David Wilkie, Southfield Farm, (1851 Census)

[Br1gau]

http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/ have an 1856 Will for James Stenhouse, farm overseer at Comerton.  If you leave the surname blank and type 'Comerton' in the description box, sort by year, it will give you an idea of the flow of people through the property.

[Br1gau]

Ah, I see you already have Robert Wilkie's particulars!
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=702734.0

[Matt62]

Hi Brigau 

You have been extremely helpful, thank you indeed!

It had never occurred to me that the 1831 and the 1843 'Southfields' might be different farms, this certainly clears up my bewilderment in that regard. And excellent that you managed to find James Stenhouse's will.

And yes, I've already seen the alimony court case but thank you for bringing it to my attention again. Lucy Ford is my ancestor through her son by John, Robert Wilkie, and she was originally one of the Wilkie family's house servants, when the unfortunate (or rather should I say 'fortunate' since I wouldn't exist otherwise!!) deed was done. It was by means of this court case that I managed to dig deeper into the Wilkie family, knowing that they lived on a farm named Southfield.

Poor Lucy! Left with a baby by John and other than the aliment he was required to pay by the court it doesn't look like he took anything else to do with her. Just as Lucy went on to marry a man with the surname Wallace, John went on to marry Isabella Marshall daughter of Mr Marshall Esq., a merchant from Dundee. At least Robert was recognised as the son and carried the name Wilkie, which I suppose is the only silver lining from this sordid little affair - that and the fact that it eventually led to me of course! 

Very many thanks Brigau, you have been uncommonly helpful to me!

[Rosinish]

1831 advert, I think, is for a different Southfield.

Well spotted BR1gau.........

I know these areas & quite rightly so Auchtermuchty "Muchty" is a long way from Leuchars so they are definitely 2 different farms.

Annie

[Br1gau]

I was thinking that as David Wilkie lived at Cast Farm, Leuchars in 1841, he must have moved to Southfield between then and 1848-9 when Matt's ancestral 'love child' was born.  Unless David came to a private agreement with the owner, which is of course very possible, Southfield would have appeared in the newspapers as a farm to let during those years, just as Southfield, Auchtermuchty did. Just a wee matter of finding that advert!

[Matt62]

I was thinking that as David Wilkie lived at Cast Farm, Leuchars in 1841, he must have moved to Southfield between then and 1848-9 when Matt's ancestral 'love child' was born.  Unless David came to a private agreement with the owner, which is of course very possible, Southfield would have appeared in the newspapers as a farm to let during those years, just as Southfield, Auchtermuchty did. Just a wee matter of finding that advert!

Brigau, the original newspaper cutting that I attached was from 1843  You are correct though about the time frame of the move, I assume it must have been the the 'to let' ad that resulted in the move??

I also think that you were right earlier when you surmised that the acreage must have been acquired separately from the farmhouse itself which was the only thing advertised in the 1843 newspaper clipping.   

[Skoosh]

I remember coming across a comment by a NE minister in the Scottish Statistical Account blaming the high illegitimacy rate in his Aberdeenshire parish on the amount of dry straw lying around the farms. 

Skoosh.

[Br1gau]

Then they all left because they were educated.  Nothing to do with enforced clearances at all....

"Dispositions, 1641 and 1777-1828, of various lands in barony of Leuchars, with some miscellaneous papers, including a petition of heritors of Kincardine against schoolmaster's scheme (to allow him £100 scots, house and glebe) because of the increased burden on them, and the increased number of `idle persons' who would if educated leave the country `when we are destitute of hands for our husbandry'
[NAS catalogues]

[Skoosh]

Agriculture in Scotland in the 19th century went through various periods of depression. Competition from cheaper Empire imports after the repeal of the Corn Laws for example caused widespread unemployment and increased migration to the industrial areas. The invention of refrigerated cargo vessels by Bell & Co on the Clyde flooded the home market with Australian meat and led to the the collapse of upland sheep farming.

Skoosh.