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Scotland (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Scotland => Topic started by: t1m on Friday 25 March 11 19:36 GMT (UK)
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Hello,
I've been trying to find more information on my gg-grandfather, Alexander Davidson, for some time now.
I know he was born in Cruden or Peterhead (probably Cruden) about 1839-40, and moved to Castleton in Roxburghshire in/before 1861 for work building the railway, before moving to Angus in/before 1869 where he was married.
According to his marriage certificate, his father's name was John, and his mother's name was Margaret Wilkie (please see attached handwriting in case I'm wrong). His mother had died by 1869, though his father was still living.
Before 1861 I can't find any sign of him -- no census and no birth certificate. I can't find a sign of his parents' marriage, nor of his mother's death. I've looked through tens of death certificates for John Davidsons who may have been Alexander's father, and can't find any known to have been a widower of a Margaret Wilkie.
What I have found though may be completely unrelated.
Alexander and his wife had seven named children between 1869 and 1882 (and one child who didn't live long enough to be named):
Alexander Sturrock Davidson
John Davidson
James Davidson
William Lumgair Davidson
Thomas Davidson
Margaret Davidson
George Davidson
In Cruden, I found a family with almost exactly the same names, except no Alexander. The father's name is John Davidson, and the mother's name is Margaret RAINY, all children are born 1828 to 1838 (my ggg-grandfather was born about 1839-40):
William Davidson
James Davidson
John Davidson
George Davidson
Thomas Davidson
Margaret Davidson
One thing that I noticed about this family was that John Davidson (father) was born about 1789, and Margaret Rainy was born about 1807, which is an unusually large gap.
Given the small population of Cruden Bay at that time, is this just a very big coincidence? Or is it likely that Alexander could have been their seventh child and something happened? Is it possible that Alexander's family and this family may be related in some other way, from which I might find Alexander's origins?
I'm hoping someone can help me. I promised my mum that I would find where Alexander came from, but I've been pulling my hair out for two years now and not getting very far!
Tim
PS I just realised: is it likely that Alexander Davidson is the illegitimate child of this John Davidson and a Margaret Wilkie? I can't help but think (perhaps from desperation) that there must be a link somewhere.
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Does his death certificate confirm the names of the parents? I have come across several occasion where the detail on a certificate is quite simply wrong so it may well be that your second family is the right one with Alexander yet to be born. When he appears on a census, where does it say he was born?
On the other hand, although the names as you say, are almost identical they are not that unusual for the time. It would be surprising for there to be two John Davidsons in such a small community and for them not to be related. Can you find any marriage or death records for those children confirming or otherwise their mother's maiden name?
Sorry - you've probably tried all this already! Hopefully someone else will be researching the same family and be able to offer more info.
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Hi t1m
Have you tried looking for an Alexander Wilkie, as you say he could have been illegitimate, born before his parents married, maybe he was born in a different area.
I had the same problem with my grandfather's birth, it turned out he was born earlier than we thought, (his age on his death cert gives his year of birth as two years later than the actual DOB).
My grandfather was named Alexander Gardiner, at birth, (we were looking for John Blyth), he became John Alexander after his parents married, in the first census he appeared in his name was given as Alex Gardiner Blyth in later census records he was John Blyth, eventually he used John Alexander Gardiner Blythe. I think they do it just to confuse us :) but basically what I'm saying is look at all possibilities if he has a middle name it could be his birth name. Hope all this is of some help.
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Hi portybelle,
The death certificate also details his parents as John Davidson and Margaret Wilkie, but as I understand it these details depend on the informant knowing. So while it's almost definitely correct, there's that very slight chance of it being wrong.
When Alexander first appears on the census (in 1861), his place of birth is given as "Scotland Aberdeen". But as he's living in navvy huts, and locations for other people on the same page are very non-specific, I'm not surprised at the generality. But I'm sure it's him as he does a lot of work on the railways through his life, and moves for the work. As far as I know, I'm the first one to find Alexander before his marriage in 1869 (in Monikie, Angus).
On the 1871 census, his place of birth is detailed as "Aberdeenshire Peterhead". From the other trees I've seen, this is where everyone assumes he was born. However in 1881, his place of birth is detailed "Aberdeenshire Cruden", as it is for 1891 and 1901. So I'm confident that's where he was born, even though every other tree states Peterhead.
