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Scotland (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Scotland => Midlothian => Topic started by: ab325 on Thursday 09 July 09 01:04 BST (UK)
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I am looking for information on a John May family who is said to have lived 15 miles from Edinburgh around 1820. I do not have a birth date, death date or marriage info for him. What information I have comes from his granddaughter's husband.
John and his wife had three children born in Scotland - Williamson was born around 1814; Jim was born before 1821; and Nancy was born Dec 12, 1821. They moved to Ireland where a son, John, and two daughters, Mary and Martha, were born. Another son was born in either Scotland or Ireland. Before 1840 they made a brief trip back to Scotland before immigrating to the states where they settled in Ohio. The son I don't have a name for died at sea on the way over to the states.
Who was the father's wife? What village or town did they live in? Where did they live in Ireland? Were they what was considered Scotch-Irish? Were they most likely affected by the potato famine? There is no mention of the mother in Ohio. Was their brief trip back to Scotland to bury her? If so, where is she buried? Who were John's parents and his wife's parents? What was John's occupation? Were any of the children old enough to have occupations at that time? More questions than answers - probably some without answers.
I would greatly appreciate any help.
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Hi ab235,Have some info but this is away further than left field.You will need to double and triple check this to confirm it is right. Here goes:
From IGI
John May or O'May b 10 Feb 1794 Cleish Kinross parents George May and Mary Flockhart
Elizabeth Boyd b ?
Married 1819 Abbey (Paisley) Renfrew
Nothing on the sons but
Jeanie 4 July 1820 Abbey (Paisley) Renfrew
Nancy (Agnes) 12 Aug or Sep 1822 Abbey (Paisley) Renfrew
This as close to Edinburgh as I can get except for some John May's in Aberdeen, Perth and Glasgow but there are no families for them except the Aberdeen one. Don't know if this is a help or hindrance, as for the Irish connection I cannot help there, but good luck anyway, Thinlizy
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Hi
Are there any records in Ohio that might help help such as marriages for any of the children? I'm not familiar with what information is available on marriage certs in the US. I see there is a marriage in Hamilton County Ohio, 2nd of June 1847 for a Nancy May to John Bailey. Could that be your Nancy?
There is an extracted marriage for a Williamson May to Rebecca W. Huffman in 1838 Clark Ohio. Could this be your family? It would indicate that he at least was in Ohio before 1840.
The mother's name may for the family posted by Thinlizy have been Helen Boyd looking at the IGI entries (if that is the right family at all - Paisley is about 60 miles from Edinburgh). There are some extracted and some submitted entries so as mentioned above triple checking the originals is a good idea!
Do you know what religious denomination they were? The births may not have been registered with the Established Church so they might be held elsewhere.
Kirsty
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The only records I have been able to find in Ohio are Williamson's marriage to Rebecca and their listing in the census. As for Nancy (my ggg grandmother), she married Aaron B. Moore on Nov. 19, 1840 in Cincinnati, Ohio. I cannot find anything else. A long time ago I thought there was a wife's name of Lydia ??, but I cannot find it again.
I appreciate you efforts in trying to help.
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I came across you note re John May Edinburgh. I have been tracing my ancestors in that area. I still live in the Edinburgh area and you may be connected to the may family that lived in the Preston Pans?Port Seaton area of East lothian, about 10-15 miles east of Edinburgh. The family were all fishermen and had been for many generations. I have traced my arm of the family from today back to 1700.
One of your relatives fought with Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, as it was the case that in paece time the family were fishermen but in times of war they were in the Royal Navy, this tradition contiued right up myself in the 1970's and eighties
regards
Rev John May
Edinburgh
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Hi John,
Welcome to Rootschat, I, too am related to Port Seton/Prestonpans fishermen. I have not came across the surname, May as yet, but many of my names, are Buchanan, Ritchie, etc. I have my own tree online on My Heritage tree builder. Once you have made 3 posts, we could PM each other, and we could change email addresses etc.
