Pre census record ancestors

[goldie61]

I know it can get a bit expensive if you are wanting to look a lots and lots of records on SP, which you're really going to need to do at some point.
I see familysearch.org has the film of Rathaven OPRs 1710 - 1854 digitised.
https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/184734?availability=Family%20History%20Library.
It look as if you can view this as long as you are signed in - it is easy (and free!) to set up an account if you don't have one.
If you don't have an LDS Account yet, you can go directly to FamilySearch and create your account there.
Go to FamilySearch.org, and click Free Account in the upper right corner of the page.
Follow the three-step process to create your account. ...
At the end of step 3, click Create an Account.
If not viewable at home, it will be viewable at an LDS family history library - all free again!

Good luck! 

[Millmoor]

I would also add re Banffshire that Freereg can be a useful resource. There are transcripts of the OPR's for quite a few of the Banffshire Parishes. This includes Rathven and Enzie, the latter for some reason showing as Clochan.  It is a very useful finding aid and well worth a look.

William

[Forfarian]

Do you know if it is available on Ancestry as I do not have find my past. Although saying that I think I may have to go to S/P to get the actual will.

Yes. Wills are one of the sources only available from SP.

See http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=714261.0

As for the digitised version of the Rathven OPR at FamilySearch, when I clicked on the camera icon I got a message saying, " Images Available. To view these images you must do one of the following: Access the site at a family history center. Access the site at a FamilySearch affiliate library".

I see the family in the 1851 census at Tarrymont: William, 68, farmer; Ann, wife, 58; George, 31, son; Jane, 17, daughter; Andrew, 14, son; James, 8, grandson.

This is the family of William Geddes and Ann Mackay, who were married in Kingussie and Inch in 1813. Only three of their family are in the baptism register - John, 1814, Elizabeth, 1824 and Jean, 1833. The 'community contributed' (not to be relied on) index on FamilySearch also lists George, 1819/20, James, 1822/3, and Andrew, 1836/7. These seem to have been taken from the information on the 1841 census.

As Tarrymount is close to Enzie, I did wonder if they might have been Roman Catholic, but there are no more baptisms in the RC records.

So IF they followed the naming tradition and IF all the children are accounted for in the 1841 and 1851 census (not a very safe assumption) I would expect William's parents to be John and Jean. However there could have been another child or two in the gap between John and George, and some between Elizabeth and Jean.

I see that Ann Geddes, other surname Mackay, died in Enzie in 1884, aged 90. Have you seen this death certificate? If so what were the names of Ann Mackay's parents? If not, you should now go to SP and get it.

I also see that the only candidate in the OPR for William's baptism is the son of William Geddes and Ann Chapman, so it looks as if someone may have assumed that he has to be the right one. This is never a safe assumption, especially in the absence of any record of a son William or a daughter Ann.

BTW LIBINDX has a death in Boharm of George Geddes, 51, married to Isabella Thomson, parents William Geddes and Ann Kay. I think Kay is probably an error for Ann Mackay because the SP index gives his maother's maiden name as McKay.

See http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=84322862 though the present house is almost certainly a mid-19th century replacement for the one your William Geddes lived in.

[agray1949]

Well I obtained the will, but unfortunately it does not give many clues apart from naming his son George, Robert Falconer (solicitor), Alexander Currie (Advocate judge), William Laing (Justice of peace) & one other name which I could not make out but looks like JP Bonner.
It also gives his date of death as 3 Nov 1854. (problem solved)
From the census transcripts I am certain this is the correct person,  but am still not 100% sure of the baptism. (Forfarian) you confused me a bit by mentioning William Geddes & Ann Chapman in the OPR. it is actually John Geddes & Ann Chapman. As his eldest son was called John this could be a link.
As for his wife Ann McKay the census for 1851 shows her born/baptised at Kingussie & Insh which is also where she married & the only baptism there was to Donald McKay & Ann Macpherson.
Confusingly the 1861 & 1871 census show her born at Elgin, Morayshire & the 1881 census shows her born at St.Andrews Morayshire.  (see also about her death)
I have checked her death certificate in 1884 but unfortunately it shows her father as - Mackay farmer deceased & mother unknown deceased.
Putting 2 & 2 together & getting 500, could it be that she did not get on with her parents & moved away to Rathven when she married & her parents were not talked about & therefore her son Andrew (informant) did not know who his grandparents were.

[Forfarian]

From the census transcripts I am certain this is the correct person,  but am still not 100% sure of the baptism. (Forfarian) you confused me a bit by mentioning William Geddes & Ann Chapman in the OPR. it is actually John Geddes & Ann Chapman. As his eldest son was called John this could be a link.

Sorry, slip of the brain. You are quite right.

As for his wife Ann McKay the census for 1851 shows her born/baptised at Kingussie & Insh which is also where she married & the only baptism there was to Donald McKay & Ann Macpherson.
Confusingly the 1861 & 1871 census show her born at Elgin, Morayshire & the 1881 census shows her born at St.Andrews Morayshire.  (see also about her death)
I have checked her death certificate in 1884 but unfortunately it shows her father as - Mackay farmer deceased & mother unknown deceased.

Oh dear - but you must not assume that she was the daughter of Donald and Ann - there is no evidence that she had a child named Donald, or one named Ann, though she could have had. There could have been another Ann Mackay born in Kingussie whose baptism records simply hasn't survived.

Putting 2 & 2 together & getting 500, could it be that she did not get on with her parents & moved away to Rathven when she married & her parents were not talked about & therefore her son Andrew (informant) did not know who his grandparents were.

I wouldn't speculate about that. After all, if the 1851 census is correct, she did marry in her home parish. It's not unusual for an informant not to know his (or her) grandparents' names, or to get them wrong, even when they live in the same parish. (I have one couple whose grandson got hopelessly muddled. His grandparents had been cousins, but if you believe the death certificates they were brother and sister!)