Peter DEWAR born circa 1766

[RJ_Paton]

Hopefully someone may be able to help me

Peter Dewar is my great (x5) grandfather and it is believed that Peter was born around 1766 (he was 75 in the 1841 census which would give an age range of 75 to 79 (approximately) This age of 75 in 1841appears to be confirmed when he dies in 1842 and his gravestone lists him as aged 76.

The first hint that we have linking Peter to Berwickshire is the publishing of Banns/marriage announcement in the OPR's for Chirnside on 1st May 1790 where he is described as Peter Dewar in Chirnside and his bride as Margaret Paterson in Coldingham. A 2nd entry in the OPR's on 2nd January 1791 lists a Peter Dewar and 4 other males and acknowledges their late payment for the marriage announcements.

"My" Peter and Margaret subsequently move to Lanarkshire where they live the rest of their lives - Peter died in 1842 and Margaret in 1848.

There is no strong evidence at this point to confirm their parentage but if they used the traditional naming pattern as several generations of their descendants did then Peters father may have been called James Dewar and Margaret's parents may have been George and Margaret Paterson (there is a strong possibility that this is the George Paterson in Edrom who has a daughter Margaret in 1767).

There are several trees on Ancestry and other places which link Peter as the son of William Dewar and Jean Gray in Gladsmuir but their Peter was born on 19th April 1756 (according to the OPR's) in Gladsmuir in what was Haddingtonshire and this 10 year difference from the other sources has, for me, always thrown doubt upon this connection.

My doubts have recently been reinforced by uncovering evidence from newspaper coverage of a trial of the time where descendants of a Peter Dewar of Haddington are suing for the recovery of money they claim was embezzled from this Peter. Evidence from the trial reported in the newspapers refers to this Peter Dewar having been born in Haddington on 17th April 1756 and having died there in 1834. Whilst there is still a discrepancy from the Peter Dewar listed in the Parish Records of Gladsmuir it is only a two day difference as opposed to a possible 10 year one for "my" Peter.

"My" Peter was later in his life a gardner/hedger at Hardington House and in a few records is listed as Peter Dewar of Hardington. I sometimes wonder if this caused confusion with Haddington where the 1756 Peter was born ?

In addition, and possibly a distraction,  the name of William, the father of the 1756 Peter, does not appear in the family for several generations but in all other respects the family appear to follow the traditional naming pattern for several generations.