Tom Buchanan
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Hi
Most of the Mays probably died out around 1900 as in the mid 1800's many moved. My direct descendants on my father's side moved to Gilmerton, south of Edinburgh and started to work in the Lothian coalfields. I visited Preston Pans church grave yard recently and the last May name I saw was dated around 1910 and female, her first name was Ann. So perhaps most descendants were female hence the name not being so familiar.
Hope this helps!
Iain May
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I am not sure if my May Family is of England, Ireland or Scotland, but my paternal great-great-grandfather was a seaman in North County Dublin and he died at sea sometime around the 1860s. My paternal side has other family lines who lived in Scotland and Ireland so, in relation to your discussion of the John May Family near Edinburgh, I am wondering if there is any general knowledge of migrations from Scotland to the Dublin area either of May families, or fishermen, or seamen in the 1800s or even earlier in the 1700s. One theory I have is that the May Family in North County Dublin may have moved there from Scotland.
Even if there is no record of particular May Family migrations I am wondering if there was such a connection between Scotland and County Dublin. I am happy to know even the titles of books that may discuss the history. I am enjoying reading related history as much as following the genealogical trail. Thank you for any help or leads.
Timothy May
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Hi johnsmay13,
I have found a Margaret May married an Alexander Coull around 1805 in Prestonpans. They had twins plus a daughter, the boy twin Peter Coull married an Agnes Ritchie 19 Nov 1848 in Prestonpans, Peter and his father were fisherman.
Tom
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May family in Ireland and Edinburgh
In relation to North county Dublin. I used to live in Skerries a fishing village some 20 miles north of Dublin. There was a pub on the dock side that was called Joe May's and the owner was a Joe may and his family were fishing folk from that area.
I talked to him and he had a vague recollection of his ancesters coming from Scotland, where he did not know.
But knowing the name May when associated to fishing families is primarily associated with the East Coast of Scotland and in particular the Forth area, then it may well be that is where they came from.
I hope this helps.
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Hi
Re the Margaret May who married into the Coull family. Margaret was a relative of the May family in Preston Pans. Her grandfather, William May, was born on the 3rd September 1758 in Preston Pans. Therefore a distant relative of me.
I hope this helps
Rev Iain May
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Hi John,
Welcome to Rootschat, I, too am related to Port Seton/Prestonpans fishermen. I have not came across the surname, May as yet, but many of my names, are Buchanan, Ritchie, etc. I have my own tree online on My Heritage tree builder. Once you have made 3 posts, we could PM each other, and we could change email addresses etc.
Tom Buchanan
i haveo'may family in campbeltown, came into argyllFROM IRELAND DO NOT KNOW WHER EI HAVE A TREE ON ANCESTRYMAY CAN BE FOUND AROUND ABERDEEN STORY GOES THAT SOME DID NOT LIKE YHE CONNECTION TO IRELANDSO THEY DROPPED THE O'
MARCIE
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Tom,
Alexander Coul & Margaret May are my ggg-grandparents. I have Coull, Ritchie, Thomson & Bird ancestors in my family tree, all from Prestonpans. I would like to exchange information with you! Thank you!
Children of Alexander Coul/Coull and Margaret May:
3-1 Peter Coul (my gg-grandfather)
3-2 Margaret Coul
3-3 Roy (Robina) Coul
3-4 Alexander Coul
3-5 John Coul
John B. Calder
Cambridge, Ontario
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Hi, John B Calder
I'm related to the Prestonpans Birds. Have a look on my website or via this link...
http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=SHOW&db=adamsmidlothian&recno=363
Hibee
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Hi Orion (John B Calder),
I have got an online tree, will give you access, but you must make 3 posts, reply to this will be 2, and one other post will do it. I will then exchange emails and give access to my tree.
Tom
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Will do, Thanks!
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quote author=*Orion link=topic=391338.msg4503585#msg4503585 date=1338701318]
Tom,
Alexander Coul & Margaret May are my ggg-grandparents. I have Coull, Ritchie, Thomson & Bird ancestors in my family tree, all from Prestonpans. I would like to exchange information with you! Thank you!
