McKnights of Ochiltree, Ayr

[kimmck]

Going back to the St. Quivox John, I had typed the year wrong birth year should have read 1855. Have checked my documents and have a death certificate for John McKnight, Died Whitletts Road, which was under St. Quivox at that time,  25th August 1913, parents names: John McKnight and Mary McKnight MS: Brackenridge.
His age on the death certificate is 56 which would make him born 1857C, but I know sometimes the ages are not always so accurate therefore I assumed him to be the 1855 John.
Would appreciate your thoughts, its strange.

[letznz]

I live in New Zealand. My descent is through William Mcknight (b1815Stair), son of George McKnight & Margaret Goldie/Goudie. William's eldest son, also named  George McKnight emigrated in 1874 on the Pleiades.He was my gt-grandfather. I visited Ochilltree cemetery in 2007 and was delighted to locate the headstone. I did find George McKnight's death record as 12th June 1840. As William erected the headstone later,after the death of his mother, that probably accounts for the confusion over which year George his father died. I located one birth for a Margaret Goudie of Maybole Ayr (this is close to Crosshill) 22nd Jan 1777, parents James Goudie and Jean Adair. Both these names are used for George and Margaret's offspring so it may be a possibility.Margaret Mcknight appears in the 1841 census under the name Margt(Mrs) MCNIIGHT, Stair Parish, Address Crosshill. Her age is recorded as 60 so a birth record for 1877 is not far out.

[kimmck]

Hi Letznz,
Thanks for your response. I am a descendant of John (1804), the son of George and Margaret Goldie.  I have the OPR death records of both George and Margaret.  The problem with Crosshill is that there is two Crosshills, one in Stair where they lived, and a Crosshill near Maybole which is about 19 miles away from Stair.  Have a couple of possibilities for her parents and am checking into those, one was James and Jean Adair.
We think we may have found information on George, think he was born in 17th April 1755 in Ochiltree to John McKnight, unfortunately no mother mentioned on the record.  George is noted as being a "Pioneer" so trying to track something down on that as it may be the reason he married quite late in life.
I have cousins, from the same branch of the family, living in New Zealand.  Its a small world!

   

[letznz]

Im pleased to hear from you and thank you for the update on George's birth. Two Crosshills eh. There is definitely something to be said for a good  knowledge of the area  I had thought about the word "pioneer" also. Generally it means breaking new ground in some field of endeavour. Interesting. Are your family long-lived? The McKnights are my mother's family and her brother(also George McKnight) made it to 100 years.It would be great to trace the family back one more generation. I take it that noone has as yet located a marriage record for George and Margaret.
It does seem Mcknights have lived in the area a long time. I came across a record for a Samuel McKnight born in Ochilltree in 1711 whose father was James McKnight. William McKnight (b1815)moved to Edinburgh and was an innkeeper. He had two sons, George and William, both born in Edinburgh. I have not been able to trace his death record but it was about 1860.It is great to see the input from various family. I see George (b 1813) was a railway sufaceman. I have just finished an old book about that job and the hugely high mortality rate among the workers. Hard times for them and their families.

[kimmck]

Unfortunately the male side of my family were not long lived with a lot of them dying before the age of 60, although my father was 75. I know that going back in time, some of them live a very long time which was unusual for that period.
There were McKnights in most of the Inns in New Cumnock, although, as yet, I cannot connection them all together.  I know for sure that Joseph (1810) was Inn Keeper in the Dumfries Arms Inn, New Cumnock.
The earliest McKnights I can find in the Ayrshire area are:
Parents                                           Child           DOB               Where
Allan McKnight+Agnes Hunter           Margaret   06/05/1666     Ayr
George McKnight+Margaret Miller   Margaret   24/03/1666   Ayr
Wiliam McKnight+Agnes McAlesr   William   18/09/1664   Ayr

The spelling of the names may vary but I am sure they are McKnights. 

I think a lot of them moved to the cities when farming in the area changed therefore finding work became more complicated.
George McKnight (1813) was killed by an "Express" Train, near Auchinleck, Ayrshire, in 1879.

I certainly think their lives were not easy back then.

[letznz]

I noticed a William McKnight and an Agnes McKnight in the 1837 Pigots Directory for New Cumnock listed as  innkeepers of the Crown Hotel New Cumnock but I am uncertain if this is George and Margaret's son. At the time of William's marriage in Edinburgh in 1856 he was described as a bachelor, and the occupation of his father George was given as "farmer".William 's age on the marriage certificate is 38years . In reality he was aged 41. William and wife Mary were living at 9 Roxburgh Street St Cuthberts Edinburgh.The streets close toTthe Pleasance I understand to have been a very densely populated part of the old town back then. I have not been able to locate William in 1851 but Mary and the 2 boys appear in the 1861 Census living at Richmond place Edinburgh so I have a big gap between William's birth in 1815 and his marriage in 1856.
How long have your cousins lived in NZ. It is a small world indeed. The other side of the world is now as accessible as Edinburgh was in William's.

[kimmck]

We think the William you are speaking about is William McKnight 1769c md: Agness 1775c Crighton (owners of Crown Hotel) Agnes died 19 Oct 1859, age 84. William died 1 Sept 1831, age 62 (We think he is son of George McKnight & Betty Mitchel).
Then is gets complicated...there are so many McKnight brothers who appear to have married sisters of another family so the same names are carried on down the generations (it gets very confusing).  So far I haven't found a link from my family back to William and Agnes, there could well be one, as a lot of them seem to be involved in the Inn or Spirit business. I knew there were  McKnights in Edinburgh, I have some information on them but didn't know they were also involved in the Inn business..will have to research them a bit more, thanks for that information. 

My cousins have been in NZ for over 10 years now. 

                  

[kirkbairn]

I have McKnights from new cumnock in my tree
does anybody have a Archibald McKnight
or a John McKnight married to Isabella Young Callan
jim

[honda1]

I have just come upon this site.  I think I have a Mcknight in the family if I can connect a Jean Marr.  The family I am interested in is the George Mcknight who married Jean Marr.  Apparently they have a daughter Agnes Mcknight b. 24 March 1839.  Whilst researching the Marr family - the 1841 Census of Bonnyton Toll Ochiltree has an Agnes McNaight age 2 appearing with Mrs John Marr - Tollgather, William Marr 25, John Marr 25, James Marr 20, Margaret Marr 20 and Agnes Marr 22.  I am trying hard to connect this little Agnes Mcknight (McNaight) with the Marr family and I need to know which Jean Marr married George McKnight.  Is anyone able help me here please.