Author Topic: whitburn cemetery, west lothian  (Read 15476 times)

Offline libbyjones

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #18 on: Saturday 23 August 14 14:25 BST (UK) »
Hi Brian, yes, West Lothian Council did check the occupants of grave Q84, and it's Manse Road, as my cousin Andrew Wood in 2008 my uncle Robert Wood in 1991 and his brother Thomas Wood I think, in 1968.    And, no record of Sheila Dickinson being interred in the grave    Not sure if they would have a record of when an inscription of a memory would be put on the headstone.  Regards Sheila

Offline libbyjones

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #19 on: Saturday 23 August 14 14:39 BST (UK) »
Hi everyone, I have a general question.   My mother died in June this year and was buried in Auld Isle Cemetery in Kirkintilloch.     At the funeral, in the church, it was mentioned that my mother had one sister, Elizabeth, known as Bessie and I and my sister had often heard her talk about her sister.     However, I found amongst papers, birth certificates for a further three children.    This would mean my mum was one of five, Agnes, my mum, born 1921, James born 1923, Elizabeth born 1925, Robert born 1932 and Martha born 1933 all born in Kirkintilloch at Nos. 35 or 39 Donaldson Street.     Their mother and father, my grandparents were Robert Kennedy and Elizabeth Kennedy, m.s. Gilchrist.     Robert died in 1977 and Elizabeth died in childbirth in 1936.    I have the birth certificates but when I tried to obtain details of when they died, it came up no record of death in each case except of course my mum Agnes.     Any help would be appreciated.      Elizabeth     

Offline Rockford

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #20 on: Tuesday 26 August 14 22:57 BST (UK) »
I have the birth certificates but when I tried to obtain details of when they died, it came up no record of death in each case except of course my mum Agnes.

Hi,

When you say you have tried to get details of the deaths, how and where are you searching?  If you are using Scotlands' People and putting in the mother's maiden name [Gilchrist] you won't get any matches much before the late 1970s, as the mother's maiden name isn't indexed for earlier records.

If you use Scotland's People and search only for Martha Kennedy born 1933 (+ or - 5 years) anywhere in Scotland there are 9 matches.  The first is your Aunt, who sadly died in 1935 aged 18 months at 39 Donaldson Street.

If you search for Robert Kennedy born 1933 (+ or - 5 years) in Kirkintilloch only, there is a Robert who died aged 5 in 1937.  I don't have the credits to look at this certificate, but there is a very good chance that this is your uncle.

I can't find any obvious record for James and Elizabeth passing away as children - there are no matches in Kirkintilloch as far as I can see and widening the search gives too many matches to narrow it down.

On the Whitburn gravestone - now that we have Eric's directions, I'll have a look again tomorrow evening, as I'll be passing by again.

Best wishes

Brian
BURNSIDE [Londonderry, Lothians and Pennsylvania]
THORBURN [Lanarkshire], VAIR [Melrose]
SWEENEY [Donegal/Lanarkshire]
GILCHRIST [Lanarkshire, Peebles, Lothians], SMITH [Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire, Lothians]
GREGORY [Bucks, Wales], BENNETT [Somerset, Wales]
LETHERBY/HOWLETT/PHIPPS [Somerset]
HUNTER [New Monkland, Fife], GWYNNE [New Monkland, Stirling, Midlothian]
LOGIE/DUNLOP/THOMSON/YOUNG [West Lothian]

Offline libbyjones

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #21 on: Wednesday 27 August 14 08:22 BST (UK) »
Hello Brian, thank you so very much for all the information you have given me and I think you are spot on with Martha and Robert.   I have since found out that James joined up and was killed in action and Elizabeth committed suicide. This freaked me out a bit but I spoke with an old friend of the family who vaguely remembers the incident.       As you probably know Kirkintilloch has the Forth & Clyde Canal running through the town and this is where she met her demise.       It was hushed up at the time and he didn't have much more to say.   This explains why my mum Agnes told me she was 14 yrs old when her Mum died following a botched abortion and she was left on her own with my Grandad with no mention of other siblings except Elizabeth who she said drowned.     I will be very interested to hear the detail on the headstone for my Aunt Sheila Dickinson and must thank you very much for taking the time to venture back to the cemetery to find out.  Regards Sheila


Offline Rockford

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #22 on: Wednesday 27 August 14 21:41 BST (UK) »
Hi,

Following the directions from Eric, I found the stone this evening. I missed it last week as there was a plant masking part of the stone.

