William McAughtrie b Barr, Ayrshire, 1847

[jaybelnz]

I have family member William McAughtrie, who came to NZ as an Early Settler. To Southland, Otago.
He was still in Scotland on 1861 census aged 14. I did see his name once years ago  ... Somewhere online....lost the link,  on a list of early settlers. I remember trying to follow that up, but didn't head anywhere, no response.

A family document notes that he married in NZ about 1888 to a young widow, Kate Helen Lavannah Munro, who was apparently 18 years younger than him and already with 3 children. They went on to have 10 more children.

William owned the Bellamore Run, a run at Tarras and a farm at  Otiake.  Other info from Papers Past show he had even more substantial land holdings in the wider area.

He died in Kurow 1929, aged 29. So I have plenty of stuff on him. Sitting looking at this document I have, which was given to me by a family member when I first visited Ayrshire in 2003!

The family document shows a transcript of an ad in the Ayr Advertiser newspaper of 26th May 1864.  "SS SERILLA" sailed from Gourock Bay on Saturday for Southland New Zealand. There were upwards of 250 passengers A large body of emigrants are from the town of Girvan, being sent out by the Government to The Colony".

And then a comment, "Perhaps this is how William got to NZ  did he get a land grant and a free passage? " who knows, and he can't tell me until I join him upstairs!   He died 20th March 1929 in Kurow and is buried in the Kurow cemetery.

My only problem is, I can't find him on a Passenger list! FindMyPast, ANCESTRY, ANYWHERE,  I tried emailing to relevant Museums etc., even the Hocken stuff, but not even any replies. About 14 public trees for him on Ancestry, none of which give any details about his passage to NZ, even though they have his marriage, chn etc. 

Ok.  Bottom line ......  Can anybody find out please how and when he came to NZ   I would be so chuffed to find this final detail for him after 15 years or so!

Thank you for any help you can offer!  Much appreciated

Jeanne 😃

[rosie17]

Wonder if this is him in the 1881 census William McAughtree b Barr Ayrshire 1847 address Hudspiths High Brickworth Cambusnethan Wishaw .Vagrant and General Labourer at the home of a Francis O Brian ?

[jaybelnz]

Ooh Rosie!  Could well be!  Naughty boy!  I'll certainly keep that in mind and do a bit more digging. it's only 7 years or so before he married in NZ, so indeed possible! If it is him, that narrows my time frame down a bit fir his passage to NZ. I have truckloads of William McAughtrie's born in Barr around that time, and the same with Thomas McAughtries.  The McAughtrie family were long time generational residents of Barr, a very small Village in Ayrshire. Nearly all the males were either Thomas or William, agricultural too!  Very helpful!

I have him at home with his parents in 1851, the youngest of 11 children.

The last census Scotland census entry I have for him is in Barr, 1861, aged 14, at Changue Farm, as an agricultural labourer.  But my document only has his name on the entry, so I might look into that census entry a little further, and to see if it's a family farm. 
 
Thanks so much for that!  He might have been deported!! Oh dear!

My military side of my family buys his son a commission, maybe he was a remittance man!
Every little bit helps
Thanks again,

Jeanne 😃

Modified to add that ship was not Serrila, but SeVilla.  Just checked the ships to NZ site yet again, to find the name of the ship which brought the Scottish emigrants to Southland was SEVILLA.  So I'll keep at it, but right now its time for bed!
J

[spades]

Hi Jeanne,

I haven't found a passenger record for him, but a William MCAUGHTRIE married Kate Hellen (sic) Lavannah MCKINNON in 1886. So assuming this is your ancestors, Kate's maiden name was most likely MUNRO.

Another source provides an exact date for the marriage: 7 October 1886.

A William MCAUGHTRIE appears in the Otago Nominal Index (record: Mt Ida Electoral Rolls) between 1873 and 1883, so I suspect that the 1881 UK Census record above might not relate to him, and that he emigrated prior to 1873.

You might want to contact the Oamaru branch of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists to see if they have more information.

And there is a record of the Maniatoto Mt Ida Pastoral Inv. Co. dating to 1884:

"Miner, shareholder, 1876/10, 1877/12, 1878/19
1880-Rugged Ridges, shepherd, 1883/20-Waitaki, Stn
Manager"
                  
Spades

[spades]

A link to the passenger list of the 1864 voyage of the Sevilla to Bluff.
http://www.angelfire.com/ok2/cbluff/sevilla1864.html

I can't see a MCAUGHTRIE.

Description of the voyage:
http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=ST18640917.2.15.6

Information regarding the voyage and passengers.
http://www.familytreecircles.com/passengers-of-the-sevilla-otago-1864-57081.html

It appears that the Sevilla made an earlier voyage in 1859, one passenger being a Miss Flora MCKINNON (probably just a coincidence... ) mentioned here (use the Find function)
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nzbound/oesa.htm

Spades

[spades]

This September 2010 newsletter of the Dunedin Family History Group includes a list of known passengers arriving at the post of Bluff between 1862 and 1864. Again no MCAUGHTRIE but of course he may have travelled 'before the mast' as a crew member.
http://www.dunedinfamilyhistory.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/DFHG-2010-September-newsletter.pdf

[spades]

A couple of mentions appear in this thesis:
canterbury.ac.nz/bitstream/10092/5634/1/hall_thesis.pdf

[Rosinish]

I have family member William McAughtrie, who came to NZ as an Early Settler. To Southland, Otago.
He was still in Scotland on 1861 census aged 14.
He died in Kurow 1929, aged 29.

Something not right with numerals here 

Died 1929 aged 29 so born 1900 but was on 1861 census 

Annie

[jaybelnz]

Thanks Spades for your efforts and info.  Funny thing, last night I was reading that exact same article on Familytree circles!   Anyway, I shall plod on, and see what I can garner from Oamaru NZSG.

I see you have Wigtonshire on your list.  This William McA's grandfather, my 4th great grandfather,  Was born and married there!

Anyway, thanks again Spades, much appreciated!

Jeanne 😃