FORBES, family of tailors in Stonehaven.

[patval]

Looking for any information on the Forbes family in Stonehaven, they were a family of Tailors and clothiers, evidence of where the business premises were would be lovely…
 
William Forbes b 1752, Tailor, born Fetteresso, many family members worked in the business.

William 1787- 1855 born Dunnottar was a Tailor and Draper, it was a family business handed down from father to sons. William lived on Allardice Street, Stonehaven, but whether the business premises were on Allardice Street is unknown, part of this street has been demolished and a Post office erected there.

Hugh Forbes b 1816 was the next generation of Tailors, two of his sons moved to England and can be found on census – tailors and drapers in Manchester and Huddersfield.
 
Advert placed in the Stonehaven Journal dated Tuesday May 1st 1849 priced 3 1/2d.

WILLIAM FORBES
Tailor and Draper
Begs to announce his return from the markets with a choice assortment of goods adapted for the season which for durability, elegance of design and lowness of price he can with confidence recommend, having been selected by himself under all the advantages that ready money could make, besides his knowledge acquired by long experience. W. F. thanks the public for their liberal patronage for the last forty years and begs to intimate that the business will now be carried on under the firm of William Forbes and Sons. They have had long experience in the leading and most respectable houses in the trade both in London and in Paris
Garments made in the first style of fashion.
Morning and Wedding suits on the shortest notice.

Many thanks
Patricia

[MonicaL]

Patricia, have you looked at Wills & Testaments on SP?

FORBES   WILLIAM   07/04/1858   TAILOR AND DRAPER IN STONEHAVEN       STONEHAVEN SHERIFF COURT   SC5/41/16 - 9 pages

FORBES   JAMES   04/07/1874   TAILOR AND CLOTHIER IN STONEHAVEN   INVENTORY   STONEHAVEN SHERIFF COURT   SC5/41/24 - 19 pages

Maybe some family info to be gathered from these entries.

Monica

[patval]

Hello Monica,

Thank you, yes I have seen the Wills belonging to William and James they are quite informative but I am curious to know whereabouts the shops were as the sons as they got older opened other shops...

I also looked at the Valuation Rolls but they are later than I wanted....

My husband and I visited Stonehaven a few years ago I think another visit may be required... Thanks for your input though

Patricia

I notice you have changed your profile photo, its lovely..

[MonicaL]

I notice you have changed your profile photo, its lovely..

Been out shopping today for her party outfits for next week  She always looks beautiful my mum

Monica

[Flattybasher9]

Health and Safety. Ask her to get down or you may not be born. She may fall.

Regards

Malky

[MonicaL]

  Thank you Malky...will let her know. In fact I may walk over now and get her off the chair..just in case 

Monica

PS. Tomorrow is the start of party week..up to Sunday next with Afternoon Tea at the Savoy 

[Suzieque14]

Hi....not sure if you are still looking for info...my mother did a lot of research back in 1980 and I have this all in a book she wrote for us.  Hopefully it is useful...cheers



I've got information about a William Forbes, who came to Stonehaven, along with his stepbrother John Gordon, by a woman who was certainly not their mother...family legend is she moved there for the safety of the boys (came from the North).  She lived in a house in Cowie and kept aloof from the neighbours. She didn't have to work to support the boys and legend has it that there was a connection with bonnie Prince Charlie.
William Forbes became a tailor, and in 1786 married Annie Glenney. They had 7 sons and one daughter, Jessie (the youngest). The house still stands in Stonehaven where they were born (note...this was written by my mother back in 1980).
One of the sons, David Forbes (born  1 March,1796), along with his 5 brothers, became tailors.  William was a ship's carpenter and resided in Aberdeen.
In a book about the history of Stonehaven:
"in the middle of the 18th century the tailoring trade of Stonehaven and district was in the hands of 6 brothers named Forbes.  Four of the brothers had their own shops (John, James, Alex and David).  The six brothers were all married and had families and lived all their lives in Stonehaven, except for Alexander.  Alexander who was at the Battle of Waterloo, gave up his shop and went to live at Bervie with his son Hector, who had a tailoring business there.  He dies aged 94 and is buried in Fetteressa churchyard.
David Forbes took a house/shop at corner of market square in the New Town, eventually moving to larger premises, taking a life lease. When the town hall was planned, it was found the premises would have to come down. He was almost 70 and encouraged to retire.  He was duly compensated and moved to Alardyce street to a property belonging to his wife's brother, Peter Gregory.  Again he took a life lease and put his sign up.  When he died, the Provost offered a public funeral, but the family declined.  The house became a post office.
David Forbes had 11 children.....
- David ... a tailor...lived and died in Glasgow, 3 x children: Isabel, Elizabeth, Sarah Anne
- Fraser ...a tailor....died Stonehaven
- Charles...a tailor
- Gregory - confectioner, unmarried. Learnt his trade in Aberdeen,and started a shop in Stonehaven.  Famed for "Dunotter Rock".  Very musical, playing violin, flute and conertina at concerts, parties etc
- Isabel....died in infancy
- Eliza....married Robert Calder 1862....had 7 x children.  She died 25/10/1894
- Graham....baker...died Dec 1894
- Sarah...unmarried...helped Gregory in the shop
- Willian...tailor....large family, lived and died in Dundee
- Alexander
- Christie...baker....married Jane Cram, had 3 x sons.  Started baker's business in Stonehaven

[patval]

Hello Suzieque 14,

Lovely to hear from you, and YES I am still doing research on the Forbes family along with other ancestors in my husbands tree... Interesting that last year I too decided to put all my findings into book form as it makes more interesting reading than a tree, especially as our sons as yet do not seem to have great interest in family history. The book is an ongoing project.

