Carruthers mystery

[grisel]

Yes I agree with you, jcarruthers and Christina - George Fotheringham Carruthers is definitely not your grandfather George Frederick Carruthers.
Do you have any leads on how the Carruthers found Elizabeth McEwan - a church for example. Perhaps George was found in the same way.

[Jcarruthers]

Hi grisel
No idea how George and Maud came to adopt Elizabeth. She has been a mystery to us until recently. Strange too that Elizabeth was born in Glasgow and the Carruthers lived in Edinburgh? The one thing that has me curious is that there is a genetic condition that existed in both Frederick Lockwood Logan Carruthers family and George Russell Carruthers family as well as my own family. Might be coincidence but this was maybe what led our genealogist into making a link?[/I][/B] Either my grandfather was the unregistered son of George Russell Carruthers or perhaps he was the adopted son of a close relative? Or the genetic link is purely coincidental?

[grisel]

That is all very interesting. Informal adoptions probably did happen within families and George F could well be related to George snr. But hard to prove!

[christanel]

My father was born 1911. His birth mother's brother lived four doors from his adoptive parents. His birth parents were married.

Christina Carruthers - was born Elizabeth Miller McEwan in 1896

Do you have this birth certificate?
McEwen Elizabeth MILLA 1896 644/5 1052 Blackfriars

I notice on the 1901 transcription that there is no birth place given for her. How did you discover her birth name?
Christina

[Jcarruthers]

Hi Christina
Yes we do have her birth certificate. In response to a post on another genealogy website We were contacted by her grandson to advise us. He unfortunately had no info on my grandfather though. George and Maud at different censuses showed her as being born in different places - clerical errors maybe.

[christanel]

I am intrigued/curious as to how the connection was made for Elizabeth Millar McEwan and Christina Carruthers. Can you explain the research that uncovered this? It may help us with George Frederick Carruthers.
Who is Elizabeth M McEwen's mother on the birth cert? Any father named? Who registered the birth?

George and Maud at different censuses showed her as being born in different places - clerical errors maybe.

There are only two censuses that Christina could be on - the 1901 and 1911. The 1901 transcript doesn't give a birth place. What does the 1911 have as her birth place?

Christina

[Jcarruthers]

Hi Christanel
Information we have from a birth certificate, census records and Christinas grandson show
Christina was born illegitimately to Lillias McEwan as Elizabeth Millar McEwan on Aug 21, 1896 in Glasgow. Lillias was the informant with the father named as Hugh Millar of Ayrshire. Hugh rejected paternity. George and Maud adopted her in 1896 and renamed her Christina Elizabeth McEwan Carruthers.
Census records we have show that in 1901 her birth place is shown as Blackfriars, Glasgow, whereas in 1911 it is shown as Edinburgh.
Christina married in 1920, moved to Portsmouth, England and then emigrated to Canada where she died in 1984.

[jen1302]

my mum had a friend called Jean Carruthers born in Glasgow and lives in Salford Manchester

[christanel]

Christina married in 1920, moved to Portsmouth, England and then emigrated to Canada where she died in 1984.

I see that Christina married using the name Christina Elizabeth McEwan Carruthers so most likely knew she was adopted. If she knew it begs the question why wouldn't they have told George Frederick he was also adopted.
At the moment the only thing I can see to sort this out is DNA. But then again if he was the son of another Carruthers that may not work (not up on DNA stuff)

Lillias McEwan age 24 seems to be in Saltcoats Ayr in the 1901 census (picking the most likely candidate with that name) Household of Elizabeth Fullerton.
Christina

[Jcarruthers]

Yes that is something that has played on my mind over the years. Maud Carruthers separated from George Russell Carruthers and followed my grandfather to Australia after his marriage in 1921. By all accounts my grandfather was quite attached to her. He certainly never gave any indication to my grandmother (with whom I had many talks about life in Edinburgh) or his children that he knew he was adopted. He and my grandmother named one of their children (my aunt) after Maud.
And, my grandfathers death certificate is quite definite in naming her and George Russell Carruthers as his parents, although I’m unsure what my grandmother and father used as evidence – no documents survive in our family.