Familysearch.org recently listed a new research guide on Scotland, so I thought I would read it to see if I could find some new research tips for my Scottish ancestors. They did not add much new information for me, but I did find their map with county information useful. Also, they stated naming traditions in Scotland of naming first son after the father's father, and second son after the mother's father. This goes for the girls too, with the first daughter named after the mother's mother, etc. Basically, after reading this guide, it spurred my interest in my Scottish ancestry again.
With renewed energy, I took a look at my ancestors to see if there were some gaps in my tree. Most of my Scottish heritage arises from my father's grandmother, Ann Hutchison Ferguson, who came to the US in 1920 after World War I, where; according to my father, she served as a nurse and met her future husband, Alfred Labrecque, also fighting in the War (see earlier blog entry). Ann was born 1895 in Glasgow, Scotland to James Fitchie Ferguson and Grace Stewart Cox. I have basic information on both James and Grace's parents, and even further back to the early 1800s to my 4th great grandparents for James family. Grace's line was not as easy to find, but I did get back to my 4th great grandparents on her paternal side. When I researched her maternal line, I could only find Grace Cox's mother, which is my 3rd Great Grandmother, Ann Hutchison.
The place to look for Scottish records is Scotlandspeople, which has parish registers from 1553 and census records for 1841-1901. When I searched here in the past, I could not locate Ann Hutchison's (Grace's mother) birth record; which would have given me her parents' names. I have an estimated birth date of 1833 for Ann, from her 1871 census record with her husband, John Cox and children. I decided to look in the "Old Parish Registers", from Scotlandspeople one more time for her birth record. Unfortunately; I could not find an Ann Hutchison that matched these parameters in the Old Parish Registers. The Scottish were not required to register births or other vital information until 1855, so I am not that surprised I did not find her. Next, I tried searching for any Hutchisons who had children around that time living in Tealing, Forfarshire in the 1851 census; which is where her marriage in 1852 took place (the county of Forfarshire later changed to the county of Angus). Since Ann was married in 1852, I was hoping she would be listed with her parents in the 1851 census, still in this location. I was also looking closely for any William Hutchison's, as according to naming traditions; may be her father's name as that is what John and she named their second son. I could not find a William with a daughter Ann in Tealing. My next step was to search the 1841 census in Tealing with the last name of Hutchison. Finally, I found an Ann who is 8 years old. The age seems to match my ancestor, making her born around 1833. The father's name; however, is not William as I suspected, but Peter. There is a William listed on the same census page though, which could be Peter's brother. Maybe Peter's father's name is William. Peter Hutchison is married to Christian with a son David, and two other daughters besides Ann, a Jean and an Elizabeth.
I went back to the Old Parish Registers to look for birth records of the children of Peter and Christian. I found Christian's last name is Hill. The registers account for David, Elizabeth and a Jane Hutchison as children to Peter and Christian, but still no Ann. I am fairly confident that this is her family; as I know she is from Tealing, born around 1833, and there are no other Ann Hutchisons in the 1841 census. However, I still need some more evidence to prove this family line.
My next step was to look for Ann's death record, which would also list her parents. I know Ann is still living when her daughter Grace (my 2nd Great Grandmother) marries in 1895. I also know that she has died by the 1901 census, as her husband is listed without her and living with his two sisters. I was very hopeful I would find this information, as at this point in Scottish history, her death would have to be recorded by law and should be listed in the "Statutory Death Index" at Scotlandspeople. I searched in the Death Records database between these time periods for Ann Cox, but did not find her. I will not give up searching for her death record, as I know she is in there somewhere. Soon I will have proof her parents are Peter and Christian.
To Do:
1. Find Peter Hutchison's family in the 1851 Scotland Census
2. Find Ann (Hutchison) Cox's death record. UPDATE: found death record - read entry here
3. Look for information on Tealing and other areas of Scotland where my ancestors live to get a feel for their lives. A good place to start is the FHL Research Guidance; spefically, Scotland, How to Find Information About the Place Where Your Ancestor Lived
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