THE HISTORY OF THE EDWARD FAMILY OF PETERCULTER, ABERDEENSHIRE AND NIGG, KINCARDINESHIRE
The Origins of the Name
The surname Edward is derived from the Old English personal name Eadweard meaning "happy ward" or "happy guardian". It first appeared in Scotland in the fifteenth century. An alternative derivation is from another Old English personal name Udward, which appeared in the twelfth century. The name is common to-day in Angus and Kincardineshire and has migrated north into Aberdeenshire.
Our Earliest Known Ancestor - Alexander Edward (c1723-69)
Our earliest known Edward ancestor is Alexander Edward, who was born around 1723. It is not known where he was born, but he married Christian Sadler, born about 1716, and they had at least five children while resident in Peterculter parish in Aberdeenshire. This parish lies a few miles west of the city of Aberdeen on the north side of the River Dee. Alexander and Christian had their first known child, Ann, in 1745, while living at Countesswells. By 1752 they had moved the short distance to Gairn farm, where Alexander was a tenant farmer. There Jean was born in 1752 and William in 1753. Later Alexander became tenant of Mains of Countesswells farm, and, while there, twins Alexander and Isabell were born in 1759. It is possible that Alexander and Christian had other unknown children. In the 1760s Alexander obtained employment as a gardener, probably at Countesswells House in the parish. He died in 1769, aged 46, and his wife Christian died in 1801, aged 85. A gravestone was erected to their memory in Peterculter kirkyard, containing much detail about the Edward family, but unfortunately it was removed many years ago. Ann moved with her brother William to Kirkhill farm in Nigg parish, where she died in 1836 at the great age of 91. Jean, Alexander junior and Isabell probably died young, while William's life is described below.
William, born in 1753, left Peterculter parish and obtained the tenancy of the farm of South Kirkhill in the parish of Nigg in Kincardineshire. Nigg lies on the south side of the River Dee opposite Aberdeen. In 1790 he married Christian Norrie, the daughter of Andrew Norrie or Nory, a farmer in the neighbouring parish of Banchory-Devenick, and his wife Christian Dunn. William and Christian had six children, William, Christian, Andrew, Anne, Helen and Margaret, all at South Kirkhill. The farm was 80 acres, large for the eighteenth century and William appears to have prospered. He owned a tenement of five flats at St Clement Street, Footdee in Aberdeen, and was an elder of Nigg kirk. When he died in 1827, aged 74, he left a will, his estate amounting to £3,366, a large sum for the time. Christian continued to live at South Kirkhill and probably died in 1846, aged 84. William and Christian are buried in the family grave at Peterculter.
Of their children, William, the eldest, was born in 1791 and died in 1805, aged 14. Christian junior, was born in 1793 and did not marry, but nothing further is known of her. Andrew inherited the tenancy of the farm on his father's death and his life is described below.
Andrew was born in 1796 at South Kirkhill, Nigg, the third child of William Edward and Christian Norrie. Andrew inherited the tenancy of the farm on the death of his father in 1827 and like him appears to have prospered. In 1828 Andrew was elected as an elder in Nigg Parish Church, and remained in this position until 1839. In that year he married Janet Taylor, who came from Fife. Shortly after their wedding on 11th June 1839, Andrew was removed from the kirk session because of fornication with Janet before their marriage, a scandalous matter in those days. Even worse was to come, however, when another young woman, Janet Smith of Footdee in Aberdeen, accused him of fathering her female child, which was born on 15th October 1840, and sued him for expenses.This Janet had been a servant of Andrew's. Andrew did not deny that he was the father of the child. At first he refused to appear before the kirk session, but eventually he repented of his fornication, and was absolved. The child's name is not known.
Andrew and Janet Taylor had five children, all boys, before Janet tragically died in 1848 at the age of 32. As well as farming, Andrew owned shares in two ships, the barque "Margaret Edward" and the "British Queen". The former ship was named after his sister Margaret, the wife of John Hector, who was probably the majority owner.
The "Margaret Edward", a clipper barque of 349 tons, was built in 1856 at Geddie's Garmouth shipyard at the mouth of the River Spey. It was described as the best specimen of naval architecture yet built on Spey. She was owned by Hector & Co of Aberdeen, the Hector being the above John Hector, and captained by Alexander Hector Taylor (the son of John's sister Isabel) until 1861. Her first voyage was to South Africa, and she later traded also with the Baltic. By 1869 the ship had been sold out of the family, but continued sailing till about the end of the century.
