Hunting Frasers in Blairgowrie and Rattray.....

Joan · Post by **Joan** » Fri Sep 09, 2005 10:05 pm

I have taken up tracing my family tree and seemed to be doing very well but have now hit a brick wall and need help please.
I have traced my Dad's side back to 4 Fraser sisters in Blairgowrie.
The eldest Barbara Fraser (1813-1889) had one illegitmate daughter named Euphemia Allison. She was referred to as illegitmate on her death certificate which also named her father.
Euphemia Fraser (1819-1885) had a daughter named Annie Ayson - there is no record of any marriage and they always lived on every census toghther with the other Fraser sisters.
Jean Fraser disappears from the sisters home no record of her marriage but by 1851 her grandchildren (Agnes and James Escott) are living in the sisters' home.
My ancestor Ann (1823-1896) had two sons Robert and John. Census details show she lived with her sisters until they died then in 1891 was living with her son and a daughter named Elizabeth. Records I have retrieved for John give his father's name as William Fraser. All trace of Robert and Elizabeth disapear after this census.
The sisters were all born in the Rattray area and their death certificates show their parents as William Fraser and Marion Gow. I have hunted the available Parish records and census details available but can't pin down their father or the William Fraser (nfd) who is referred to as their father. Can anyone advise me as to what do look at next?

Post by **Liz Turner** » Thu Jul 13, 2006 9:09 pm

Hi there Joan

Have you made some progress with this, or are you still in need of some ideas? Maybe someone will spot this and come up with some ideas ...

Liz

Joan · Post by **Joan** » Fri Jul 14, 2006 2:45 am

Hi Liz
After lots of visits to libraries in Perth and Dunfermline, spending a King's ransom on credits, a couple of days at the National Archives in Edinburgh and finally in despair about 10 days on the internet I have (almost) finally accepted that I have come to a dead end on William Fraser.

I have now searched every record I can find about the Fraser sisters everyone of whom had illegitimate children. It would appear they and their children all lived together in the same house. That is except one sister Jean whose children I could trace but not her.
I have posted in various sites trying to find out about this family who intrigue me and have heard nothing. As you can see yours is the 1st reply, then within 10 mins of you posting your message I was contacted by email by a descendant of Jean Fraser, (spooky but true). She won't be able to help me with William but hopefully she'll enjoy all the research I've done.
I have enjoyed doing the research and now if any one asks those questions like if you could go back in time. which dead person would you like to talk to etc I can bore them to death with my answer. If anything this family is my genaealogy obsession. I am now worried that having visited they house they lived in, and tracing descendants makes me some kind of genaealogical stalker.

Thanks for taking the time to ask
Happy hunting
Joan

Post by **marilyn morning** » Fri Jul 14, 2006 3:48 am

Hello Members of TalkingScot

I simply must interrupt this thread to give a very big THANK YOU to LIZ TURNER for taking the time to help answer some of the unanswered posts here on TalkingScot. Its wonderful to see so many happy replies to your inquries!!

So once again let's hear it for liz's efforts!

=D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

catbug · Post by **catbug** » Fri Jul 14, 2006 5:28 pm

Hi Joan,

Don't think I can help you but just thought I'd let you know that I also have a couple of Frasers from Perthshire in my family tree. The first is an Elspeth Fraser who was born around 1805, Alyth and died in Blairgowrie in 1864. I haven't done much research at all on this line, as I have been concentrating on others, so all I know so far is that her parents were John Fraser and Mary Gow and she had at least one sibling - a sister called Barbara. She married a William Duffus and went on to have at least two daughters, Barbra Duffus, born 1836, and Elizabeth (from whom I'm descended) born 1841, both Rattray.

As I said I haven't done much research at all so I don't know if there's any connection (although the Gow surname caught my attention) but when I get round to doing more research I'll let you know if I find out anything interesting

. Sorry I couldn't be of any help.

Good luck,
Cat

P.S. I forgot to mention that from the little research I did a year or two ago, I found out that there is a possibility that Mary Gow also went by the name of Mary Bruce. I don't know yet if this is the same person and if it is, I don't know why she used two names. This still might not be of any use to you but I thought I'd write it anyway, in case of any connection

.

Joan · Post by **Joan** » Fri Jul 14, 2006 8:21 pm

Cat
Thanks for the reply, it is the same family. I will send you a pm. There are a lot more siblings than I orginally posted but Elspeth remains a new one for me.
Thanks again to Liz Turner for bringing the old posts back to notice.
Joan