I've spent the last few hours collecting all the Davidsons born in Cruden Bay (from Family Search). You're right, these are all very common names in the area and along with the name Gilbert, they make up about 97% (without counting!) of the male name born in Cruden Bay between 1709 (first appearance of Davidson born in Cruden Bay) and 1870 (as far as I've gone so far). I've collected all the names, and I'm trying to make some attempt at piecing together what I can of the families.
I also need to find out what I can about Wilkies, and especially Margaret Wilkies.
What I did discover, and something I think strengthens the case for Alexander belonging to this family, that William (son of John Davidson and Margaret RAINY) marries a Mary Mathew and uses the same male names:
William
John
(Mary)
Alexander
Thomas
George
(Margaret Jane)
Thomas (presumably the other Thomas has died)
(Janet)
James
Note the addition of Alexander, the one name missing from his father's children. Of course, it really could be just a coincidence! But given the other names all come from somewhere, Alexander must too. Furthermore, it's the third name used (i.e. not at the end). (Mary Mathew was daughter of Andrew Mathew and Jane Smith, no Alexander there.)
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Hi purplekat
I looked for Alexander Wilkie a long time ago. I can't remember all the details, but I couldn't find anyone who could be him. And I've been very thorough (I think!).
It's very interesting what you write about your grandfather's name -- I'm sure you'd hit your head off the wall a few times before finding him! Of all the documents I have with Alexander's name on it, he only ever uses Alex or Alexander (no middle name). I've seen something similar to what you wrote in the censuses: a 1 year old Alexander Davidson living with a family of Milnes in 1841, and in 1851 he is named as Alexander Milne. However this Alexander then goes onto university to study theology (a long way from navvy work), and retains the name Milne, so he's not my ancestor.
I know that other people who have tried to find Alexander's origin have decided (wrongly, I think) that John Davidson (his father) was illegitimate which they say explains why Alexander's birth record cannot be found. I disagree with this, but I noticed on another's family tree a note pointing to John Davidson (with their quotes): think it was him "born of fornication"
I thought that might indicate a family rumour (given the quotes and choice of words) that nobody knew who it was about, but when I asked my mum some time ago about this she said there is no such rumour. But I wonder now if it's a rumour she just hadn't heard of, and if it applies to Alexander. I think along with trying to piece together the Cruden Davidson families, and tracing Wilkie families, I need to find out if there is such an old rumour.
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It is hard, t1m, when the records are hard to find :-\
A few issues that you have with the possible Cruden family that I can see:
- mother's surname Rainey (and variants) v. Wilkie.
- father John's occupation that you have shows as a farm servant. This family that you have found, John Davidson shows as a wright.
- no trace of an Alexander showing on the censuses with this family.
Not sure what to suggest for you. One possibility, as you are considering, may be that Alexander was born illegitimately and that by the time of the early censuses (1841/51) may show under a different surname if his mother went on to marry after his birth.
Monica
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From the marriage in Angus, who were the witnesses names?
Monica
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Hi tm1
Just thought on and realised that there wouldn't be a birth cert for Alexander as he was born before official registration so it would be the OPR's your looking at it depends on the area the person was born in as to how well records were kept, also such records are often not very detailed.
If there's nothing online, it may be a case of contacting the local family history society for the area to find out. other than that I've found that MI's, (or memorial inscriptions), are a good way of discovering more about a family but obviously you would need to know where the family was buried.
I think it is possible that 'born of fornication' could have been written on John's birth or baptism record by a church elder, I've seen church records naming people as 'guilty of fornication'. No wonder people went to great lengths to hide the fact that their parents weren't married when they were born. :) We were only able to trace my grandfather's birth because he used his full name in later life.
PS do you live in Scotland?
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Hi Monica,
Yes, definitely still problems which just don't fit, but lots of evidence to show there must be some connection (i.e. possibly cousins). But the addition of Alexander to William's family, and the lack of Alexander among his siblings, looks equally suspicious.
In the 1851 census, John's occupation is described as "farmer by carpenter", which I thought might explain why he is described as a "farm servant". I know he was a cart wright (not a ship wright) as that's how he is described in 1861. Also, isn't it possible a son could describe his father who made/fixed carts as someone who works on farms? I know Alexander was named as a general labourer by his sons, even though he worked mainly on the railways.
No, it's very frustrating that Alexander hasn't been found on any of the censuses. Perhaps he just isn't there.