The "British Queen" was a schooner of 431 tons, built in Aberdeen in 1858. It was owned by Duthie & Co, and captained until 1869 by Alexander Scorgie, Andrew's nephew, the son of his sister Anne. The "British Queen" also sailed to South Africa. It had also been sold out of the family by 1869, but sailed until at least 1885.
Andrew also owned a tenement in Torry and employed six people on the farm. He died in 1860 of phthisis (tuberculosis), aged 64, and left an estate of £31,383, an enormous sum in those days. Andrew and Janet are buried in the family grave at Peterculter.
Anne was born in 1798 and in 1818 she married Alexander Scorgie, a shipmaster or captain. In the summer of that year, Captain Scorgie was in command of the brigantine "Granite" on a voyage from Aberdeen to Pictou in Nova Scotia, possibly carrying emigrants. They had at least two children, Christian b1820 and Alexander b1822 at Nigg. Captain Scorgie appears to have died shortly afterwards, as in 1827 Anne remarried, to another shipmaster, James Tulloch, a Shetlander. They had five children, William, b1827, James, b1830, Andrew Edward, b1834, Ann, b1836, and Helen Anderson, b1839. Anne died in 1861 of liver disease at the age of 63. Captain Tulloch appears to have been a man of some standing, as he has an entry in the Clergy and Gentry section of Slater's Directory for 1878, when he lived at Viewmount Cottage, Holburn Place, Aberdeen. By this time he had probably retired from the sea, and James junior appears to have taken over his business. James senior died in 1883, at the age of 84, leaving an estate of £6,847-0-3, a very large sum at that time. Anne and James are buried in St Clement's kirkyard in Aberdeen's harbour district of Footdee.
Anne's first daughter, Christian Scorgie, did not marry, and lived at Viewmount Cottage with her stepfather. After his death in 1883, she lived at 20 Braemar Place in Aberdeen, where she died in 1905. Ann's first son, Alexander, became a shipmaster like his father. In 1852 he was the master of the "Shepherdess", a wooden barque of 331 tons of Aberdeen, engaged in the South African trade. His cousin John Hector was the mate when he died on board in that year (see below). In 1858 Alexander had taken command of the schooner "British Queen" (see above) and captained her until at least 1868. He died in 1882. Ann and Alexander are buried with their mother and stepfather in St Clement's kirkyard.
James Tulloch junior married Anna Gregory and they had at least seven children. He took over his father's business, becoming a ship owner and tallow merchant. He died in 1925. Andrew Edward Tulloch died in 1853, aged 19. Nothing further is known of Anne's other children.
Helen, born in 1800, also married a shipmaster, Captain Daniel Anderson, in 1822 as his second wife. They lived in St Clement's Street in Footdee, Aberdeen, and had at least eight children - William, b1823, Helen, b1825, Ann, b1826, Jean, b1829, Margaret, b1833, Daniel, b1835, Elspet Rose, b1838 and Mary Ann. Of the children, William died in 1854, aged 31, Helen died in 1856, also aged 31, Ann died in 1903, aged 77, Jean died at about three months old, Margaret died in 1883, aged 50, Daniel died in 1873, aged 38, Elspet Rose died in 1839, less than one year old. The only one of the children known to have married was Mary Ann, who married a man by the surname of Main. Daniel senior was a part owner of three ships - the brigantines "Sir William Wallace", "Sisters" and "Sylvanus". The "Sylvanus" and the "Sisters" were both believed to have traded to Pictou in Nova Scotia, probably taking emigrants to Canada. "Sir William Wallace", built in 1835, was captained by Alexander Hector Taylor from 1866 till 1868. Daniel senior died in 1839, leaving a large estate of £1,486. Helen senior died suddenly in 1861. Daniel and Helen and most of the children are buried in St Clement's kirkyard.
Margaret was born in 1803 and in 1828 she married John Hector, going to live at Balnagask farm, Nigg, adjoining South Kirkhill. In 1830, John was a salmon fisher, but by 1835 he had become a salmon dealer, and he remained in this business the rest of his life, becoming a wealthy man. Later John and Margaret moved to Cove farm, also in Nigg, where he combined farming with salmon dealing. John also owned property in nearby Torry, comprising three houses and other buildings, as well as being the part owner of at least two ships, the "Margaret Edward" and the "British Queen" (see below).
Margaret and John had nine children - John, b1829, Andrew Edward, b1831, Christian, b1835, Margaret (1st), b1836, Jean Fettes, b1837, William, b1840, Margaret (2nd), b1842, Helen, b1844 and Alexander, b1847. About 1853 they moved to Bon-Accord Cottage, Nigg, before finally flitting to No 9 Crown Street, Aberdeen, where they remained for the rest of their lives. They died within a year of each other, Margaret in October 1869, and John in August 1870, and are buried in the kirkyard of the ancient St Fittick's Church at Nigg.
