My 4x gtgdfather is Thomas SHATTON, died 7 Feb 1816 age 84 as Thomas SHOTTON, so born about 1732. He married, lived and died in Abercorn parish, West Lothian. The SHATTON spelling was consistent throughout his lifetime, but afterwards that surname varied most usually being SHOTTON, its last appearance being in 1830 because it had morphed into CHATTIE, before morphing once again into CHATTAM and finally CHATHAM.
Assuming the underlying surname was indeed SHOTTON, I've come across one family group in Leith, Midlothian who have proven connections with SHOTTONs in and around Newcastle-upon-Tyne, but my Thomas doesn't seem to fit with them in any respect - names, occupations, geography, anything.
But I've come across the Shropshire-based SHOTTONs (in Sheriffhales and in Newport) where the forename Thomas does repeatedly turn up even from very early days (1688 is the earliest reference I've found) - and, maybe significantly, baptism records show twins from time to time: twins turn up in my West Lothian line over the years too.
My Thomas SHATTON's wife Betty BRASH was born in 1739 so I'm prepared to query her husband's age as recorded in the Mortcloth records. Can anyone throw any light on these Shropshire SHOTTONs that might result in one of them moving away to a farming life in Scotland? Abercorn is part of the Hopetoun Estate, where Hopetoun House was built in 1699 for Charles HOPE, the 1st Earl of Hopetoun. Is there any conceivable connection with Shropshire, that might have led to local Shropshire people being recruited to work on the new estate by Edinburgh?
(Given the surname's fluidity, I am also wondering whether SHATTON was in fact a temporary transformation of the CHATTAN surname on its way to CHATTIE. But that'll be for another board!)
