RootsChat.Com
Scotland (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Scotland => Kincardineshire => Topic started by: MLC on Thursday 29 August 19 10:00 BST (UK)
-
I am researching the Findlays of Fordoun.
On 2 of the baptism records I have found for 1778 and 1779 the father is Robert Findlay of Quitbay.
Has anyone heard of this place because I can't find any record of it?
-
I take it these are from the Fordoun parish register?
Does the register actually say 'Robert Findlay of Quitbay' or 'Robert Findlay in Quitbay' or even 'at Quitbay'?
Are there other children to the same father, and if so where was he living when they were born? Do any of them say what his occupation was?
My first thought was that 'quh' occurs quite often in older Scottish documents where we would now 'expect 'wh'. However there's no 'h' (or is there?) and I still can't (so far) find a place called 'Whit(e)b(a)y in Fordoun'.
-
Thanks for your interest.
Yes, they are from the Fordoun parish register.
For James Findlay 11th Feb 1778 the record reads "Robert Findlay in Quitbay had his son James baptised".
For John Findlay 16th Dec 1779 it is the same "Robert Findlay in Quitbay"
For Mary Findlay 28th May 1776 the location could be Quilbay?
None of the records state an occupation.
-
Ah.
The 'in' rather than 'of' makes a difference. 'Of' in older Scottish records usually implies ownership of a property. 'In' implies that they lived there permanently but were tenants or occupiers (and hence that there won't be a mention of them in the Registers of Sasines). 'At' implies only temporary residence.
I had a long look at the map in https://maps.nls.uk/view/74400263 which is almost contemporary with the baptisms, but I didn't spot anything likely. Nor could I find anything promising at https://scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/places. So I think that it must have been a very small place - maybe a small croft with cottage - that had disappeared or changed its name before the 1850s.
-
Looking at the mid 1800's maps, there is an Upper and Neither Quithal. I wonder if there is a link.
Malky
-
Possible, although Quithal (now Quithel) is in the parish of Glenbervie, not the parish of Fordoun.
https://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/NO7884
-
Quitbay struck me as an odd name to find in an inland parish like Fordoun and I wondered if it is actually Quitbog? I also wondered how the Qu would have been pronounced. Quh would have been Wh, was Qu Kw or just K? And that brought to mind the modern farm name of Keabog, another strange name. Could Quitbog have evolved into Keabog?
Queet/quit is Scots for ankle, and I could imagine a farm being named because of ankle deep bog.
I'm not sure if it's in Fordoun parish though, Google "Keabog Stonehaven".
-
Quitbay struck me as an odd name to find in an inland parish like Fordoun and I wondered if it is actually Quitbog? I also wondered how the Qu would have been pronounced. Quh would have been Wh, was Qu Kw or just K?
See my Reply #1 above.
And that brought to mind the modern farm name of Keabog, another strange name. Could Quitbog have evolved into Keabog?
Queet/quit is Scots for ankle, and I could imagine a farm being named because of ankle deep bog.
I'm not sure if it's in Fordoun parish though, Google "Keabog Stonehaven".
No, it isn't. Keabog is in the parish of Glenbervie. Stonehaven is in the parish of Fetteresso. Its 21st century postal address may be 'Keabog, Stonehaven' but modern addresses are not always helpful when looking for 18th century ones :)
See https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=13&lat=56.9339&lon=-2.3609&layers=5&b=1 - you may need to zoom in.
-
Thanks for your help with this I am learning a lot.
Here are the extracts from the register, if they are of any help?
-
I see that one of the witnesses was in Corsbit, but the details of the rest of the witnesses are obscured in your triple extract. Do any of the others say where they lived?
-
I think I might have found something. There is Quadeby, which is a burn running round the north side of Boy's Hill to reach the Bervie Water near Coursebauld.
See https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=56.9334&lon=-2.4745&layers=5&b=1
and
https://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/NO7082 - click on the map to enlarge it enough to see the name.
None of the maps shows any buildings there, but maybe any buildings that were there in the 1770s had disappeared by the time the map-makers got busy.
-
I have attached a fuller extract for Mary Findlay because I cant decipher where one of the witnesses lives.
Otherwise the witnesses live at Corsbet and Tipperty.
-
Forfarian I think you are on to something with Quadeby as it is right next to Bankhead which is where one of the witnesses (at Mary Findlay's baptism) comes from.
-
Yes, I agree that that reads Bankhead; and Tipperty is just south-east of it, on the other side of Boy's Hill. I wonder if Corsebauld could be Corsbit?
It looks as if this land all belonged to the Earl of Kintore. If you could find out whether the Earl's estate papers have survived, it might be worth a look there for tenancy agreements and rental rolls. Start with the catalogues at https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/catalogues-and-indexes.
-
Well done, Forfarian.
-
Thank you Forfarian, your help and advice are greatly apprciated :)