1777 Kelso Dispensary records – free online

[ScottishAncestry]

I have now finished transcribing year one of the Kelso Dispensary records which start in 1777. I know they have already proved of interest to some researching in the Borders so I thought I would let everybody on the list know about them. I actually featured them in my blog the other day: http://scottishgenealogyblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/kelso-dispensary-year-one-pdf.html


Here’s the link to the free PDF: http://www.maxwellancestry.com/ancestry/resources/kelsodisp1.pdf

Hope you all find this resource useful.

Emma


Moderator Comment: added to
Topic: ** RESOURCES for Roxburghshire **
http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,506855.0.html

[MonicaL]

Emma, just had a look at your new database - fascinating  Wishing I had someone to search for there and then, but I don't, so just enjoyed looking through the details!

Monica

[hdw]

Thanks very much for doing this, Emma. I first found out about the Kelso Dispensary some years ago when researching my Kelso STEWARTS. My 3 x great-grandfather Richard STEWART of 84 Roxburgh Street died at the Dispensary in 1877. He had an unmarried daughter called Graham STEWART who is a "seamstress" in 1871, but in 1881 she is at the Dispensary, she has "in charge" written after her name, and she is classed as "Matron of Dispensary". How did she get to that position from being a seamstress?

Graham never married, and died in Edinburgh in 1905 at the home of her married sister. Her death-certificate describes her as "Formerly a Dispensary Matron".

I just wonder what being a matron entailed in those early days. Would she have had any medical training, or was it just a question of being a rather superior housekeeper and administrator?

Harry

[ScottishAncestry]

Hi Harry,

That is a vey good question to be honest I don’t know. There are however many records of the dispensary that are held by the NAS that I have not yet looked at. If you go to their catalogue (http://www.nas.gov.uk/onlineCatalogue/) and search for all records starting with the reference HH71 you will see a list of what they hold. I wonder if the minute book (HH71/3), which covers the time she must have started, could be of use.

I will be in Edinburgh again soon so I will look at if for you. As well as transcribing the records it would be interesting to learn more about the history of the dispensary.

Emma

[hdw]

Thanks a lot!

Harry

[parakeet]

I want to add my thanks Emma for this fantastic piece of work.

As a piece of social history it is brilliant. I loved reading the symptoms. The one I liked best was George Ker who had hypochondria and was "relieved". At least he doesn't appear again! Also I noted two women who had hysteric complaints. These were cured. Wonder what did it?

And, I'm going to do a bit of checking to see if the William Wood of Sprouston, who unfortunately died, is one of the people I have been researching.

very best wishes

Jacqueline

[parakeet]

Sorry - I meant William Hood, not Wood. Have been researching both lately - probably need to go to the dispensary.

[hdw]

Here's a new twist. I said above that my ancestor Richard Stewart died at the Kelso Dispensary in 1877, and by 1881 his daughter Graham was the matron.

I've just looked up the death of Richard's wife Janet Thompson in 1871. She's not my ancestor - I'm descended from an illegitimate child (James Stewart) that Richard fathered on a Hawick girl in the same year he got married in. Anyway, Richard's wife died in the Dispensary in 1871 and her death-certificate says "married to Richard Stewart, Keeper of Dispensary".

So it seems I have even more of a connection with the Dispensary than I thought! Richard certainly had no medical training. The son and grandson of butchers, he worked as a woollen stocking-maker before becoming a journeyman skinner.

Harry

[ScottishAncestry]

Hi Harry,

I see Richard and Janet were at the dispensary in the 1861 and 1851 census too: http://www.maxwellancestry.com/census/61transcript.aspx?houseid=79308015

It says skinner as occupation in the census; he must have had two jobs. Graham was there too, I suppose if she was around the dispensary for many years she would have learned on the job but it would be interesting t find out more. I will be in Edinburgh this week so I’ll let you know if I find anything of interest. It may even give an idea of wages etc. but I’m really not sure.

Emma