The stone gives dates of death for Robert Wood in 1991, aged 71 years and describes him as the 'beloved husband of Elizabeth Dickinson'. Also Andrew, son of Robert, in 2008 and Thomas Wood who died in 1968 aged 75 years, who was Robert's father.  There is no further information given for Elizabeth.

However, if you search on Scotland's People for the death of Elizabeth Dickinson with other surname Wood, there is only one (very recent) record, also in Whitburn who is likely the person you are looking for. My guess is that either you have been looking for a Sheila who was actually called Elizabeth or they are two different people.

Given the date of Elizabeth's death and the location, I would think that any burial would have been at Blaeberry and the council may be able to give you more information.

I took a couple of pictures of the gravestone and I'll send you a private message to arrange how to get them to you.

Best wishes

Brian

BURNSIDE [Londonderry, Lothians and Pennsylvania]
THORBURN [Lanarkshire], VAIR [Melrose]
SWEENEY [Donegal/Lanarkshire]
GILCHRIST [Lanarkshire, Peebles, Lothians], SMITH [Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire, Lothians]
GREGORY [Bucks, Wales], BENNETT [Somerset, Wales]
LETHERBY/HOWLETT/PHIPPS [Somerset]
HUNTER [New Monkland, Fife], GWYNNE [New Monkland, Stirling, Midlothian]
LOGIE/DUNLOP/THOMSON/YOUNG [West Lothian]

Offline libbyjones

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #23 on: Wednesday 27 August 14 21:56 BST (UK) »
Thank you Brian for all the information.    Thomas, Robert, and Andrew Wood, grandfather, father and son on the headstone I can understand.   Elizabeth, marrried to Robert died in 2012 but I found out she was cremated on the outskirts of Whitburn.    Her name was Elizabeth Dickinson, m.s. Gilchrist but she did not have Sheila in her name.    Was there any inscription on the headstone for a Sheila Dickinson with a date possibly?    Regards Sheila

Offline Rockford

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #24 on: Wednesday 27 August 14 22:02 BST (UK) »
Hi,

There is no mention of a Sheila on the stone and no sign of a separate memorial.  There is an obscured inscription at the base of the stone but from the text I can make out I think this reads something like 'until we meet again'.

Best wishes

Brian
BURNSIDE [Londonderry, Lothians and Pennsylvania]
THORBURN [Lanarkshire], VAIR [Melrose]
SWEENEY [Donegal/Lanarkshire]
GILCHRIST [Lanarkshire, Peebles, Lothians], SMITH [Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire, Lothians]
GREGORY [Bucks, Wales], BENNETT [Somerset, Wales]
LETHERBY/HOWLETT/PHIPPS [Somerset]
HUNTER [New Monkland, Fife], GWYNNE [New Monkland, Stirling, Midlothian]
LOGIE/DUNLOP/THOMSON/YOUNG [West Lothian]

Offline libbyjones

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #25 on: Wednesday 27 August 14 22:04 BST (UK) »
Hello Brian, just thinking again.    Elizabeth Dickinson, married name Wood, and m.s. Gilchrist was  born in 1917 in Errol, and died in Whitburn in 2012 but as I found out she was cremated and not interred with her husband and son and father in law.     So, if there is a Sheila Dickinson on the headstone, it is definately not Elizabeth known to me as Aunt Betty.     On the headstone was there a name Sheila Dickinson with any detail about that person?      kind regards Sheila

Offline Forfarian

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Re: whitburn cemetery, west lothian
« Reply #26 on: Thursday 28 August 14 08:56 BST (UK) »
Sheila, Brian has already said

There is no mention of a Sheila on the stone and no sign of a separate memorial.
Never trust anything you find online (especially submitted trees and transcriptions on Ancestry, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and other commercial web sites) unless it's an image of an original document - and even then be wary because errors can and do occur.