Rankin Gravestone in Gordon Churchyard

[ajjbc]

My direct line kin,George SIMSON & his wife Margaret RULE are buried in the Gordon Churchyard.
As per M.I. book #7 it states that on the reverse of the stone is written: In memory of Mary Katherine Simson Rankin younger daughter of James RANKIN who died 13.6.1909 age 57years" (born c 1852)
  On the face of the stone is written:Isabel daughter to George RANKIN tennant Kirklands who died 11.10.1936 age 20.(born c 1916)
   I need some help  connecting the RANKIN family to the SIMSON family and figured someone doing RANKIN research can untangle this.
   Also in the plot next to the above people is the stone of George RANKIN & his wife Mary Simson RANKIN.
       Help on this will be much appreciated.

[Ruskie]

You will probably need to purchase some certificates to sort this lot out.

Scotland's People is the site you need - you have to purchase credits to instantly download the certificates (in most cases).

http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/

Scottish birth, marriage and death certificates will all show both parent's names from 1855 onwards, so you may not necessarily have to purchase each certificate for each person. I am sure you will find the connection once you buy a few certificates.

I made a start with Mary Katherine and purchased her death certificate.
The details are:
Parish of Duns in the County of Berwick
Mary Kate Simson Rankin
Funded Proprietor
single
usual residence (illegible) Duns
looks like she died 4 Kensington Place, Clifton, Bristol
age 55
father: James Rankin, farmer, deceased
mother Margaret Rankin MS Luke, deceased
tuberculous(?) disease of bladder
informant: Philip Milson or Nilson, cousin, address: The Knoll, Duns

Do you have dates of death and ages for the other people you have found in Gordon Churchyard?

It is also worth looking for these people on the various censuses to see who is living with who. 

[Ruskie]

On the 11th October 1805, George Rankin married Mary Simson in Gordon. I did not pay to view the entire record. As it is an OPR (ie prior to 1855)it may not contain much additional information.

George Simson married Margaret Rule 20 Oct 1770 Gordon Berwick.

[ajjbc]

Hi Ruskie, Thanks for both your replys.
     Yes I saw the death of Mary Katherine Simson Rankin in 1909,and with what info they had was not leading me anywhere,but will save for later studying. She was born c  1855,her father a Rankin ,her mother a Luke....So no leads there.

 Thank you so much for the marriage date of George Rankin & Mary Simson in 1805 (...pre Civil Reg )
The marriage date of George Simson & Margaret Rule ,I did have.

Mary could well be their daughter....now to prove it.
On the other plot from Simson & Rule...The names George Rankin died 25.7.1847 age 75 (pre civil reg) but then his wife Mary Simson died 24.1.1869 age 74.
Tried Scots People ..no luck at all.
  Then I am working the dates and figure...if the stone dates are correct then that says that:
      George Rankin was born 1772 -1847 age 75
      Mary Simson   was born  1795- 1869 age 74
Hmmmmm...something does not seem right here... but will continue searching.

[Ruskie]

You might need to go back a generation or two or sideways, to find any links.

Dd you purchase Mary Simson Rankin's 1869 death certificate? Who are her parents?

I'm sure that the Scottish experts will be along to help you soon (and they really are experts). I'm sure they will solve this puzzle for you in no time. 

[ajjbc]

I could not find it...tried everything...even spread the dates from 1855 - 1870.
So am wondering if stone transcription is wrong

[ajjbc]

If you look at my posting  (back )..the birth year of Mary is 1795 and George  birth year 1772...that means she was 23 years younger...does not compute in my head....that way too much difference...also add to that,if she was born in 1795 her mother Margaret rule would have been 49 when she had her...So it's back to the brain department for me.
  Here is hoping someone who has one Rankin research can add or correct this.

[Ruskie]

It's probably just me, but I'm getting a bit confused. 

Yes, a 23 year age gap between George b1772 and Mary b 1795 does seem a little unusual, though it is not out of the question. George may have been married before. The stone says they were husband and wife.

Are you saying that Margaret Rule was the mother of Mary b 1795. If so, I must have missed something somewhere. If you don't have Mary's 1869 d/c how do you know Margaret Rule was her mother?

Do you have further information (eg her date of birth) about Margaret Rule to know that she was 49 years old in 1795?

[ajjbc]

I have Margaret Rule's birth date and Chr date...she was born Dec 30 1747 in Earlston and her Chr date was Jan 8 1748 in Earlston.
 She married George Simson Oct 20 1770 in Gordon,Berwick.
I have her one positive  daughter,Margaret Simson born dec 10 1780 in Gordon,plus those that I have gathered off the gravestone inscriptions.
   Am trying to gather more children of George Simson & Margaret Rule...to see how they connect to Rankin.
 Oh my gosh...why do we do this to our selves.....he he he .
11:45pm..bedtime
 Cheers and thanks for the interaction..it's always great to have more than one set of eyes and extra brain cells when researching....