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Anonymous

Caldwell

Caldwell's in Galston

Mar 23 2008, 7:29 PM EDT by Anonymous

Thread started: Mar 23 2008, 6:46 PM EDT Watch

My ancestor John Caldwell was born in St Quivox Parish to Allan Caldwell and Janet Guthrie, the elsdest son apparently and there was a family of seven children - the last born at Old Rome. Allan was a collier and probably originally worked at the mines of Newton on Ayr untilthey were worked out and then probably at Gatesise or the mines near Riccarton. I don't know where John's parents came from, when they were born, when they married or when they died. I have a clue that Janet may have come from Irvine as there is a birth there that is about the right age to a John Guthrie and Janet Brown.

John Caldwell came to Galston before 1799 as he was in the Muster Roll of that date. He married Mary Morton around about that time as their first child was born in 1801. He worked as a papermaker at the Straith mill near Greenholm and their children were born either at Straith or one or other of the Maxwood farms nearby. Mary died and John seem to have moved into Galston and the family must have known the Yeudall family. John married Agnes McClanachan as his second wife and had a total of 13 children by his two wives. Sons who stayed in the district were John from thje first marriage who married Annie Woodburn and David from the second marriage who married Isabella Robertson. There were a share of tragedies and early deaths. The family seems to have gone back into coalmining.

A problem for genealogists in Galston is that there were a number of John Caldwell's. There was the son of William and Elizabeth Breckenridge. John Caldwell of Loudoun Parish with his wife Janet Mair and big brood of sons and "oor" John who married firstly Mary Morton and then Agnes Breckenridge and who had another John.

Mary Morton may well be the daughter of Matthew Morton and Mary Richmond of Gowanbraeheid farm in the upper Irvine valley east of Priestland.

(to be continued)

Tom Caldwell

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Keyword tags: Bankhead Cottage Caldwell Galston Loudon (edit keyword tags)

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RE: Caldwell
By: Anonymous, Mar 23 2008, 7:29 PM EDT

My Grandfather Tom was the youngest surviving child of 15 born to Joseph and Janet Wilson. When I was a young child and shortly after my grandfather had sold his own Aerated Water factory in East Shaw Street Kilmarnock to the Scottish Co-operative Society trading as "Hendry's" my parents moved to Bankhead Cottage - one of the walls of this property was a common wall with the Loudoun Kirk - and I vaguely remember the church building over the wall. We were back in our family district but my parents did not know.

I started school at the Barr School Galston where perhaps my ancestor's had also been schooled - I did not know this. I walked the time- worn path that ran past Bankhead into Galston when I went back and forth to school. I played with and walked to scholl with George Berger whose father was a German pow who opted to settle in Scotland after WWII and who worked at Ladyton farm.

Later in life when I mentioned to my mother that I had "discovered" our family had lived in Galston she said that she had not known - she also commented that when we had lived in Galston at Bankhead she had not known of any other Caldwells living in the area. There may have been some others not met or known of but the number of Caldwell families and their prodigious number of children should have meant vast numbers of Caldwell descendents. Most surely must have moved on.

There is a lesson there and it is surprising that so few Caldwell's in the world can trace ancestry back to Galston. Perhaps you have not tried hard enough (smile).

Tom Caldwell

PS - of course we moved on as well - I have spent most of my life living in Australia and have actually met some of the descendents of my GGrandfather's brother whose family emigrated to Gympie in 1884.

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valtown

David Loudoun

David Loudoun

Mar 4 2008, 5:32 PM EST by Agnes14

hazelw

Smith family in Loudoun/ Newmilns

Family History Resources

Jan 24 2008, 10:14 AM EST by Agnes14

hughandrew

Helen Nisbet Wardrop

Family History Resources

Jan 14 2008, 5:18 AM EST by Agnes14

Thread started: Aug 23 2007, 12:12 PM EDT Watch

Helen Nisbet Wardrop, born Louden in 1852, married James Andrew , born 14 May 1849 in Monkton. became married but I have no date. Jame's father was William Andrew born1788 in Monkton.
I have been told that Helen's parents were Thomas Wardrop, born about 1814 in Ladyton, Loudon and her mother was Janet Vallance. I have no explanation for the mother's name nor do I know where she got the Nisbet part of her name from. I was also told that Helen had a sister named Mary Wardrop who married John Orr in 1869, and another sister named Jean Allison Wardrop bron 1855.
Other than the marriage of my anscestor James Andrew to Helen Nisbet Wardrop, I have not confirming documentation, only an e-mail, which i've lost, from a nice lady.
I would apprecaite any infomation on James Andrew and Helen Nisbet Wardrop family connections.
Thank you

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