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View Full Version : William MacGregor: where to now?



Tinker
21-09-2008, 3:48 PM
With the help of a very generous friend with Scotland's People credits, I traced my MacGregor/MacGrigor line back to William born circa 1801, in Dundee, but have now come to a screeching halt.

William married a Janet Innes in Cromdale and Inverallan parish in 1831, and went on to have several children by her, but when he died, our journey backwards came to a screeching halt. William's year and place of birth is gleaned from the censuses, so we do not know his parents' names, or exact details of his birth. To get this info, we tried looking for his death which took place sometime between 1871 and 1881, which is when his wife first shows up on the census as a widow, and drew a complete blank.

Presumably he died in Cromdale parish as his family were all still there in 1881, so is there any reason why we can't find his death, and is there any other way of finding out his parents' names other than off the death certificate? My friend tried all sorts of variations, but the search was costing her many credits so in the end she had to concede defeat.

(Apologies if I've posted in the wrong county: I wasn't sure where this one fitted.)

Lottie
26-09-2008, 3:48 AM
Tinker

Have tried the I G I ??
Or the Parish Record's for his Marriage, if the time frame comes under the 'Old Parish Record's " it is more than likely his & hers parents names will be given .

Just checked as had a few Credits -
variation of Spelling to "MCGRIGOR William Labourer of Cashelack ( could be Culcabock )?? and Janet Innes of Ana .... ? , in this Parish 22 December 1831 " - no parent's names given

The I G I gives a William Gregor Baptised

27 FEB 1805 Cromdale And Inverallan And Advie, Inverness, Scotland
son of James McGregor

Does that fit with census records you have found ?????????

All the Best

Lottie
Downunder

Tinker
27-09-2008, 7:13 AM
Hi Lottie

Thanks for checking the marriage for me...I had a horrible suspicion that the parents' names weren't given, as it's an early entry.

William's place of birth was given as 'Forfar, Dundee' in 1851 and 'Perthshire, Dundee,' in 1871, and I've found at least three possible births/baptisms between 1796 and 1801 on the IGI, which doesn't help at all! It looks as if he or his family must have moved to Cromdale parish before his marriage. Perhaps Cashelack/Culcabock might provide a clue as to where he was living at the time of, or prior to, his marriage.

ChristineR
27-09-2008, 7:40 AM
It was compulsory to register deaths, so it is surprising that it is not registered. Perhaps the census entry is an error, and he did not die until after 1881.

Have you checked burial records or headstones in the local cemetery? - presuming such records exist.

Tinker
28-09-2008, 7:28 AM
Hi Christine

William's son John died in 1878, and William was shown as deceased on his death cert, which would back up the info on the 1881 census. All I can think of is that perhaps William died somewhere he wasn't expected to be, and my friend has missed the entry in her search because of that. John lived in Edinburgh, and I'm now wondering if William was visiting him when he died. The other possibility is that William's death record has been damaged or destroyed at some point.

As regards the burial records, etc, I hadn't thought of that. I have no idea whether any exist, or where to access them, to be honest!

Tinker
30-09-2008, 3:45 PM
Thought I'd see if I could find a place called Cashelack or Culcabock. Lo and behold, Inverness has a suburb called Culcabock, which was once a village originally called Fluke Street (from the Gaelic 'fluich' for 'wet,' apparently) William and Janet settled in Grantown after their marriage: it forms the rough point of an upside-down equilateral triangle with Inverness and Elgin. Now I just need to figure out the name of the place where Janet was living when they married!

None of that solves the problem of William's birthplace, but at least it fills in some more details of their lives prior to their marriage.

Edit: I think I've just discovered where Janet was residing - Anagach! It's just to the south of Grantown, on the other side of the River Spey. It seems to have been cultivated woodlands, mostly.