Ian, my husband is descended from both the Forbes and the Gordon Families as Alexander Gordon (you have him named John) married Margaret Glennie sister to Annie (Anne) who married William Forbes.. The story we have which has been passed down the family is very similar to that which you have ie:

Sisters Annie & Margaret Glennie married foster brothers William Forbes and Alexander Gordon. 
As we have no idea as to whether the Forbes or the Gordons were the Foster parents it is proving difficult to accurately determine parentage of the boys... However, as Alexander became a Tailor and the Forbes were a family of renowned Tailors and Outfitters having premises in Stonehaven I am inclined to believe that Alexander was the 'fostered' child.
Cousin Howard Valentine in Canada produced a family tree compiled by his father, from information given to him by his grandparents many years ago. This tree names Alexander as being a Bastard son of The Duke of Gordon. Alex was brought up in Stonehaven by a Miss Smith, and eventually fostered by the Forbes family.

Following some research into the Dukes of Gordon I find Alexander Gordon 4th Duke of Gordon. (18 June 1743 – 17 June 1827)
....... The Duke and Duchess's marriage was tempestuous from the start and neither made any particular effort to be faithful to the other. For some years before her death she was bitterly estranged from the Duke. While the Duchess resided in the centre’s of society, the Duke lived in retirement at Gordon Castle.....the Duke lived very disreputably in this solitude, for he was very little noticed, and, I believe, preferred seclusion." ... Any Bastard children by the Duke will probably be impossible to find.

My research was unable to find any local record of an Alexander Gordon born c1770, however, records show he married Margaret Glennie 2nd April 1791 in Dunnottar..
William Forbes m Annie Glennie in 1786, William had been baptised in Fetteresso on 7th July 1757, his father recorded as being Alexander Forbes.
So, as we were able to find a parent for William Forbes but not for Alexander Gordon we assumed until proven otherwise that Alexander was the adopted boy....

Your theory of BOTH boys being brought down from the north is a new line to research and I would be interested to know where your mum got her information from, do you have Forbes ancestors too..

I would love to know more about your research if possible. Also, would you mind if I included the information re the Forbes siblings in our tree?

I recently sent a sample from Ian for a DNA test, we are awaiting the results... really excited now...

Ians line;
George Warden Valentine (father)
James Lilley Valentine
George Valentine
George Guthrie Valentine m Mary Gordon
Alexander Gordon 1792 - 1869
Alexander Gordon c1770 - Margaret Glennie 1769

G W Valentine
J L Valentine
George Valentine m Margaret Thomson Warden
Robert Warden m Rose Young Forbes
John Forbes 1789 - 1858 m Margaret Thomson 1796 - 1860
William Forbes 1757 m Annie Glennie 1762
Alexander Forbes c1710

Thank you so much for getting in touch

Kind regards Patricia (Ians Wife)

ps There is also a Jim Forbes Tailoring based in Glasgow, I am plucking up courage to email them and ask if we have a connection... Apparently he is reclusive so I may get a rebuff.

[Suzieque14]

Hi....lovely to catch up with your info, and so interesting to see the connections. I just accidentally stumbled across this page, looking for something else (I was trying to work out our Scottish heritage for a friend in Aberdeen).  Feel free to use any information you want.  My mother's spinster aunts traced the family tree....my mum was born in 1923, so I'm guessing they did their research around that time.

Our Forbes connection is on my mother's side....
...Shirley Elizabeth Aston (nee Webb)
...her  mother....Sylvia Webb (nee Calder)
....Sylivia's  father..David Calder  (born Aberdeen)
...David Calder's mother...Eliza Calder (nee Forbes)
...Eliza's parents.....David Forbes (born 1/3/1796) + Isabel Forbes (nee Gregory)
....David Forbe's  parents ...William Forbes + Annie Glenney ....married 1786

She's written a bit more detail about Eliza Forbes.   Eliza married Robert Alexander Calder in 1862. Their children.....Robert (died 1925), Graham (died 1946), David (died 1927), Sarah Anne (lived to 100), Alfred, and Margaret.   It was Margaret who collated all the family history.
Eliza Forbes died 25/10/1894

My mother has got information scattered all around this book she wrote, so I've been flicking pages trying to make sense of it all....and I'm just relaying what she has written.  Hopefully you can make some sense of how I've written it!

Very interesting about the legend of the two boys....and the similarity of the stories handed down.

So I guess I'm distantly related to your Ian...sharing William Forbes and Annie Glenney!!

Keep in touch....and it wouldn't hurt to contact the reclusive Forbes....you never know!

Cheers

Sue