William Bishop -Death Notice

[iwccc]

Hi, Is it possible to find a death notice or death certificate for a William Bishop born abt. 1775  around Leith, Scotland.  He married Helen Alexander Maxwell  . I believe William died in 1850.  I am wanting to find William's parent's names.  I have found lots of Williams but how to find which one is 'my' Williams parents?
(William and Helen had a number of children - John, Helen, Alexander, Margaret, David)
Any help/suggestion on how I get back to the next generation would be most helpful.  Thank you

[GR2]

Death certificates giving parents' names don't start in Scotland until 1855. Before that, you might find an entry in a burial register or (very rarely) a death notice in a newspaper, but neither of these would mention his parents. There is the possibility (although again, not for everyone) that there is a gravestone. If the stone already commemorated his parents, or if there were a neighbouring stone doing that, your luck is in. However, most people did not have a gravestone, and not all stones survive or are visible.

You have a number of children. Do the witnesses at the baptisms point to any family connection? Have you checked for a will for William or previous Bishops in the area? What was William's occupation? That might point to a connection with his father, especially if any apprentice/ burgess record survives. Did he have any land/tenement transferred from his father?

[Forfarian]

I had a look at the 'Scotsman' digital archive, but there were no results for "william bishop" in 1850. Searching this archive is complicated by the fact that you can't easily distinguish the surname Bishop from the occupation of bishop! Also its search engine is - well, let's say fallible.

[Hibee]

Scotland's People has only 1 William Bishop born in Leith between 1770 and 1780....

to James Bishop and Janet Christie, on 8/12/1771.

Hibee

[Forfarian]

But there is no James and no Janet listed among the children above, so he may not be the right one.

[Hibee]

There is no William, either.  He may not have believed in naming conventions, or they may not have survived infancy.

[MonicaL]

Have you found William Bishop on the 1841 census? I struggle to see him on the index. There are only two William Bishops near the birth year you mention. By co-incidence, both show in Midlothian. One, b. 1775 looks to have been born outside of Midlothian, living in South Leith and a chimney sweep. The other, b. 1787, a labourer and living in West Calder.

From the parish indexed entry, Helen's father named Alexander https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XT1L-RYM, so unless William's father also called Alexander, likely son Alexander named after maternal grandfather.

Monica 

[iwccc]

Thanks GR2, All very good suggestions.  I will look into the ideas you posted after Christmas.   For now I send my Christmas Greetings and thank you for your answers to my questions.  Cheers

[iwccc]

Hi Forfarian,  Thank you for your reply.  Yes I also have found the name Bishop and the occupation of Bishop very challenging at times.  Lots of material to go through much of which is really only to do with the occupation.  You mentioned that you looked for 1850 - William Bishop.
I am actually looking for a William Bishop in 1775.
I appreciate your answers and suggestions. Thank you and all the very best for Christmas. Cheers