Something I just noticed (when I was confirming what I wrote above about John's occupation) was that in 1861 Margaret's name is given as Margaret Rennie. Could very easily be nothing.
The witnesses at Alexander's (and Ann Sturrock's) wedding are John Miller and George someone. It looks like Bane, is it maybe Raine (probably not)?
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The 1851 transcript from http://freecen.rootsweb.com/cgi/search.pl which is more reliable in respect of transcription shows John Davidson as a 'former carpenter'. His two older sons seem to have followed him into the business as they also show as carpenters.
Monica
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The point you raise regarding surname variants which are always profilic and confusing! Rainy has many variants. If you look at IGI, the spelling of Margaret, wife of John Davidson, comes up in a variety of ways, such as Rennie.
Whilst we are on the subject of variants...... ::) I was doing a search on the 1841 census under Wilk* in Cruden to see what came up and there were no Wilkies showing. The surname that did come up was WILKEN. Got me thinking....
Further searches bring up this pairing (not perfect) but closer to what you are looking for perhaps...need to do more searches really:
Margaret Wilken married a John Dickie on 19 July 1835 in Cruden. Can only see one child so far on IGI, Alexander Dickie b. 6 Aug. 1839/Chr. 25 Sept. 1839 in Cruden. Margaret may have died by 1851, a John Dickie shows in Cruden with children Isabella and Alexander. His sister Isabella shows in the houshold also. This John is a farmer.
But Dickie is not Davidson is it, so again, we may be trying to twist things to try and make sense of it all.
Monica
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Hi purplekat,
Yes I read somewhere that there was a minister in Cruden Bay at some time who didn't record everything, and that prior to 1855 only one third (iirc) of births were being recorded. But what has frustrated me is the lack of so many records:
Alexander isn't on the census for 1841/1851
I can't find any record of a John Davidson marrying a Margaret Wilkie who could be Alexander's parents
I can't find a record of a Margaret Wilkie's death between Alexander's birth (1839ish) and his marriage in 1869 (where she is described as deceased)
I can't find a record of a John Davidson who is a widower of a Margaret Wilkie (he apparently died after 1869). I think I've purchased and checked every John Davidson who died after 1869 who could be Alexander's father (at least those who died in Aberdeenshire, I can't afford to go further afield yet!)
There's all these records which don't appear to exist, and there's a family in the same small village, whose last recorded child is born 1 or 2 years before Alexander, who share the same family names and yet has missing in John's children the name Alexander, but where Alexander is given the third son's name in William's children.
I realise I'm hoping too much now, and a good slap of reality is probably necessary!
I thought about MIs before. Yes I do live in Scotland, but I don't drive and I'm not a very good traveller. Alexander died in Dundee, so I think I know approximately where he'll be buried. Having found this family, I now have more reason to find his stone. (I live not too far away in Blairgowrie, but I'm really REALLY not a good traveller!).
I don't think "born of fornication" was found on a certificate, as I don't think one has been found. I know I've been more thorough than others searching this line, as I've been discovering people others had never heard of. However, "born of fornication" could just as well be my mother's cousin being silly (!), so I've asked my mother to find out.
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Hi Monica,
I'm quite comfortable with a cartwright being described as a farm labourer. Maybe that's with a modern head on though. Would a cartwright work mainly on a farm? Or is that too much like assuming a modern mechanic works on a farm today?
It could be my inexperience, but the Dickie/Wilken thought you put forward seems much less likely to me. I can't help but think that with all those names, and the location and the dates, there must be some kind of link. For Alexander to have been illegitimate, or to have been given away ("I'm 50 now Margaret, I can't cope or afford any more children") would explain it so well. But that could be my inexperience in genealogy -- no properly developed gut feeling.
Unfortunately, even if this link were true, there may be no documentation anywhere to prove it.
What do you think of the witness signature "George ?"? Is it Baine?
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Not sure on the surname for witness. Certainly looks to start with a B. Could also be Barrie as I am not seeing a dot above a possible i for Baine. You can contact SP at any time when a section of an image is not clear and they will enhance the image and send you an email of it which in many cases makes things much clearer.
Monica
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Hi t1m
It's frustrating when you can't find any records for an area. I have the same problem in that my grandfather's family came from a small village but there are no OPR's for the area on the Scotland's people website, it's even more frustrating if the record your looking for is after 1855.
