RootsChat.Com
Research in Other Countries => Other Countries => Topic started by: Harriet Thomson on Wednesday 24 May 17 07:31 BST (UK)
-
I am trying to find family ancestors who were born in Mauritius, The family name is Rennie. Edward Rochefort Rennie was a station master there he was married to Josephine Marie Victoire Achard. It is possible they met on the boat going to Mauritius and married on arrival. They had Edward Rochefort, Marguerite Marie Therese, Emma Caroline, Edward Joseph, George Louis, Josephine Eslida, Isabella Emma and maybe an Anna and a Jules Marie William. I am hoping that someone might have further information on any of the family members. Some of the family ended up in the UK, others south Africa.
Thanks in anticipation
-
Presumably you already have the BMD information to be found on http://www.cgmrgenealogie.org/actes/index.php
-
Thank you for replying so fast. No I hadn't found that website, only the http://amamu.org which was limiting. Thank you, I will look into it right away.
-
From the 1871 Mauritius Almanac list of station masters:
-
Hi
Don't know if you have this, but in our archives
DEPOT NAB
SOURCE MSCE
TYPE LEER
VOLUME_NO 0
SYSTEM 01
REFERENCE 3223/1965
PART 1
DESCRIPTION RENNIE, GEORGE LOUIS ROCHEFORT. BORN IN MAURITIUS. SSP RENNIE, MARIA
YVONNE. DECEASED ESTATE.
STARTING 19650000
ENDING 19660000
Possibly one of yours, died in Natal in 1965, unfortunately the estate notices not online.
-
I think this is Edward Joseph's silver wedding in 1941:
RENNIE—RUSSEL— Dec 2 1916, at St. Peter’s, Church Street. EDWARD J. RENNIE to RUBY RUSSEL, 185 Lisburn Lane. Liverpool 15. Present address, Calabar, Nigeria
Liverpool Echo and Liverpool Daily Post, 2 December 1941
-
Here's the 1874 list of Station Masters: https://goo.gl/QpaBVS
"E Rennie" was at Curepipe
-
There is a Scottish probate calendar entry in 1898 which records Edward Rochford Rennie's death (intestate) in Beira in 1897 and lists his children as Marguerite, Isabelle, Anna, Edouard, Maria, Jules, George and Louis.
-
This is brilliant. thank you so much. Edward Joseph rennie married Ruby Russel and had a son William. The scottish record to is correct. I do have the record for George Louis. But thank you for contacting.
-
Hello,
Jules William Rennie was my Grandfather in Mauritius.
-
That is so good to hear. I am trying to complete his part of the tree but have so far failed. Would you be able to help me please? Jules was my first cousin 3 x removed. His father Edward Rochfort Rennie was the son of my 3 x great grandfather
-
Do you have the history in Scotland going back to the twins and William Rennie VC?
I found some interesting bits on geneanet yesterday, which I had not know.
Are you on geneanet? I am just on the basic one..free!
I can give you what I have on the bits in Scotland, but thought you might have that already.
Can certainly put together the geneanet bits for you if necessary.
-
If you mean Francis Rennie being born there, He was an army man and had a number of children with Mary Rochefort, Rochford, The twins were born first while in the uk at forton barracks, alverstock. I can not find a wedding for francis yet! I think Mary was from ireland but I can't prove it. Francis has ten children but from two wives both called Mary! Francis and both Marys died in South Africa. Edward Rochfort Rennie went to Mauritius and was married to Josephine Marie Victorine Achard but I have no info for Josephine only that she came from france. I have births for Marguerite Marie Therese Rennie no death only birth and marriage, Louise Laurence Berthe died mauritius 1972, Emma/Anna Caroline died mauritius 1942, Edward Joseph died 1948 liverpool, Jules Marie William, Just possible birth date nothing else, George Louis Died South Africa, and finally Josephine Esilda Marie Louise Rennie, marriage and death in Mauritius. Thats all I have. Any little thing could help complete the tree
-
Jules Marie William Rennie married Louise Marie Josèphe Marguerite Albine Pilot on 25 June 1917.
Jules William Rennie died on 14 August 1949, buried at cemetery in Phoenix.
They had a daughter, Marie Josèphe Gladys, born in 1918, died in 2009.
She married Harry Evans, and had three daughters.
They were my Parents.
Josephine Achard went to Mauritius from Marseille with her brother, Jules Achard, he was going there to start a new job as a lawyer, and invited his Sister to go with him.
I have a letter written by his Grandson to my Mother stating that his Grandfather was the brother of Josephine, my Mother’s grandmother.
I will send a short family tree with what I have.
-
abridged family tree..
-
Thank you so much for sharing. I have more dates and info on Francis and the family if you would like I can share this with you
-
That would be lovely, thank you very much.
-
Are you on Ancestry at all, otherwise can you let me have an email address
-
Can get on to Ancestry via my son in law, but am happy for you to have my email.
eryl@gancz.com
Don’t suppose you are anywhere near Elgin? Visiting in April.
-
No where near Elgin I am afraid. I live on the South coast of England between Portsmouth, Hampshire and Chichester, West Sussex
-
I have a partial free account on Ancestry and have had to sign in, but the link you emailed via ancestry says the page is unavailable.
-
Any suggestions?
-
Managed to get it, but it was then closed and no longer appeared in trees. However, I did manage to see most of it, and you have done an amazing job...I only know about the direct line down my Grandfathers side.
Thanks for letting me view it.
Best wishes.
-
It has been a rewarding experience looking at your Rennie family tree, which has enabled me to fill in many of the gaps in my tree. I have found three errors in your tree relating to William Rennie VC, his brother, John, and his ‘sister’, Ann. Two of these mistakes I had also made some time ago.
