Tait family - not getting very far...

[abstraction]

I'm researching this family, & a little stuck:

Father; Robert Tait b.12 July 1802 On census 1841, 1851, then disappears.  His parents are Robert Tait & Elizabeth Williamson.
Mother: Margaret Gray. On census 1841, but not 1851. Birth? Death?

Mary Tait bc. 1828 Emigrated to Australia 1853 on thames - but isn't listed in any census as family. Was she a cousin? Or out working early? May have been living with Murray family in 1841 Census - sister or not I'm not sure.
Elizabeth Williamson Tait, b.23 Sep 1830, Emigrated to Australia 1853 on Thames. I know her details in Australia.
Catherine Tait b.c.1831 Emigrated to Australia 1853 on Thames. Disappears in Australia somewhere.
Robert Tait bc.1835
William Tait bc.1837

How would I go about filling in the details and going back?  What are the best sources to check? 

Some of this I only know through this posting from years ago, but I don't know any more or this person's sources:
He was the son of Robert Tait and Elizabeth Williamson m. 25/10/1794. His brothers were John b 14/1/1796 Crichton and William b 24/6/1803 Edinburgh. Sister Helen b 1800 Crichton. His three daughters emigrated to Australia in 1853. He also had two sons, Robert b 1835 and William b 1837.

Just one further complication - I work in overseas aid, & can't afford things like an ancestry membership at this stage in my life. So I need to use searches that are accessible without cost.

[ev]

hi 

have you had a look here -

https://www.familysearch.org/

if you use the advanced search you should be able to find dates for the children of robert tait and margaret gray
also details of robert tait and elizabeth williamson and children
it's only a finding aid , but it is free to search

also freecen has the 1841 & 1851 census

http://www.freecen.org.uk/

looking at the 1851 census it looks like robert tait may have a new partner

ev

[abstraction]

Thank you so much!  I found the marriage of Robert & Margaret, and the births of their children.  I found them all in the census of 1841 & 1851.

But I can't find:
* birth or death of Robert (if his parents really were Robert & Elizabeth Williamson - he named his daughter 'Elizabeth Williamson' Tait!)
* Robert's remarriage (if he actually did remarry the catherine in the census.  They were by all accounts 'respectable' but anything is possible).
* Robert in 1861 census. If he emigrated, it wasn't with his daughters.
* Birth or death of margaret - since she disappears after the 1841 census, I assume a death within the next 10 years of my search. They may have split - a logical possibility.

Am I doing something wrong, or is that all the information there to find in these two indexes?

[ev]

Before official registration started in 1855 the Old Parish Records(OPR's) are far from complete
Scotlandspeople website is next place to look but while the index is free to search you need to buy
credits to look at the results
there is a Robert Tait death in 1874 midlothian born c.1803 

Did Robert's sons remain in Scotland ? If they married in Scotland it should give the names of their parents and state if the parents are deceased at the time of marriage

Perhaps Robert Tait died before 1855 ?
Is that the reason his 3 daughters went to Australia in 1853 ?

ev

[abstraction]

You've been very helpful.  A couple of questions:

There are two marriages for Robert Tait & Elizabeth Williamson

07 Nov 1794   Tranent,​East Lothian,​Scotland
25 Oct 1794   Crichton,​Midlothian,​Scotland

Now they could be easily be two couples, although i can't find any records of them after that in East Lothian, but as you said, the records are incomplete.
1. Is it possible they had two ceremonies for the families?  Is that something you've heard of before in this era?  it's sometimes done today, but people viewed the ceremony differently in those days.

2. If i were to get hold of the original church records, would they contain more information or only what is in the FamilySearch index?

3. It's reasonable to think that Robert was born to this couple (or one of the two if they are different couples), even though I can't find his birth record, because he named his daughter Elizabeth Williamson Tait.  But assumptions aren't history.  How would you go about tracking Robert Tait & Margaret Gray back with a solid evidence base?   If I've exhausted the free indexes, is Scotlandspeople the next step?

[ev]

The two dates could be Banns(announcement of marriage)
It would be noted in the bride and grooms parish to be sure that there was no reason that the couple could not be married
In the eyes of the Church this was more important than the marriage itself

You will be very lucky if the records have more than the "bare bones" that are showing on the IGI.

I think you have the correct parents(gut feeling  )
Scotlandspeople can cost , be aware

ev