Sorry to hear you can't travel I was thinking that it might be worth checking if Edinburgh Central Library or the Mitchell in Glasgow have any MI's for the Cruden area.
I wish you all the best in your research and if I can think of anything which may be helpful I'll let you know :)
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I researched this possible link yesterday, and have come to the conclusion that they may be distant cousins, but they aren't father and son. The names of the sons of John's first son, William, are identical to my gg-gf Alexander's sons, and John's sons. John's father, James, was a farmer, so I could believe John being described as farm labourer and not a cartwright. But John died in 1864, and on Alexander's marriage certificate in 1869 he described his mother as deceased and his father as a farm labourer. So there's may be a family link, but not the one I need.
If Alexander named his sons in the same pattern as John and William, then I am looking for a John, son of James, son of William.
I realised too that I was thinking Cruden the village, when I should have been thinking Cruden the parish. But that got me thinking about something else. On Alexander's earlier census entries, he is described as being born in Peterhead. In later years he is described as being born in Cruden. Which makes me wonder if was born near the boundary of Cruden and Peterhead, or if he was born while the family were in transit (either between Cruden and Peterhead, or over a longer distance).
I'm starting to think now that the best approach would be to find records of any Margaret Wilkies who could be Alexander's mother, and try to find a connection. And given Alexander's first appearance is in Roxburghshire, I need to look further afield than in Aberdeenshire. But I'm becoming less and less hopeful of finding anything.
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Hi t1m
I think it's a good idea to widen your research and come at it from a different angle, don't give up yet it's a great feeling when you have a breakthrough.
My family followed the naming tradition as well, (they never considered how difficult they were making things for us family historians!), my great grandfather had five brother, all named after their father and uncles, then they proceeded to do the same resulting in my grandfather's generation having four Robert's, three John's, three Alexander's, four Lucy's, (after their mother), etc. so as you say the family you have ruled out could well be related to yours.
You may have seen this already but I've added a link to a recent topic on 'born in fornication', which is interesting and funny.
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,522648.0.html
Good Luck in your research :)
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How about using the "ask a librarian" service. You don't have to be a library member. If you look in the Aberdeenshire resources post you'll see a link to the Aberdeenshire library.
Alexander Strath Maxwell was an author of many books,which were transcripts of church records, including one of "The Baptisms of St.James the Lesser Episcopal Chapel, Cruden"
It covers the period of 1807 - 1870. You may find some mention of your ancestors.
Hope this helps,
flst
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Hi purplekat,
I wouldn't be able to give up. I've tried several times in the past, and it's the know that the next certificate might turn up something new. It's only because I came back after "giving up" several times in the past that I found Alexander in 1861, In Roxburghshire. Not nearly what I wanted, but it was still that little further back than anyone knew before.
And given that Alexander's father died after the SSRs were introduced, it's probable that somewhere there is a death record of John DAVIDSON, farmer, widower of Margaret WILKIE. I know it's not definite, but I'm still looking.
Like others on that thread, my eyes have been opened by the number of people miraculously born so soon after a wedding. It does end the suggestion that Alexander's father was illegitimate and so therefore his marriage and his son's birth are not in the church records (something I never believed even a little bit).
Frustratingly, I also have problems with my paternal great great grandfather, who was born in the Falkland Islands. My father has struggled for years to find information on him. These things were sent to try us! Good luck with your own research too.
Tim
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Hi flst,
Coincidentally, I've been wondering about the possibility if Alexander was non-conformist. He was married in CoS in Monikie, but if we were all to go far back enough then we'd all find non-conformist ancestors. That book covers just the right range of dates for Alexander, and it's a great idea to email the Aberdeenshire library service. In fact it was the very first thing I did this morning, so I'm now looking forward to a reply from them. And even if they find nothing, researching non-conformist records is definitely another angle to take in my research.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Tim
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looking at the copy of the witnesses on the marriage certificate the name would be George Barrie
The nuns had us practising our cursive writing which no one does today. everyong's writing is different. had a situation with an L being mistaken for a T
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Hi Monica,
I'm quite comfortable with a cartwright being described as a farm labourer. Maybe that's with a modern head on though. Would a cartwright work mainly on a farm? Or is that too much like assuming a modern mechanic works on a farm today?
