Thomas Brown

[JanPennington]

I wonder whether the author of the book saw Craighead and found in atlas or somewhere that there was  one near Inverness.  I think Craighaugh in Dumfriesshire is a possibility.  I will speak to the person in charge of Eskbank and then buy some credits - but I do have another priority  - an estate is coming in 2 days to photograph my house for sale  - I do hate tidying but I will have to do it.  Then get back to genealogy.
Thanks for your help and suggestions when I have more information I will post it here.
Jan

[Forfarian]

How much does it cost to buy a record?  It was unclear on the site.

You have to buy credits, which cost 25p each. I think the minimum purchase is 30. You need 6 credits to view a document, so each document costs you £1.50.

Where is Craighead?  My searches seemed to suggest Lanarkshire but I can't find Craighead on a map.

There are umpteen Craigheads in Scotland.  They are all very small - just farms or crofts, which are not going to be named on a modern road map. See https://scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search/results?st=Craighead. If you click on Lanarkshire in that list you will see that there are at least 9 references to Craighead in that county alone.

This is the one that sprang to my mind
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4186003

and some I'd forgotten about
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1192560
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4392824
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3391090
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/966774

and this includes the above and several I didn't know about
http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=82248322

Are there only church records from that time?

Yes. Statutory civil registration started on 1 January 1855.

If Thomas named his house in NSW Eskbank, that does suggest a Dalkeith connection?

[JanPennington]

Thanks for your analysis of my project.
Craighead is not the most helpful place name.
I will buy some credits and look at the records found to see if they have additional information
Yes name Eskbank does seem to fit with Dalkeith - did see an Eskbank Station near Dalkeith
Evidence seems to be building for Dumfriesshire as place of origin.
Jan

[Forfarian]

Eskbank is a sizeable village next door to Dalkeith
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/NT3266

However it cannot be described as 'near' Dumfries.

There are several river Esks, including one in Dumfries and Galloway. Westerkirk is on the bank of this River Esk, so the link with Dalkeith has to be dubious.

If we could find a Craighead somewhere near the River Esk, would that be helpful?

The OS Name Books list three references to Craighead in Dumfries-shire. One of these has been mistranscribed and actually reads 'Craigend' in the original document.

The other two are a hill in the parish of Applegarth, and a plantation in the parish of Dunscore. Neither mentions a house or farm called Craighead.

Dunscore is west of the River Nith, which flows through Dumfries and is well west of the River Esk, so that looks unlikely. Craighead  Plantation is close to Glenesslin. See http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/NX8383

Applegarth is further east, but not as far east as the River Esk, and still some distance from it. Craighead Hill is here http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/NY1387, but you need to click on the map to enlarge it as it isn't named on the small scale map.

So I think we are still quite a long way from nailing Thomas Brown's birthplace.

[Forfarian]

I wonder whether the author of the book saw Craighead and found in atlas or somewhere that there was  one near Inverness.

They wouldn't have been the first to make that mistake 

[Forfarian]

Another thought. Be aware that some marriage records are very disappointing. They may contain as little as just the names of the couple.

However I see that there are two records of the marriage of Thomas Brown to Mary Maxwell in 1838 - one from his parish and one from hers, though you'll need to look at at least one of them to find out who was from which parish.

How reliable is your information about his DoB and his father's name? Because there is a Thomas Brown born in Campsie on 12 December 1811, father Malcolm.

[Forfarian]

I note that Thomas, son of David Brown, was baptised in Westerkirk on 13 June 1811.

There are baptisms of the following further children to David Brown in Westerkirk
Elizabeth 4 March 1810
James 9 May 1814
John James 16 July 1815
Ann 22 September 1817
Martin 5 September 1819
Christian 21 September 1821
David 1 June 1823
Margaret Malcolm 29 May 1825
Archibald 25 October 1826

The 1841 census (transcription at https://www.freecen.org.uk/cgi/search.pl) lists at Carlesgill, Westerkirk David Brown, 50; Agnes Brown, 50; Martin Brown, 20; Margaret Brown, 15; Mary Anne Brown, 9 and Agnes Waugh, 2 plus a mason and five apprentices presumably lodging the the household.

Adults' ages in the 1841 census are (supposed to be) rounded down to the nearest 5 years, so the actual ages of David and Agnes could be anything from 50 to 54.

I couldn't resist taking a look at the baptism of that Thomas Brown, which is not very informative. It says, "June 13. David Brown in Burn had a son baptized named Thomas born 24th May".

Carlesgill is in the southern part of Westerkirk, very close to the River Esk. Burn is just across the Craig Burn and there are a few place names round about with 'Craig' in them, but no Craighead. See http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=55.1829&lon=-3.0498&layers=5&b=1

What does anyone think about this?

[JanPennington]

Just an update.
I followed advice given above and also visited the local family history society.
Most of the information at the society did not have citations and some is contradictory, but I did find a referal to Thomas Brown's will - he left his property to his eight siblings none of whom came to Australia 
I looked on Scotlandspeople and paid for some credits.  I downloaded Thomas baptism record and his marriage to Mary Maxwell and also Mary's baptism.  I now have accurate dates for birth and baptism for mother and Mary's mother's name Ann(e) Park which I didn't have before.
I found lists of the baptisms for both Thomas' siblings ( as Forfarian did - Thanks)
and Mary's - some came to Australia as well.
I now need to find Thomas' will/probate here in New South Wales.
I will then write up a report for my 'boss'
Thank you everyone ( I think I  may have proved a history professor to have made a mistake)
Jan