Of their children, the first Margaret died of chincough (whooping cough), aged ten months. Two sons, John junior and William, became ship's officers and died at sea. John, the eldest child, was the mate of the barque "Shepherdess", when he died in 1852, aged 22 (see above). It is known, however, that the ship did not sink. William was the chief officer of the "Gertrude", when he died off Newcastle, New South Wales, aged 28, in 1868. It is not known whether the ship sank. Christian died, unmarried and aged 30. Jean married Alexander Hector Taylor, her cousin, and they had at least two children. Margaret junior married a ship's captain, John Brunton, but tragically in 1869 she died of tetanus at the age of 27. Helen did not marry and died in 1926, aged 81. Alexander, the youngest child, probably died young. Andrew, the second eldest son, married Jane Cuddeford and eventually took over his father's business as a salmon merchant, as did Andrew's son John in his turn. The business was apparently still in existence as late as 1919.
William was the first son of Andrew Edward and Janet Taylor. He was born in 1839 and took over the tenancy of the farm on his father's death. In 1876 he married Mary Ann Singer and they had seven children - William, b1876, Mary Ann, b 1878, Andrew, b1880, Janet Taylor, b1881, John, b 1883, Margaret, b 1885 and Jane, b 1886. Four of them died in childhood - William, Mary Ann, Andrew and Janet. William senior died in 1888 of kidney disease, aged 48, and his wife continued to farm South Kirkhill until her death in 1910, when her son John took over the tenancy.
John married Annie Wright in 1918, and they had two children, John, born c1919, and Anne, born c1921. The Edward family connection with Kirkhill came to an end in the1920s, when John gave up farming and took a job on a cattle boat bound for Argentina. He remained in Argentina and became manager of a cattle ranch or estancia near the towns of Mauricio Mayer and Colonia Barón in La Pampa province in the province of La Pampa, about 300 miles SW of Buenos Aires. He married and had three children, John, Anne and William James. John junior served in the Second World War as a pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was one of the first Argentinian volunteers when he enlisted in 1940. He was posted to Great Britain where he served in Coastal Command. After the war John junior moved to Canada, married and had three daughters. He died in 1998. Anne, who was known in the family as Bunty, married Henk Molder. They lived in Buenos Aires and had 3 children. William, known as Bill, married Margaret Joyce Moffatt and had 5 children. Bill and Margaret died in Buenos Aires in 1997.
Margaret married Charles Reid Milne in 1921 after his first wife's death and they had one child. Margaret died in 1968, while Jane (known as Jeannie) never married and died in 1985 at the great age of 98.
Andrew was born in 1841 and became a mechanical engineer. In 1858 he was accused by Margaret Wood from the nearby fishing village of Torry of having made her pregnant. He denied this, but confessed guilt with her 18 months previously. Nigg Kirk Session granted Margaret a certificate of poverty to a Law Agent for the Poor in order to prosecute Andrew as the father of her child. There seems to be no further mention of the case, so it is not known if the child was proved to be his or not. In 1861 he admitted fornication with another Torry girl, Helen Emslie. Shortly afterwards, Helen gave birth to twins, Helen and Margaret. In 1862, Andrew was in trouble again with the kirk session, when Jessy Symon, a young unmarried woman in nearby Tullos was summoned before the session to explain a stillborn child. Andrew Edward was also summoned to appear, but there is no further record of this case, so it is not known if child was his or not. Andrew is believed to have married eventually, and to have gone to Fiji.
Robert, born in 1843, also became a mechanical engineer. He remained single and died in 1883, aged 40, supposedly of an apoplectic fit.
John Hector was born in 1845. At some point he emigrated to Melbourne in Australia, where he became a hotel keeper. In 1872 he married Annie Legg, a native of Guernsey. As the marriage took place at Bowlings Hotel, High Street, Prahran, this was presumably the hotel he ran.
James Tulloch was born in 1847 and his life is described below.
James Tulloch Edward (1847-1911)
James was born in 1847 at South Kirkhill, Nigg, the fifth son of Andrew Edward and his wife Janet Taylor. In 1873 James appeared before Nigg Kirk Session and acknowledged that he had fathered the child of Helen Holmes, his elder brother William's servant. The child was named William Edward Holmes, but he died of measles after only six months of life.