Children of Alexander Coul/Coull and Margaret May:
3-1 Peter Coul (my gg-grandfather)
3-2 Margaret Coul
3-3 Roy (Robina) Coul
3-4 Alexander Coul
3-5 John Coul
John B. Calder
Cambridge, Ontario
I am also related to Ritchie's through my paternal Grandmother, Margaret Grandison Ritchie, her mother and father were both Ritchie's as well. So may have links there also.
I do not have details of 3-4 Alexander Coul and 3-5 John Coul, I have the first 3 births.
Tom Buchanan
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The next generation in my connection to the May family:
Children of Peter Coul/Coull and Agnes Ritchie:
4-1 Alexander Coul
4-2 John Coul
4-3 Roy Coul
4-4 Peter Coul (Coull, my great-grandfather)
4-5 Alexander Ritchie Coul
4-6 Margaret Coul
4-7 Elizabeth (Eliza) Ritchie Coul
4-8 Agnes Coul
4-9 George Ritchie Coul (Coull)
4-10 Robina Ritchie Coul
4-11 Andrew Cunningham Coul (Coull)
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Hi John,
I don't have details of :-
4-8 Agnes Coul
4-9 George Ritchie Coul (Coull)
4-10 Robina Ritchie Coul
4-11 Andrew Cunningham Coul (Coull)
but I have the first 7.
Tom
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hi, dend me a pm and email address and i will invite you to view that tree on ancestry traills were trail de holland an ariocratic family an cosins to william of orange george the farmer traillde holland was his third cousin.
look forward to hearing from you, i will write you in as a contributor, if you open the tree there is a tab next to it with tree settings and then over on the rhside is where it says download gedcom it first makes a gedcom file and then you can save it to your computor or a disc which is what i have done, please be careful not to delete it this is 12yrs work for me. i have 7 trees and 5 of them lead to aristocracy my nan told me our family are full of aristos thi
eves and poets, i have found the aristos, not found rob roy yet or rabbie burns, but you never know?
marjorie......let me know if problems, my 5th cousinalso has access to my tree and lives in canada.i can ask him to allow you to contact him it may help,
my o'may family were in renfrew, campbelltown north carolina new zealand/ausrelated to the campbells including the earl of arran and argylland originate from ireland thomas o'may married a mary/margaret swan and emigrated and i am in contact withother cousins who may able to assist should you become stuck.
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John (johnsmay13),
Thank you for responding about the May family in Ireland and Scotland on 17 January. I was doing a search and see your reply now. I wish I checked back sooner.
My uncle visited Skerries many years ago and told me about Joe May's pub.
My May family ancestors were of Skerries. My great-great-grandfather was a fisherman or boatman who died apparently lost at sea ab. 1868. He had a boat registered in Stornoway, Scotland. My great-grandfather emigrated to America as a boy or young man in the 1870s or 1880s.
Does your ancestry in Skerries go to that time period? If not, do you know of other May families there? Thank you.
Timothy May
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May family in Ireland and Edinburgh
In relation to North county Dublin. I used to live in Skerries a fishing village some 20 miles north of Dublin. There was a pub on the dock side that was called Joe May's and the owner was a Joe may and his family were fishing folk from that area.
I talked to him and he had a vague recollection of his ancesters coming from Scotland, where he did not know.
But knowing the name May when associated to fishing families is primarily associated with the East Coast of Scotland and in particular the Forth area, then it may well be that is where they came from.
I hope this helps.
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Does the name Lydia appear anywhere connected to a May? I recently found a marriage record for a John May and Lydia Williamson in Ohio dated about 1809. The date and place sounds reasonable according to the time the children were born in Scotland and Ireland and it being near where other descendants lived.
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Hi Ab325,
I have just sent you an private message as your email notifications have not been working for some time, it looks like that you may have changed email address.
Regards
Sarah
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Does the name Lydia appear anywhere connected to a May? I recently found a marriage record for a John May and Lydia Williamson in Ohio dated about 1809. The date and place sounds reasonable according to the time the children were born in Scotland and Ireland and it being near where other descendants lived.
npt that I know of most of my o'may Ancestors came from around campbeltown area or we believe cavan in ireland but not proven as yet.