It could be my inexperience, but the Dickie/Wilken thought you put forward seems much less likely to me. I can't help but think that with all those names, and the location and the dates, there must be some kind of link. For Alexander to have been illegitimate, or to have been given away ("I'm 50 now Margaret, I can't cope or afford any more children") would explain it so well. But that could be my inexperience in genealogy -- no properly developed gut feeling.
Unfortunately, even if this link were true, there may be no documentation anywhere to prove it.
What do you think of the witness signature "George ?"? Is it Baine?
While not disputing a cartwright could do labouring on a farm I doubt if he was regularly employed by a farm in either capacity.
Cartwright’s would often be self-employed and indeed if he was more involved in repairing carts may even have been a wheelwright or even a blacksmith.
The skills required by cartwrights were also required by wheelwrights & blacksmiths and such work would have been more rewarding than labouring (but that can never be ruled out).
Another angle to look at especially when the trade cartwright is mentioned is the likelihood of him being a gypsy.
I would you widen your search in other types of records such as Quarter Session records, Sheriff Court Records and even J.P. Records though these last were not as important in Scotland as they were in England you may even find references in poor relief records.
Cheers
Guy
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I'm quite comfortable with a cartwright being described as a farm labourer.
I'm not. A cartwright was a skilled tradesman who would have gone through several years as an apprentice to learn the trade. He built carts and waggons, and had to be able to make wheels and to fit them to axles so that the cart or waggon ran smoothly. A very big estate might employ a cartwright, but most would probably have been independent businessmen.
Edit: Apologies, had not seen Guy's reply, but we both seem to be of similar opinion.
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Hi,
Thanks for the suggestions. However, this post is seven years old now. I never did find John Davidson and Margaret Wilkie, but I hope to pick up the genealogy again some time this year and take a fresh look at it.
He was born in Aberdeenshire, but at the age of 21 was working as a Railway Labourer at the other end of Scotland in Roxburghshire. So when I pick it up again, instead of concentrating on John Davidson from the north of Scotland, I expect I will:
- concentrate my search more in the south, particularly the south-east
- look for Margaret Wilkie, especially her death certificate as I have a date-range for her death
But I haven't looked at my notes for so long, I really need to review them first. I do remember that I did decide that I was clutching at straws about the hypothesis I outlined in the opening post.
Tim
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Tim
Looking at this again after a while...
Curious about the family of John Dickie and Margare Wilkie (Wilken etc.) They were having children at the right time in Cruden including an Alexander in 1839 https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XBQ5-54B (you need to be logged on to view now). Further daughter Isabella in Cruden 1835. Maybe a co-incidence?
Marriage or banns in 1935 in Cruden https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XTNX-G42
Monica
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This is the Dickie family in Cruden 1841:
John Dickie 30 farmer
Margt Dickie 30
Isabella Dickie 5
Alexander Dickie 1
Isabella Daniel 15 servant
Christian Dickie 13 servant
George Menzies 20 tailor j
William Menzies 15 tailor j
Address: E Aquharney, Cruden
Monica
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Have you looked at the birth of an Alexander Davidson to JAMES DAVIDSON/JEAN CHALMERS born on 25 April 1839 in Cruden ?
Malky
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Looks like Margaret Wilkie (from this family) has died by 1851 The family in 1851:
John Dickie 44 widower Farmer Of 12 Acres b. Slains, Aberdeenshire
Isabella Dickie 46 sister unmarried b. Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire
Isabella Dickie 15
Alexander Dickie 11
Address: Auchleuchries, Cruden
1861
John Dickie 50 farmer
Isabella Dickie 52 sister
Elizabeth Wilken 55 sister (in law?) visitor merchant's wife b. Aberdeen
Isabella Dickie 35 daughter
Isabella Robertson 6 grandchild
Address: Auchleuchries, Cruden
No sign of an Alexander Dickie in 1861...
Monica
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Hi Monica,
Thanks for posting that. My initial feeling is that Dickie is a bit far from Davidson, especially when also Margaret's name goes from Wilkie to Wilken. However, iirc, there were suprisingly few Wilkie families in Aberdeenshire at the time, and I wondered if perhaps she was a Wilken. Again, possibly clutching at straws (and I may also be mis-remembering --- it really has been a while since I looked at my thankfully detailed notes!).
Also, I would be extremely surprised not to find a James Davidson. I would also expect to find a Thomas Davidson, and possibly a George Davidson too. But Alex and Ann named their third child James, and their fourth William Lumgair Davidson --- the fourth I know for certain was named after a family member of Ann's, so I would expect to find James as a family member of Alex's. (The first and second children were also named after identified family members.)