There is no record of John having been married. The 1881 census, which shows him married with children, is not William’s brother. Even though the age fits, the birth place does not. William’s brother was born and baptised in New Spynie, Morayshire, whereas the 1881 John was born in West Lothian. When William’s brother died, he was buried in the same grave as William - see photo of headstone at: http://vconline.org.uk/william-rennie-vc/4587990456 . I have visited the graveyard in Elgin.
William Rennie VC was never married. During a visit to Scotland last year, I visited the Heritage Centre at Brora where a local genealogist, Ellen Lindsay, confirmed for me that the married William Rennie was not Rennie VC. The evidence for this is long, which I can send to you by email if you wish to have it. Following on from this, William VC’s ‘sister’, Ann, is not his sister at all, but sister to the wrong William Rennie!
Thanks again for allowing me to see your tree.
-
Hi
Thank you for all the new info. I am surprised at the William Rennie one as I found it here http://libindx.moray.gov.uk/people/people_report_view.asp?REF_ID=NM148614 which is the Moray, Scotland Local History page which has his parents on there as well. See what you think. John I also found on the same site. I have removed Ann. If you need more jpegs regarding deaths marriages births let me know, my stuff is more South African based with touches of mauritius. I have spoken with a lady who has rochfort-rennie which has come from the mauritian side.
Thanks so much for your input
-
This is what we got from the genealogist Ellen Lindsay. She also sent us attachments to prove her point!
I've spent a fascinating time this morning researching your Rennies. It is my considered opinion that William Rennie 1821-1896 was never married, and did not father any children.
My evidence for this comes from a number of sources:
We know for sure from William's death registration in 1896, that his parents were Alexander Rennie and Ann Robb, confirming his birth as 1821 Elgin. On that death registration (you have a copy from yesterday) William is noted as "Single". Had William been married this would have been highly unusual, although not impossible if his wife had predeceased him by many years and contemporary friends did not know her (but it was a family member, cousin, who notified his death).
None of William's many death notices and obituaries in the newspapers make any mention of a spouse or children. I attach a couple of the newspaper obits, and you can see that other notices on the same pages as William's note spouses and/or children if there were any.
I have found William boarding in Kensington on the 1881 census. Many single officers and retired officers took rooms rather than have the expense and encumbrance of having a full household in town. William is noted on that census page as being "unmarried". (census copy attached)
As we know from William's probate records, he left his possessions to his sister Agnes, appearing to confirm the lack of a spouse or children.
According to deployment records of William's regiment, it is extremely unlikely that he was in the Elgin area in the 1850's to meet and marry and have a son. His parents and siblings had also moved away from the area up to Sutherland long before then, probably around late 1820's,as some of his siblings were Sutherland born.
Moving to the other side of the argument - the marriage in St Andrews-Llandbryde Parish of William Rennie and Margaret Innes, who produced a son Robert 5 months after their marriage in July 1854.
It is my contention that this is a different William Rennie. The William Rennie who married Margaret Innes and had a son Robert was much younger, having been born in 1833.
On the 1861 census at Moss of Barmuckity, we find William, a Railway Labourer, aged 26, with his wife Margaret, and son Robert aged 6.
This William is confirmed as the son of Robert Rennie and his wife Helen Laing who married 30 Jul 1830 in Elgin. William was born 19 Jun 1833.
Living almost next door to William, Margaret and young Robert in 1861, also in a house at Moss of Barmuckity, are his parents and youngest sister Robert and Helen Rennie and young Isabella.
Going backwards, to confirm the family group, on the 1841 census, William is living with his parents and siblings at Moss of Barmuckity. (I have attached copies of all of these census details for you)
Following young Robert forward... Robert was born on 20 Dec 1854. As noted above on the 1861 census he is with his parents. On the 1871 census, he is still at Moss of Barmuckity, age 17, but living with his grandparents Robert and Helen.
Robert jnr (b.Dec 1854) married Mary Younie in St Andrews-Llanbryde Parish in 1879, and by 1881 is living at Old Shields, St A-Ll, with wife Mary and a daughter Margaret W Rennie aged 1. His occupation is Cartwright. He goes on to become a Carpenter later.
Robert and Mary go on to have a further 2 children, John and Mary Jane in 1883 and 1885.
Then things start to take a turn for the worse for the family - in 1886 and 1887 Robert is bankrupted (newspaper articles attached). In 1891 and 1901 censuses Mary his wife is alone with the children and is making a living working in the local woolen mill. In 1890 and 1896 Mary makes application for Poor Relief to the parish. We would have to get the detail of those applications from Elgin, but it would tend to indicate that either Robert has died, or gone and left the family destitute. I can so far find no trace of a death, so suspect the latter for now!
Mary finally dies in a nursing home in Elgin in 1932, with her home address being Maisondieu Road, Elgin.
There is no record of any other Robert Rennie having been born in the area around that time, so my contention is that he is NOT the son of your William Rennie - and that the Robert Rennie buried in Lucknow is a sheer coincidence.
I suspect that someone in Elgin has put 2 and 2 together and made 5.
-
I am so sorry, I realize |I have been a little slow on figuring out stuff. I believe I was in contact with Peter Gooch who I am assuming is you son in law. Apologies. It suddenley all became clear
Hope you are keeping well in these troubled times.
-
Hello. That’s absolutely fine! I was thinking it must have come from the Stansfield branch in South Africa.
I hope you are well. Take care. We are self isolating here!
Best wishes.
-
Hi Harriet, my great grandfather was George Louis, he did emigrate to South Africa, Durban and then had a few children including my grandfather Noel.
I'm so interested to find out more about my family tree from this thread as I know very little about it.