Janir, apologies, this is turning into a little booklet of posts
I have enjoyed searching on Alexander Murdoch MacKay today, on and off. Had not heard of him before, have found his story new and interesting
Given the names of the children for Alexander Snr and wife Margaret Lillie, I think from what we have for Alexander Snr, that his parents were likely a Murdoch MacKay and a C/Katherine Campbell. This can be confirmed by looking at his death registration on Scotlands People.
Some of their children here, including Alexander's birth detail from 1815 in Thurso:
https://familysearch.org/search/record/results?count=20&query=%2Bsurname%3Amckay~%20%2Bbirth_year%3A1845-1865~%20%2Bfather_givenname%3Aalexander~%20%2Bmother_givenname%3Amargaret~%20%2Bmother_surname%3Alillie~Some info here on the family:
.....Murdoch become a weaver to trade and lived in Thurso where he "married" a Catherine Campbell also; he later married one Christine Finlayson, a hemp spinner in Thurso, and a native of Latheronwheel on 9.2.1821.
Murdoch and Catherine had a family of eight between 1799 and 1815 inclusive: there was no family to the second wife.
Their youngest, AIexander MacKay, born in Thurso on 24.11.1815 became the father of "MacKay of Uganda", the engineer, missionary and explorer of Uganda..... www.caithness.org/caithnessfieldclub/bulletins/1984/april/familyhistories.htmSo, how do we connect your John MacKay b. 1837 in Sutherland, husband of Margaret Gunn, to this line
His parents very likely a John MacKay and a Janet Fraser. No info on who they were. Could his father John be connected to this family line of Murdoch and wife Catherine?
From the list on LDS, missing one of the eight children given for Murdoch and Catherine. Only seven show