Alex being the son of the elusive John Davidson and Margaret Wilkie, and Ann (Sturrock) being his wife.
Thanks for the suggestion though, and taking the time to post it.
Tim
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Also, I will add that I do want to spend a little time (in addition to the avenues I posted previously) learning about Cruden and the people there of the time. I want to confirm the size of the population, and whether or not many were transient (perhaps Alex was born "in transit", so his birth certificate may be registered in a place other than where he was born).
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I think I did, Malky. I would have to log back into Scotland's People and go through all the certificates I looked at. But I did look at a lot of Davidson certificates. Also, Alex's (and Ann's) only daughter was named Margaret, and like a lot of people of the time they certainly named their children after a naming pattern. And of course Margaret was named on Alex's marriage certificate (1869, mother deceased, father a farm servant).
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I will also add that I did purchase the death certificates for every John Davidson in Aberdeenshire that died after 23rd April 1869 (when he was still alive, according to his son's marriage certificate) until whatever date I decided he couldn't have expected to live after. That was back in 2011 (ish) and none contained Margaret Wilkie as a deceased wife. Perhaps he remarried and his first wife was just ommitted (don't know how likely that was). But it again suggested to me that the family was quite transient (and iirc this would have been usual for farm servants), so the certificates could be anywhere.
Of course, perhaps the certificates just didn't survive.
I will update this thread when I pick up the search again. :)
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Hi,
I just came across your post whilst researching my WILKIE family and found that you had mentioned Margaret Wilkie i believe you had said somewhere that she was also listed as Margaret Rennie is that right?
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Hi,
I haven't done much genealogy for the past few years -- not from lack of interest, but lack of time as I just don't have any these days. So looking through my genealogy documents I can see that I was halfway through organising them, which is the worst type of organisation to leave them in! I can see from the dates in this thread that it's been longer than I thought it had been. Perhaps I will find time to pick up the threads again this year. Or at least organise the research I've completed up to now.
As I recall, I was all over the place trying to find the parents of Alexander Davidson -- John Davidson and Margaret Wilkie. I could find no digital documentation for either of them, beyond reference to them in their son's own documents.
As I recall (without reading through the whole thread), there were very few Wilkies in Aberdeenshire (where AD apparently comes from), though I found a family with names which fitted a naming pattern. However I could find nothing concrete.
I concluded (at least temporarily), that though it was possibly the same family, that given Alexander's first found census (in 1861, aged 20-21) was in Roxburghshire (a fair way from Aberdeenshire), and his father was a farm servant, that the family may have moved around the country a lot. Failing that, the documents may have been among those which if I remember correctly were destroyed.
All I know for sure is that John Davidson (d. 1869-1923, oc. farm servant) married Margaret Wilkie (d. 1839-1869), and had at least one son called Alexander Davidson (according to censuses b. 1839-1840 in Cruden or Peterhead, died 23 May 1923 in Dundee, oc. railway surfaceman). Anything else about JD and MW has been little more than speculation.
If you ever come across "my" Margaret Wilkie, please do let me know!
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Coincidentally, I've been wondering about the possibility if Alexander was non-conformist. He was married in CoS in Monikie, but if we were all to go far back enough then we'd all find non-conformist ancestors.
This is one of my bêtes noires. The term 'non-conformist' was originally coined to describe people who did not conform to the Church of England. Therefore every member of any Church of Scotland congregation, and indeed of all denominations in Scotland with the possible exception of Episcopalians, was a non-conformist, so the term has no useful meaning in Scotland.
Alexander could have belonged to one of the dissenting denominations, of which there were many.
However north-east Aberdeenshire was a stronghold of the Episcopal Church, so it is also possible that he was a member of that denomination (and, therefore, one of the few who were possibly not a 'non-conformist'!), which could account for the scarcity of records.
The fact that he married according to the forms of the Church of Scotland is not significant, because weddings were more commonly conducted in the bride's parish and by her own minister.
Unfortunately the surviving Episcopalian registers are not always easy to track down. Some are still in their churches, some are in diocesan archives, and others are in the care of local or university archives. If you felt inclined to pursue this, the Aberdeen and North-East Scotland Family History Society may know where surviving Episcopalian records are held.