The Briggs Family of Kirkcudbrightshire and Midlothian

THE BRIGGS FAMILY OF KIRKCUDBRIGHTSHIRE AND MIDLOTHIAN

The Meaning of the Name

The name comes from the Scots form of Bridge, and means that the original possessor of the name lived beside a bridge. The name has been spelt in various ways through the centuries, including Bryg, Brig, Brigg and Bridge, although nowadays Briggs is the most common version.

Early Times

The name first appears in Scotland in Aberdeen as Bryg in 1382, but other early records are widespread.

The history of our Briggs ancestors goes back nearly four centuries to the first half of the seventeenth century. At that time they were living at the farm of Drum in the parish of New Abbey in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, otherwise known as Kirkcudbrightshire, in the south-west of Scotland. New Abbey is more commonly known as Sweetheart Abbey. The exact relationship of the various early members of the Briggs family is not always clear, so a certain amount of speculation is involved. The association with Drum is, however, evidence of a close relationship.

John Brig (d 1690)

John Brig, who died in 1690 at Drum, is our earliest known Briggs ancestor. It is not known when John was born, but in 1657 he was living at Drum. In that year his wife Margaret Sanderson died and the inventory of her estate is recorded in the Dumfries Commissariot in February 1657. She left the sum of £3139-13-4 Scots and her executors were her children Andro (Andrew) and Issobell (Isobel).

It appears that John later remarried, although this is not certain. In any event a Janet Maxwell, probably his second wife, died in 1685, her inventory also being recorded in the Dumfries Commissariot. She left £357-13-4 Scots and her executors were her spouse John Brig (in Drum) and her children Janet and Margaret. She owed money to Thomas Brig in Drum.

John also had at least one son, also John, who died in 1675 at Drum. His father John was his executor, as his wife Agnes Kirkonnel had recently died, and he presumably had no children. His mother was probably Janet Maxwell.

John also possibly had another son, Thomas, whose wife was Janet Willson, who died in 1687. Her inventory is recorded in the Dumfries Commissariot. Thomas certainly lived at Drum, although it is possible he was John senior's brother and not his son.

John's daughter Margaret was probably the Margaret Brig who was the spouse of Adam Greenlaw in Glen, New Abbey in 1691.

John's inventory is recorded in the Commissariot of Dumfries in January 1691, which makes it likely that he died in 1690. His estate amounted to £388-13-4, and his inventory records debts owed to him by Andrew Briggs in the farm of Nimbellie in the neighbouring parish of Kirkbean, and by Margaret Briggs, the wife of Adam Greenlaw in the farm Glen in New Abbey. Andrew and Margaret Briggs may have been his grandchildren. John's executrix was his only lawful daughter, Janet, so presumably his other children had already died by 1690.

John Brig (d 1675)

John died in August 1675 at Drum and is likely to have been the son of the John Brig who died in 1690. His inventory is recorded in the Commissariot of Dumfries, his estate amounting to £350-16-0. His father John was his executor, his wife Agnes Kirkonnel having died earlier the same year or in 1674. Agnes's estate amounted to £363-8-0 and her son John was her executor. Agnes owed money to Walter Brig, presumably a close relative.

Thomas Briggs

Little is known of Thomas, except that he was the husband of Janet Willson, who died at Drum in October 1687. Thomas and Janet had at least four children, John, Thomas, Andrew and Janet, who acted as Janet senior's executors. Janet's estate amounted to £3195-11-4 and she was owed money by John Briggs in Kirkbean parish and owed debts to Andrew Briggs and Janet Briggs. These three were possibly her children.

Of the children, nothing further is known of John and Janet, while Andrew's life is described below. Thomas is believed to have become a merchant in Dumfries and is described in his brother Andrew's inventory as "Dean", probably meaning that he was the Dean of Guild. He may have been married to Marion Blackstock, who is recorded as the widow of Thomas Briggs in her inventory, recorded in 1741.

Andrew Bridge (d 1740)

Andrew Bridge, who died at Drum in 1740, was probably the son of Thomas Briggs and Janet Willson. The inventory of debts owed to him is recorded in the Commissariot of Dumfries, amounting to £318-15-6. His burial at New Abbey churchyard is recorded in the parish register. The name of his wife is not known, but she had probably died before 1740, as Andrew's executor was his son Thomas. He probably also had a daughter Margaret, born in 1695.

