Church of Scotland and other Presbyterian churches. These were well explained in the episode of ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ featuring Annie Lennox. These are certainly a very sensible first port of call.

As the nineteenth century progressed, the Kirk Session records tend to decline in usefulness as fewer people are recorded in them, especially in the larger towns. This also means a record of baptism naming both parents is unlikely.

There is however another, often overlooked, source available and that is the Sheriff Court records. The Sheriff Courts deal with criminal and civil cases, and in looking for paternity cases we generally begin with the records of civil cases. A good place to begin is the decree books, where these exist. These are usually neatly written volumes, covering at most a few years at a time. The decree records the outcome of the case and will be helpful in giving us a brief summary of the facts as established by the court. The disadvantage has been is that these records are often time-consuming to search. The National Records of Scotland (NRS) hold them, but as they are not stored in the same building as the search room they must be ordered in advance a day or two before your visit. All of this is could seem quite a hassle and you have no guarantee of finding anything.

That is why I am so pleased to tell you that we have uploaded a new set of records to our website: Paternity Cases in the Decree Books of Jedburgh Sheriff Court. Our index to these records has been produced with the kind assistance of Margaret Hamilton. The books have been searched for paternity cases where the mother of an illegitimate child is taking the father (or his relatives) to court to receive aliment for the child.

You can search our court records page by mother or father and see if there is a case relating to your ancestors:

www.maxwellancestry.com

You can search by mother’s name alone, or by father’s name alone to see if your ancestor is in the database. You can also search by year to narrow down the results. Once we expand the database I will prepare some ‘how to’ guides. Follow me on Twitter to keep up-to-date @maxwellancestry

Free 30 minute genealogy consultations

We are offering free 30 minute genealogy consultations at the 24th Annual Conference of the Scottish Association of Family History Societies to be held at the Scottish Borders Campus, Nether Road, Galashiels, TD1 3HE, Scotland from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 11th May, 2013.

The idea is to help you get over an obstacle, perhaps by directing you to a type of record you haven't used before, or by accessing our vast library to overcome your problem. To enable us to help you, email us as soon as possible to book your time slot and tell us all you know about the family. That way we can have a look over your family before the event.

There are limited slots available, here is what we have left:



Click the link above to email me, tell me the time you would like and tell me as much as possible about your family.

For more information about the family history fair visit the website of the Borders Family History Society

www.maxwellancestry.com

Holywood 1841 census added to the database

We have added the 1841 census for Holywood to our database and of course it’s available in our bookshop too. Here are the surnames which appear in the census:

Adamson; Ademson; Afflick; Anderson; Atchison; Auchterson; Austin; Baird; Ballantine; Ballintine; Beatie; Beattie; Bell; Bickerstaff; Bilby; Black; Blackie; Blackley; Blacklock; Blain; Borthwick; Boyes; Briggs; Broatch; Brodie; Brown; Bryden; Brydon; Burges; Burgess; Callander; Cambell; Campbell; Carid; Carr; Carruthers; Carson; Caven; Charters; Clark; Clemison; Clifford; Clune; Colvin; Conal; Conchie; Connal; Connan; Connell; Corrie; Corson; Costine; Coston; Cowan; Craig; Creighton; Creiry; Crocket; Croket; Crone; Crosbie; Cunninham; Dalrymple; Dickson; Dinwiddie; Douglas; Drummond; Duff; Dunn; Easton; Edgar; Elton; Fair; Farish; Fenton; Ferguson; Fergusson; Ferquher; Flinn; Flynn; Frazer; Gaffeny; Gass; Gedess; Gemmell; Gibbs; Gibson; Gillespie; Glencross; Glendining; Glendinning; Glover; Gordon; Gourley; Gracie; Graham; Greirson; Grerson; Grier; Gunion; Hair; Haliday; Hamilton; Hannah; Hannay; Hastings; Hawthorn; Henderson; Henry; Hepburn; Hiddelston; Hiddleston; Hill; Hodge; Hyslop; Inglis; Irvine; Irving; Jardine; Johnson; Johnston; Johnstone; Kellock; Kenedy; Kennedy; Kilpatrick; Kirk; Kirkpaterick; Kirkpatrick; Kirkwood; Kirpatrick; Landsburgh; Laurie; Lawrie; Lawson; Lennox; Lewis; Lindsay; Little; Livingstone; Lockerby; Loremer; Lorimar; Marshal; Marshall; Mason; Masterman; Mather; Maxwel; Maxwell; McAdam; Mcally; McBurney; McBurnie; McCaig; McCall; McCalley; McCloury; McCornick; McCubbing; McFeggan; McGeorge; McGill; McKaig; McKenery; McKenzie; McKinnel; McKnight; McMichael; McMichan; McMurray; McMurry; McNae; McNaught; McNeil; McQueen; Meighan; Melvin; Middelton; Millar; Miller; Milligan; Monteith; More; Moreland; Morine; Morrow; Muir; Muirhead; Mullholland; Mullins; Murdoch; Nealson; Neilson; Nelson; Newall; Nicholson; Nicol; Norval; Oliver; Pagan; Paterson; Patrick; Pearson; Peary; Piles; Porteous; Pots; Rae; Ramage; Ramge; Renewick; Richardson; Riddell; Ritchie; Robson; Roddan; Roden; Rorrison; Saffely; Sanders; Saunders; Scott; Seaton; Servace; Simson; Smith; Somerville; Souland; Spence; Stitt; Swan; Tait; Taylor; Thompson; Thomson; Thorburn; Threshie; Todd; Turner; Twineholm; Walch; Walker; Ward; Waters; Watson; Waugh; Welch; Welsh; Whitehead; Wightman; Wilson; Wright

Search for free or buy a book for your library!

