John ALLAN d 1784 Elie

[hdw]

I can think of two Tom Watsons, and am related to both of them. You no doubt mean the St. Monans one.

Harry

[dowdstree]

Harry - I have just received a copy of the book you recommended by Aitken Fyall. Had a quick look and it will be a very interesting read.

By the way his mother Jenny Easson is a distant cousin to me. No surprise there. Must go back and check exactly how we are related.

Thanks again

Dorrie

[Duncan32]

Hi Harry - I'm being a bit cheeky here, but I'm guessing you are well-versed in the history of the Elie area, so thought I'd try my luck asking you about another fishing disaster, on May 16 1778 (which may need a separate thread?).

The incident is detailed on the Elie birth record for Andrew OVENSTONE (a girl), on 22 May 1778 (I have to say Elie records are awesome !!). The text details the death of three men, Andrew OVENSTONE and two BLACK brothers (William and Andrew), and details of their inter-related families. And this is where I'm struggling - I cannot seem to confirm each family based on the descriptions in this birth record, using SP records. For example, the Elie record states 'five children lost their fathers..' yet I can only find four children, using SP; also 'one woman lost her husband, her brother and brother in law' - I make this woman the sister of Andrew OVENSTONE who married one of the BLACK brothers, yet it looks like each brother married an OVENSTONE girl (William BLACK m Agnes OVENSTONE; Andrew BLACK m Helen OVENSTONE), and I can't confirm which one was Andrew OVENSTONE's sister (as I can't seem to confirm Andrew OVENSTONE's parents).

Hope you can follow the above (!) - it's like some sort of Chinese puzzle, made all the more infuriating by the fact that I get the distinct impression the answer is staring me in the face ....!!

Regards
Duncan

[hdw]

Yes, the Elie OPRs are something else. By and large the OPRs of the East Neuk parishes are well kept in comparison with those from remote areas of the Borders, for example.

I haven't seen Andrew as a girl's name before but I do know of an Andrea from Cellardyke in Kilrenny parish:

"James Anderson, Sailor in Cellardike (but now amissing being either lost or Taken at Sea) and Margaret Millar his Spouse had a lawful Daughter born Octr. 22nd. 1797 and baptised on the 24th. of Same month, named Andrea.
N.B. She was named after Andrew Anderson, Supposed to be lost also."

I haven't tried working out all the relationships mentioned in the Elie OPR, but remember that registration of births and baptisms wasn't compulsory at that time, and people sometimes registered some of their children but not others. Quite often I've only been made aware of an individual's existence when they got married or died, and when you look for their birth/baptism, there's no record of it.

Harry

[hdw]

By the way, I keep meaning to mention that Ovenstone is the name of a farm just inland from Anstruther, Pittenweem and St. Monans, and presumably that's the origin of the surname. So it's about as local a surname as you could get.
I had relatives living there just after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. There's now an artists' colony at Ovenstone, and when my wife and I visited the Pittenweem Arts Festival in August the driver of the shuttle bus from the car park to the harbour apologised for making a detour first up to Ovenstone to pick up some people.
It was the first time I had been there since one day in the 1960s when I walked up to Ovenstone from Pittenweem to sign up for a gang of "tauttie pickers".
Harry

[Duncan32]

Thanks for your response Harry. I think I've unravelled the issue (and, even if I'm wrong, I've quite enjoyed the process !!). You may find the record for the birth of Andrew OVENSTONE on 22 May 1778 interesting, so I've attached it below.

I've also sent in an order for the book you mentioned earlier (I hope you get royalties !! - they may be worth more than your wage packet for picking tatties !!)

Dorrie - if you're still reading this, did you get anywhere with the parents or siblings of James Brown (who drowned in the 1784 incident) ? (I ask as I also have some BROWN's in my tree)

Best wishes
Duncan

[hdw]

The book was by (Andrew) Aitken Fyall, a native of St. Monans, who died in 2011 in Wales.

Harry

[hdw]

Here's the amazingly informative entry from the Elie deaths register about the death of James Brown in 1784.

Harry

[dowdstree]

Hi Duncan,
Sorry no I did not get anywhere with James Brown's parentage. Too many possibilities to be sure.

His daughter Janet Brown was born in 1759 in Elie and the witnesses at the baptism were John Lorimer and George Melvill.

When Janet married David Allan in 1782 the marriage entry states 3rd daughter to James Brown and Catherine Duncan.

Don't know if this helps you at all.

Dorrie