Seeking My Maternal Grandfather's Scottish Heritage.....

DuncanMcLaren · Post by **DuncanMcLaren** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 1:54 pm

William McLaren Duncan was born (illegitimate) on 28 March 1901 in the District of St. Machar in the Burgh of Aberdeen. His mother, Annabella Wyness Duncan, was living at 21 Broomhill Road, Aberdeen at the time.

There is a paternity notation (RCE?) on the birth record (page 206) referencing Vol 12 #186. Supposedly his father's name was William McLaren.

His mother disowned him when he emigrated to the USA in 1922. He had a sister, Mrs. Margaret Graham, who was living in Dundee at the time of his death (April 11, 1960).

There was no contact with his family after my mother notified them of his death.

I've been searching through the records available on the Scotland's People web site but with so few facts to go by it's been difficult to narrow down the right "Annabella Duncan".

If anyone can help to provide additional facts to help me start moving back through the generations, I would really appreciate it.

Post by **AnneM** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 2:54 pm

Hi Duncan

You have got a real problem here. I have searched to no avail for the right Annabella or Bella Duncan or McLaren and William of a few days old in Aberdeen in the 1901 census. Broomhill Road is parallel to the street I live in so that sparked my interest.

I have to admit I am stumped. I also looked for his sister's marriage to a Mr Graham but it is possible either that his sister had a different surname or that the marriage took place after 1930. I looked for his sister under Duncan and Mc Laren but no result.

There are one or two likely deaths for an Annabella Duncan in Aberdeen pre 1955 but no way of telling which is correct.

I also checked to see if Mr McLaren made an honest woman of Annabella but no sign of that either.

I hope someone who is better at finding people on the census might just track them down.

All the best

Anne

JustJean · Post by **JustJean** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 2:55 pm

Hi Duncan and welcome to TalkingScot!

I wonder if you were able to locate Annabella on the 1901 census? It seems that wee William should have been born just in time to get a mention on that but so far I've not found them.

His birth registration states his mother's occupation as Glove machinist. This would be the best clue for matching her in the 1901 but so far I've not accomplished that either

. Do you have any idea if Annabella married sometime after William was born or do you think Margaret was also illegitimate? Surely there's a solution to all this......but a bit more info could help.

Best wishes
Jean

ps...and nice to see a fellow New Englander on the forum

! I haven't thought of Dark Shadows in years!

AnnetteR · Post by **AnnetteR** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 4:22 pm

Hi Duncan

Like the others I am stumped with this one also. I cross checked all the little William Duncans on the 1901 census with all the Annabellas but didn't come up with a match. I was thinking maybe that she had been sent away from home to have William so I widened the search incase she had gone back home by the time the census was taken. Nada, zilch, zero

I too looked at the possibilities with Margaret but again nout

There was me thinking that Annabella's middle name was gonna make things easy

Hopefully one of the experts will get to the bottom of it for you. All the best of luck

Annette R

Post by **AnneM** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 6:36 pm

Hi

On the way home from the supermarket I drove along Broomhill Road (not much of a detour) to take a quick butchers at the house. I wondered if there might be something about the building which would give us a clue as to why Annabella had her child there. Obviously I don't know if the numbering has changed since 1901 but the present number 21 is just an ordinary wee terraced house which, given the age of the houses in this area, was almost certainly fairly new in 1901. My own house which is only one street South was built around the turn of the 20th Century-- this area was developed around then.

Sadly this gives us no clue at all about Annabella and William. I wondered if the only way would be to look at the returns for this area and scroll through the ED until 21 Broomhill appeared. The occupants might give us some clue as to who Annabella and William are. I've never looked through a 1901 census film but I'm assuming it's possible and that a particular street can be located on a film. Maybe it's possible to do that at ANEFHS. I'm not a member so don't know.

Now if you were feeling really rich there is someone who had an ancestor at about the same time at 21 Braemar Place which is likely to be in the same ED. You could find him and then go back through the previous pages until you find 21 Broomhill!!! Mind you you'd probably have to be desperate.

Anne

AnnetteR · Post by **AnnetteR** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 3:38 pm

Hi again

I don't know if this is of any help but it may just open up an avenue for you to go down. I was playing about with the 'Wyness' name on the IGI and I came across the birth of a George Duncan to George Duncan and Margaret Wyness. He was born 1841 in Tyree, Argyll. Could this be Annabella's father and she has taken the Wyness middle name from her Grandmother? Possibly her daughter Margaret was named after her paternal Grandmother. Maybe just a coincidence but who knows.

Sorry if I'm just giving you more problems

Annette R

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 4:00 pm

AnneM wrote:....snipped..........

Sadly this gives us no clue at all about Annabella and William. I wondered if the only way would be to look at the returns for this area and scroll through the ED until 21 Broomhill appeared. The occupants might give us some clue as to who Annabella and William are. I've never looked through a 1901 census film but I'm assuming it's possible and that a particular street can be located on a film. Maybe it's possible to do that at ANEFHS. I'm not a member so don't know.

....snipped...........

There are indeed street indexes which should lead straight to the relevant ED for 21 Broomhill, so that the amount of scrolling to locate the returns for this address is no more than a few minutes.

Given that the birth was not registered until 15th April, and that there's no other address of the format "Usual Residence............" shown on the birth register entry, then they should turn up in the census on 31st March at 21 Broomhill ....... always assuming, of course, that they were enumerated ..............

David

Post by **AnneM** » Sun Jul 30, 2006 6:32 pm

Hi David

I thunk that might be the case. Given that the babe was only a couple of days old on census night you feel they ought to be there but they are not popping up on SP. The only possiblity I could think of was that Annabella was enumerated as Ann or Anna and the baby had no name at that stage. Either that or they were put down as dittos when such they were not.

HAving said that I looked for all the kids with the surname Duncan under the age of one and not even a likely unnamed one appeared.

I think tbat a look at the census film is the only answer.

Anne

Carol Duncan · Post by **Carol Duncan** » Tue Aug 01, 2006 7:31 am

Hi David,

I have nothing helpful to add at all. I wish I did!

Other than to say Duncans are troublemakers!!

Good luck ... I, too, have a William Duncan up the tree somewhere ....

Carol Duncan
Australia