Thomas Brigg (1702-1750)

Thomas Brigg was born at Drum in 1702, the son of Andrew Bridge. He married and had eight children, although his wife's name is not known. His children, all born at Drum, were Margaret, born 1734, Adam, 1735, William, 1738, Andrew, 1742, Margaret, 1744, twins Archibald and Robert, 1746 and Jacob, 1749. It is likely that the first Margaret died young. Nothing is known of the other children, except for Jacob, whose life is described below. It is possible that Thomas had two earlier children, Andrew and Margaret, who died in November 1733. Thomas died at Drum in 1750, aged 48, and is buried in New Abbey kirkyard.

Jacob Briggs (b 1749)

Jacob Briggs was born in 1749 at Drum, the eighth child of Thomas Brigg. The reason for his uncommon Christian name may have been due to family Jacobite sympathies, it being only three years after the Battle of Culloden. Jacob married Jane Hutton and they had at least six children, Thomas, born 1781, John, c1783, William, 1787, Robert, 1792, Margaret, 1796 and a second John, 1801. As the sixth son, Jacob had to find employment away from the family farm, but he did not move far. From 1781 to 1787, he and his family were at Townhead, which was probably Townhead of Drum, adjacent to Drum itself. In 1790 they were at Bogg, but by 1792 they were back at Townhead. By 1801, however, they had flitted again, this time to Lochhill. Bogg and Lochhill are also in New Abbey parish. At some stage Jacob found work as a forester, presumably on one of the large estates in the area.

Of the children, the first John died in 1790, aged 8, and Margaret died in 1819, aged 22. They are both buried at Sweetheart Abbey, where they are commemorated on the family gravestone. Thomas's life is described below.

William married Henrietta Webster and moved into the nearby town of Dumfries, where he became the innkeeper of the "Caerlaverock Castle" in the High Street. There were at least two children, Samuel and Agnes. Latterly William lived in the adjacent burgh of Maxwelltown, where he died in 1859 at the age of 72, and is buried in the churchyard of Terregles, a nearby parish. Henrietta died in 1865.

It is not known when Jacob and Jane died, but they are presumably buried in the family grave at Sweetheart Abbey.

Gravestone of Jacob Briggs

Thomas Briggs (1781-1854)

Thomas Briggs was the first known child of Jacob Briggs and Jane Hutton, and was born in 1781 at Townhead (of Drum?), New Abbey. As a young man he travelled to the Lothian area and married Mary Taylor, the daughter of James Taylor and Mary Fraser of Prestonpans in East Lothian. The reason for Thomas move such a long way from home is not known. If he was the eldest son, he could have expected to inherit the family farm, and it may be that he was conscripted into the Militia, who were being raised around the turn of the century, because of the Napoleonic wars. It is known that the Galloway Militia were in the Edinburgh area in 1805. Thomas became a gardener by profession, and this may be the reason for his move, as members of this trade often had to move around to find work in the large estates. Whatever the reason, Thomas and his family lived in the village of Newbattle in Midlothian from the early years of the century until his death there in 1854. He probably worked on the large Newbattle Abbey estate, the home of the Marquis of Lothian, and originally an important monastic institution.

Thomas and Mary had at least seven children, William, born 1802, Jane, 1807, Mary, 1809, John, 1811, Margaret, 1814 and Harriet, 1816. An unnamed son died in 1808, but his birth is unrecorded. Another child died in 1815, but which one is not known. William married Anne Dickson and their life being described below. Mary died in 1853 of "old age", aged 78, and Thomas died in 1854 of "decline", aged 73.

William Briggs (1802-1879)

William Briggs was born in 1802 in the village of Newbattle, Midlothian, the first known child of Thomas Briggs and his wife Mary Taylor. In 1828 he married Anne Dickson, the daughter of Stair Dickson and Janet Hunter. William became a coal miner, Newbattle being one of the oldest and most productive coal-fields in Scotland. The monks of Newbattle Abbey had been pioneers of this industry as far back as the 13th century. After their marriage, William and Anne remained in the parish, although their exact address is not known. In 1841, however, they were living in the mining village of Westhouses and remained there until at least 1852. By 1861, they had flitted to another mining village, Gowkshill in the neighbouring parish of Cockpen.