In 1876 James married Jane Milne, the daughter of Alexander Milne and Jane Ewen, and the same year obtained the tenancy of the farm of Silverburn in the parish of Peterculter. This lies near Countesswells, where his great-grandfather had lived more than a hundred years before. Silverburn was a farm of 80 acres and James employed two men and a girl. While at Silverburn, James and Jane had eight children, but by 1894 they had given up farming and moved into Aberdeen, where they had two more children. They lived first in a flat at Ashvale Place, and later flitted to Allan Street. James had various jobs, including a mason's labourer, a distillery maltman and a jobbing gardener. In 1911 James died of stomach cancer at the age of 63. Jane suffered from severe rheumatoid arthritis and had eventually to go into Morningfield Hospital, where she died in 1931, aged 77. James and Jane are believed to be buried in Nellfield Cemetery in Aberdeen, although their gravestone may be no longer in existence.
The eldest of James and Jane's children, Ann, was born in 1876. In 1900 she married William Milne, a granite cutter, and they had 3 children in Aberdeen - William, John and Mary. In 1903 the family emigrated to the USA, firstly to Barre, Vermont, where William worked in the large granite quarries there. Annie and William later moved to Denver, Colorado, along with Annie's brothers, where William became the president of the Colorado Granite Co. They had ten children. Annie died in 1930 of a heart attack, aged only 54. Of their children, John died in 1972, Albert in 1977, Edith in 1993 and Charles in 1994.
William was born in 1878, and became a stone cutter in Aberdeen's very important granite trade. He also emigrated to the USA and worked in the granite business there. He was unmarried and died in Denver before 1930, probably of silicosis.
James was born in 1880 and his life is described below.
Jessie Milne was born in 1881 and married James Shereffs Carnie as his second wife. They lived in Aberdeen and had three daughters.
Andrew, born in 1884, married Margaret Brown of Irvine in Ayrshire. In 1920, accompanied by his nephew Sydney Edward, the son of his sister Jessie, he emigrated to Denver to work in the granite business owned by his brother-in-law William Milne. Later he worked as a baker.
Albert was born in 1885 and by 1901 he was also working as a stone cutter. He also went to the USA to work in the granite business. He died in Denver before 1930, also probably of silicosis.
Alexander Hector, born in 1887, was mentally handicapped and little is known about his life. He is believed to have lived in an institution for many years, probably Kingseat Mental Hospital, Newmachar, near Aberdeen, where he died in 1938, aged 50. At the time of his death he lived nearby at North Balnakettle farm, Udny and worked as a messenger, probably at the hospital.
Emelia Tulloch, known as Amy, was born in 1892, the last of the family to be born at Silverburn. She married Thomas Anderson, a marine engineer, and they lived in Aberdeen, They had no children. Amy died in 1978, many years after Tom.
Christina Scorgie (Chrissie) was born in Aberdeen in 1894 and married John Rae from Banffshire. He was an engineer and in the Scottish tradition went abroad to seek his fortune, firstly to Assam as a tea planter. After Chrissie and John's marriage in 1922, they went to Toronto, Canada, and there their only child, Jean Edward, was born in 1923. The family remained there for two years before moving to Cuba, where John worked at a cement factory near Havana. Around 1937, they returned to Great Britain and settled in West Thurrock, Essex, where John again worked in a cement factory. He died there in 1940 of a heart attack, aged only 48. Chrissie then returned to Aberdeen with Jean, where she died in 1969. Jean married and had two daughters. She died in 1994.
The tenth and last child was Charles Ewen, known as Charlie, who was born in Aberdeen in 1898. He joined the Post Office as a telegraph boy and worked his way up to being in charge of the GPO Telegraph Department in Aberdeen. During the First World War, Charlie served in the Royal Flying Corps. He later married Isobel Kynoch and they had two sons. Isobel died in 1959 and Charlie in 1978.
James Edward (1880-1964)
|
James was born at Silverburn farm in 1880, and was brought up there, leaving school at the age of 11. The family left Silverburn about 1894 and moved into Aberdeen. James's first job was as as a message boy, but about 1896 he obtained a position as a steward on the "Ban-Righ", a steamer which plied the route between Aberdeen and London. In that year, James saw Aberdeen's first motor-car brought from London on the ship. By 1901, James was back on dry land, working as a footman at Manar House, north of Aberdeen. In 1910, while working as a footman at the Royal Northern Club in Aberdeen, he met and married Mary Ann Murray, daughter of James Murray and Mary Ann Sharp. They had one daughter. [see "The History of the Murrays" for the story of Mary's family] |
| James and Mary Edward 1946 |
© Robert James Carson 2003. All rights reserved.