My first silly question.....

mvy_1 · Post by **mvy_1** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 8:23 am

Hello to Everyone,
I have just been given some brief info on my Scottish ancestors and i have done a little research.

My Question is:-

I have found 3 Thomas McArthur's all born in Lanark, in the same year as my GG Grandfather but in different parishes. I have been told my GG Grandfather was born in Glasgow, So would I take a guess and go for the Glasgow born Thomas. Or could I possibly just be guessing and should I go for the one born in Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland or Govan, Lanark, Scotland?
As i dont have any idea on where these places are i am really unsure of what info to go on. The info came from Scotlands People and was done by another person on another forum.
As I dont have any record to date that I have seen in regard to his marriage other than a date and where he was married (which was so kindly given to me by a fellow researcher) I do not actually know who either of his parents are or in that fact his wifes parents as well.

I would be very gratefull if someone would kindly lead me in the right direction.
The problem i have is that my Grandfather never ever spoke of his family with his wife (my grandmother) or his children (my father and his brother and sister), so tracing this line is proving rather difficult.
Many thanks to those that have welcomed me into this forum so far.

Margaret.

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 8:42 am

Hi Margaret

Welcome to TS!

No question is silly

You shouldn't be guessing.

The way to go is to go back from yourself to your parents, then down the relevant branch, generation by generation until you get to gg grandfather Thomas McArthur.

David

mvy_1 · Post by **mvy_1** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 8:50 am

Hi David,
I have already done that, but the problem i have is that none of the family knows anything back from my grandfather (dads dad). All dad knew was his grandmother name, he was not even sure of his grandfathers name. So it is a little difficult at this stage.
I now have confirmation on dads grandfathers name, so i can now put 2 and 2 together there.
He also knew what parish his father was born in, but thats as far as it goes. His father is not even listed on Familysearch.org.

Margaret.

Post by **AnneM** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:16 am

Hi Margaret

Govan is part of Glasgow. Without any clear idea of which Thomas it is you will not get the correct one. If you give some dates people here will be able to point you in the direction of the records you need to find the right man. It is never a good idea to rely on someone else's information. They may just be wrong or worse may be guessing.

Sometimes finding the right person can be a real chore, involvong excluding all the others, but it is worth the effort in the end. It took me months and months to find the death of my great grandfather John Kerr. However once I did I had a clear run back to the C17!

However if your man married or died in Scotland you should have a much easier time.

Anne

Anne

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:31 am

mvy_1 wrote:Hi David,
I have already done that, but the problem i have is that none of the family knows anything back from my grandfather (dads dad). All dad knew was his grandmother name, he was not even sure of his grandfathers name. So it is a little difficult at this stage.
I now have confirmation on dads grandfathers name, so i can now put 2 and 2 together there.
He also knew what parish his father was born in, but thats as far as it goes. His father is not even listed on Familysearch.org.
Margaret.

In which case you may never be certain about who is the correct man for your gg grandfather

All I can do is to encourage you to go on looking for more jigsaw pieces which could help!

David

mvy_1 · Post by **mvy_1** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 9:54 am

Thank you Anne,

The dates i have are as follows:-
My Grandfather
Thomas Mc Arthur b 25 Nov 1901 (I know this is correct) in Leith, Edinburgh. m 2 Nov 1928 (I know this is correct) in Fitzroy South, Vic, Aust. d 7 Aug 1967 (I know this is correct) in Beaconsfield, Vic, Aust. and is buried at Springvale, Vic, Aust.
The following info was supplied to me by another person who did a search at SP.
His Mother:-
Annie Melville b about 1861 Kennoway, Fife.
and
Father:-
Thomas McArthur b about 1859 Glasgow, Scotland.
Married 30 Oct 1891 Glasgow, Scotland.
THe following info my grandmother gave me before she died about 25 years ago,
I do know that there were several babies that either died at birth or died at an early age.
I also know there was a sister:- Margaret b unknown
d 1985 in Scotland. Not sure where but possibly Leith, as she lived there all her life. She never married.

My father also has in his possession a letter written by the local Parish Minister when my Grandfather emigrated to Aust. The letter is like a reference. The letter was signed by the Parish Priest a Donald M. Begbie in either 1922 or 1924. I have misplaced it at the moment. The letter is marked St John's Manse, Leith.
I also know that he worked for Neil Dryburgh and Sons, Cooperage, Easter Road, Leith.

I also have addresses where his sister lived in 1924 and 1927.

I have know idea even what ship he came out here on or even a date of arrival only possibly a year given to me by my grandmother before she died. I did a search on Ellis island and came up with one Thomas McArthur who had the same year of birth as mine and same Fathers name. My father could not even tell me if he went to America first then Aust.
This is all the info that I have.

Thankyou Margaret.

nelmit · Post by **nelmit** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 11:45 am

Hello Margaret,

Hopefully I have followed this thread properly and am not going to confuse things.

There is only one Thomas Mcarthur born in Leith in 1901. If you look at his birth entry on SP it will confirm his parent's names and marriage date and that should set the ball rolling backwards.

Unless it's forward you want to go??

Regards,
Annette M

mvy_1 · Post by **mvy_1** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 12:26 pm

Hi Annette,
Yes, you are right. That I know for sure is my grandfather.

Would SP be the only source for this information or am i likely to be able to get it else where as well?
I am a little hesitant to be purchasing over the net. "Once bitten twice shy."
I am aware its a government site, but it just me.
Margaret.

Post by **emanday** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 12:45 pm

Hi Margaret,

I have been buying SP credits online for quite some time now and have never had any problems. I believe their system is very secure.

I really recommend using this fantastic source for your Scottish ancestry research. They are improving the information available as we speak and the "Help" folks on the site are probably the most helpful of any pay-to-view site I have ever come across.

Go for it, and Good Luck

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 12:49 pm

mvy_1 wrote:Hi Annette,
Yes, you are right. That I know for sure is my grandfather.

Would SP be the only source for this information or am i likely to be able to get it else where as well?
I am a little hesitant to be purchasing over the net. "Once bitten twice shy."
I am aware its a government site, but it just me.
Margaret.

The 1901 birth register entry (the birth date matches) will give the place and date of the marriage of the marriage of the parents. That marriage register entry, always assuming that it's in Scotland (it is) will give the names of the parents of the bride and groom.

You have no need to be concerned about the www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk site.

Via death register entries, censuses, and the LDS site at familysearch.org , you should be able to go back another generation. Just as a bonus, you have an 1855 birth register entry waiting for you on the McARTHUR line .........

David