Continue reading the Chambers’ Edinburgh Journal

I have now uploaded “today’s” issue of the Chambers’ Edinburgh Journal. So you can take a few minutes and transport yourself to earlier days. This weeks issues contains the following articles:

Fallacies of the Young, Formation of the Scottish Society.

Skryme, The Russian court, Major Weir.

Sketches in Topography (Edinburghshire), The Runaway (an English Tale, By Miss Mitford)

Emigration.

Iron Bridges, Biographic Sketches (Dr. Alexander Murray).

Wourall poison.

Bear Hunting, Turkey, The Vatican, Two useful receipts, Hymn of the British peasant, American musquitoes, Effect of light on plants, Wolves, Number of Stars.

Column for the boys, Use of Cat’s whiskers, Vegetables, Cheese-Hoppers, Astronomy and celestial mechanics, Amsterdam.

Click to read the Chambers’ Edinburgh Journal

1841 Hoddom and 1851 Mochrum now online

We updated the census database last week; it now includes the 1841 census of Hoddom, Dumfriesshire and 1851 census Mochrum, Wigtownshire. As usual these new census transcriptions are also available in our bookshop.

As usual there are also various new household links, maps and notes that we hope will help you as you research families in Scotland.

Example Prison Register Transcription

It has now been a few weeks since our free prison index went online and I’m glad to say it is proving popular and our customers seem really pleased with the transcriptions. If you haven’t searched for your ancestors yet here’s the link again: www.maxwellancestry.com/prisons

Below is an example of the sort of transcription you’ll receive for just five pounds!

Prison Register Transcription

 Hawick Prison 1844-1862

(National Archives Reference HH21/14/1)

Number: 42

Date of Admission: July 15, 1845

By whom Committed: Bailie Haddon J.P.

Name: John Gibson

Sex: Male

Age: 64

Where Born: Whitehaven

Late Residence: Carlisle

Where he has spent the greater part of his life: Whitehaven

Height: 5 feet 6 inches

Complexion: Dark

Hair: Black

Eyes: Blue

Marks, &c.: None

Offence: For Begging Drunk and Disordly in the Town

Clean or Dirty?: Dirty

Sober, partially Intoxicated, or Drunk?: Sober

Clothes in good Repair or Ragged?: Good

Did the Prisoner come in Direct after Arrest?: Direct

Ordinary Occupation: Saddler

Previous Imprisonments: [none]

Trial: July 23; Bailie Haddon; Convicted

Sentence: Nine Days

Number of Days in Prison: 9

Conduct during Confinement: Good

Dumfriesshire Valuation Roll 1896-97 - Free online

We have finished our project of uploading the Dumfriesshire Valuation Roll 1896-97. If you haven’t used the valuation rolls before it’s definitely worth a look, even if you’re not researching in Dumfriesshire.

Valuation rolls are great for genealogy and researching the history of your house. Valuation rolls were collected annually from 1854 to 1989. For each property in Scotland they record the name and designation of the proprietor, the tenant, the occupier and the annual rateable value. They do not list any other residents in a property.

View for free at www.maxwellancestry.com

Free Castleton Poor Roll Index

We have just uploaded another PDF to our website, the Index to Castleton Poor Roll 1846-1864. Although quite interesting itself the index is a key to further information.

The full record has lists of children of the recipient as well as details relating to emigration, employment and education. The columns in the original book are as follows:

1. Name of Pauper
2. Present residence
3. Married or single, widow, or widower. If child, orphan, deserted or bastard.
4. Name of each dependant living with Pauper
5. Age – Years
6. Place of birth
7. Trade or occupation
8. If wholly or partially disabled
9. Description of disablement
10. Means and resources of Pauper besides Parochial relief
11. Names and weekly earnings of Parents
12. Names, ages, and earnings of children not living with Pauper, and whether marries, and number of children.
13. Date when admitted on Roll.
14. Amount of relief in money.
15. Amount of relief in food, clothing, fuel, lodging, or of any other kind.
16. Date and cause of removal from Roll.
17. Remarks

So as you can see the form was quite detailed, sadly not all entries have every column filled in but all the entries are of interest if they are related to you!

 Castleton Poor Roll Index

Street view now enabled

For some time, as you may know, Google’s Street View has been available in the Scottish Borders and Dumfriesshire, however it was not available on the mapping through our website. We have now updated the format and it’s now available on www.maxwellancestry.com.

Search our census for free, like you always have, either by address or name: click “Display Map” next to Current Map/Satellite and you can view as a map, satellite, hybrid, terrain or street view.

www.maxwellancestry.com