Gow/ Smiths of Tomintoul

[northernscot]

Hi my great grandfather was Joseph Smith a stonemason in Tomintoul. I was wondering if anyone knew anything about the Smith/ Gow family and whether there is any connection to Niel Gow the fiddler?

[Forfarian]

Hi my great grandfather was Joseph Smith a stonemason in Tomintoul. I was wondering if anyone knew anything about the Smith/Gow family and whether there is any connection to Niel Gow the fiddler?

Given that Smith is the commonest surname in Scotland, and that there are probably dozens, if not hundreds, of Smith/Gow families, I think your chances of finding any connection are pretty small. Niel Gow lived over 100 miles from Tomintoul and died in 1807 at the ripe old age of 80. I have never seen any suggestion that any of his sons or grandsons moved to Tomintoul.

What were your Joseph Gow's dates? Where was he born?