Stuarts stonemasons Tomintoul.

[crombieburn]

Does anyone have any information on the three generations of Stuarts that "built Tomintoul"?

I know of William born 1858, his father was Peter Stuart and his grandfather, William.

[KirstyG]

Peter (41) and son William (3) seem to be living with the rest of their family at Drovers Lane, Tomintoul, Kirkmichael in 1861.

http://freecen.rootsweb.com


William Stuart b.25th January 1858 Kirkmichael, Banff to Peter Stuart and Janet Smith.

Peter and Janet married 1st June 1848 Kirkmichael

(from IGI) http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/


Janet's sister Helen Smith is living with them in 1861.


What information do you have on this family already?

Kirsty

[crombieburn]

Thank you, I have quite a lot of info on the Stuart family mainly from Scotlands People research. I found the baptism record of Peter ( who married Janet Smith) in1848. His father was William Stuart, a stonemason and his mother named as Anne Riach.This information is from  Peter's death certificate , Tomintoul 1904.

I think that I have William , Peter and William cross checked and correct as far as birth, marriage, census are concerned. I have the possibility of the previous generation being Thomas Stuart married to Elizabeth Geddes. Not too sure of this as I think I have been going up too many branches at the same time and get somewhat confused!

I am very interested in finding out about the buildings they worked on and wonder if anyone would know anything about that or could suggest any way of finding out.

[KirstyG]

The first ordinance Survey map in the NLS collection was surveyed in the late 1860s so there is a good chance that the Stuarts worked on at least some of the buildings on there. The map is fairly detailed int the shape of and position of the buildings so it should be possible to work out which were built prior to 1870. By the looks of things the main grid pattern laid out then is still in place today so many of the original buildings probably are too.

http://www.nls.uk/maps/os/oneinch_1st_list.html

Aberdeen City Archives might have records which could help, or the University Library.

http://www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/LocalHistory/archives/loc_FAQs.asp

The Tomintoul Kirk Session might have records of interest, especially as the Kirk was built in 1826, so the elder Peter Stuart might have been involved.

Record held by NAS Ref GB234/CH2/354  Tomintoul Kirk Session


Hope this helps

Kirsty

[crombieburn]

Many thanks for all your help. I had no idea that these maps were available on line. They are excellent as I had been working from an early twentieth century map of the area, which was not very good in comparison.

I also realised that I had not yet found the marriage of Peter Stuart and Janet Smith but thanks to your mention of them on Peoplesearch I have now downloaded it.  As it turned out, he was the only Stewart among my Stuarts! Combined with the fact that his eldest child was born on the Isle of Colonsay I had kept drawing a blank on their marriage.

Hope to get to grips with investigating buildings soon but thank you again for your invaluable help.

[KirstyG]

You're welcome, I hope you have some success 

Kirsty

[JSmith]

Probably not really what you are after, but you can lookup Janet Smith's ancestors:

Janet Smith - b 18 July 1820 to James Smith and Grace Cameron.

In 1841 James Smith, his two brothers John and Alexander, their wives, and about twenty children were all living close together at Ellick and Glenconlas

James Smith - b 8 June 1780 to James Smith and Helen Fraser
John Smith - b 24 November 1777 to James Smith and Helen Fraser
Alex. Smith - b 15 March 1787 to James Smith and Helen Fraser

James Smith and Helen Fraser's gravestone is in the Kirkmichael churchyard. Though worn, it suggests James was born about 1745. Changing from English Smith to Gaelic Gow, the records suggest one more generation:

James Smith - 8 August 1745 to John Gow and Christan Gould, Ruthven

[crombieburn]

Many thanks for the very interesting Smith information. I have a copy (old parish records) of Janet Smith and Peter Stuart's marriage in 1845 and her birth in1821as well as her death certificate, Tomintoul 1888.

Also have Grace Cameron and James Smith's marriage 1817. So very pleased to travel further back on this branch. Do you by any chance know where Aultnahillick? is/was? Farm in Glenconglass? Also Grace Cameron's Kincairn?

Thank you again and a Happy New Year!

[JSmith]

I believe Glenconglass farm is the farm at NJ174223.
It is still very much in use.

There is a stream flowing SW coming down to Glenconglass farm - visible on the modern 1:50000 map. I have a copy of an ancient OS map that calls the stream the "Allt na h-Ellick"
A few hundred yards up the stream is an old ruin - little more than a gable end. I guess this is the Aultnahillick farm mentioned in the 1841 census with John Smith and his family.

This link is (I hope) centred on the Altnhillick ruin.
http://maps.google.co.uk/?ie=UTF8&ll=57.286303,-3.36849&spn=0.002882,0.008208&t=h&z=17

There is a picture of the modern Glenconlass farm at. http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/51088. The farm house and older buildings are behind the big modern barn.

There are very brief references to these Smiths as tenants of farms in the book Lordship of Strathavon by Victor Gaffney. The Gordon estate papers and rent accounts for at least some of these farms still exist in Edinburgh.
I understand they suggest farming on the Ellick hillside was not easy. In a poor year the rent had to be held over to the following year.

Stories told to my Grandfather around 1900 claimed the family was related to John Smith, the first licensed whisky distiller. They include tales of how John escaped ambush in an inn by shooting into the fire, filling the room in soot and smoke, and escaping in the ensuing mayhem. The same story appeared more recently in Glenlivet advertisements. But we have yet to find any supporting historical record - and so far the dates don't fit very well.

I haven't looked for Grace Cameron and Kincairn.

Happy New Year!