William and Anne had seven children. Helen Porteous, born 1829, Thomas, 1831, Stair, 1834, Mary, 1836, William, 1838, Charles, 1841 and John, 1844.

Of these Helen went to London and is presumed to have married a man by the surname Morris. By 1861 she was back in Midlothian, living with her parents and her son James and working as a grocer. In 1881 she was working as housekeeper to her brother Stair's father-in-law at Gowkshill.

Thomas was killed in an accident in 1845 at the age of 14.

Stair, named after his maternal grandfather, married Margaret Riddle in 1857 and worked as a coal miner. He and Margaret had ten children, two of whom emigrated to Guelph in Ontario, Canada, and one to Wyoming, USA. Stair is believed to have died in 1911.

Mary may have died before 1851 as she was not with her parents in the census of that year. William was alive in 1851, but it is not known what became of him thereafter. Charles married Jane Davidson in 1865 and their life is described below. John was still living at home in 1861 and working as a miner.

William senior died of a stroke in 1879, aged 76, which was a ripe old age for a coal miner, whose lifespans were usually short due to the hazards of the occupation, including accidents and dust-related diseases. Anne died a year later, of "senile decay", also aged 76.

Charles Briggs (1841-1904)

Charles Briggs, the sixth child of William Briggs and Anne Dickson, was born in 1841 in the parish of Newbattle, almost certainly in the coal mining village of Westhouses. By 1861, the family had moved to the nearby mining village of Gowkshill in the adjacent Cockpen parish, and there Charles married Jane Davidson, the daughter of Robert Davidson and Jane Scott, having already had their first child, Jane, in 1863. After their marriage they moved to another nearby mining village, Masterton in Newbattle parish, but it is not known how long they remained there, although all their seven children were born in the parish. Charles and Jane also had an adopted daughter, Jane Flockhart, born in 1881, who was almost certainly related. By 1881 the family were staying in the mining village of Newtongrange, also in Newbattle, which was to become a model village and the largest mining village in Scotland, based on the Lady Victoria colliery.

Of the children, Jane, born 1863, was living in 1881 as a lodger with John Robertson, a slater, in the village of Colinton, near Edinburgh. By 1891, however, she was back with the family in Newtongrange and working as a carpet weaver, presumably in the carpet works in the nearby town of Bonnyrigg. Nothing more is known of her.

Anne, born 1866, married James Neilson in 1887, and her life is described in "The Story of the Neilsons"

Margaret, born 1868, was working in a paper mill in 1881 and as a carpet weaver in 1891, like her elder sister Jane. Ellen, born in 1870, was also a carpet weaver in 1891. Nothing more is known of Margaret and Ellen.

William, born 1872, became a coal miner. He married Catherine Wilson Fisher, and they had at least one child, Charles. William died in Bonnyrigg in 1941 of pernicious anaemia.

Robert, born in 1875, was also a coal miner in 1891, but later moved to the small mining village of Blackridge in West Lothian, where about 1906 he became the publican of the Westcraigs Inn. In 1908 he married Margaret Brown McLaren, and they had at least two children, Margaret, born c1908, and Jane, born c1919. About 1919 Robert gave up the pub, becoming an ironworker for a short time, before returning to his earlier occupation as a coal miner. In 1921 he emigrated to the USA, where he joined his cousin once removed Stairs Briggs in Hanna, Carbon County, Wyoming. Margaret and the two children followed him to Wyoming later in the same year. Tragically Robert died in Wyoming in 1923.

Mary, born in 1878, became a carpet worker like her elder sisters, and was still unmarried in 1901. Nothing further is known of her life.

Charles died tragically in 1904 at the age of 63 as a result of injuries received in a roof-fall in the coal pit where he worked. After Charles's death, Jane went to live with her son Robert in Blackridge until 1917. Jane died of a stroke in 1918, aged 75, in the town of Musselburgh, on the Firth of Forth, just east of Edinburgh. Charles and Jane are buried in Newbattle Old Graveyard, although there is no stone to their memory.

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