Alexander Craig, Kilbirnie

[CaroleW]

What address was Marion living at in 1911?

[Mirren]

Henderson street, Kinning Park, Glasgow

[Rosinish]

Just a thought...if Alexander disappeared, Marion would have had to wait 7 yrs to have him proclaimed deceased in order to remarry which isn't to say he was deceased.

Annie

[dowdstree]

Another thought from me - Could he have gone abroad and died there?

Dorrie

[loobylooayr]

Just a thought...if Alexander disappeared, Marion would have had to wait 7 yrs to have him proclaimed deceased in order to remarry which isn't to say he was deceased.

Annie

Hi Annie,

I've heard of the "7 years missing then get them declared dead" but I don't know what the process was? I'm assuming it would be done at court?
Would an ordinary Glaswegian woman in 1914 be able to afford to do this? Would she know she could do this?  And if Marion did this, should there be a record of it somewhere?
Lastly, if the courts do decide a missing person is dead after 7 years, is there a death certificate issued?

Sorry for the questions - I know you may not have the answers - I'm just rambling and thinking while I type!

Looby

[loobylooayr]

Another thought from me - Could he have gone abroad and died there?

Dorrie

Yes, very possibly Dorrie. He doesn't seem to have died in Scotland (at least not that we've found).
Maybe we should look further afield.

Looby

[dowdstree]

We are now in a situation where it would seem that  Alexander Craig went "missing" between the birth of the last child in 1907 and the 1911 census.

I agree with Looby that Marion would not have the funds to have him declared dead by the courts. So we have 2 scenarios here as far as I can make out.
1. He just disappeared for whatever reason and she assumed in 1911 that he had died and said she was a widow.
2.  He went away somewhere possibly abroad and she received word that he had died.

Therefore when she remarries in 1914 she titles herself as a widow. No proof was asked for back then.

This is a really tough one to crack.

Dorrie

[loobylooayr]

I think if there was a poor relief record for Marion it might answer the question of whether Alexander died or whether he had left the scene.
I'm still drawn to the Alexander Craig working with a large contingent of Scots on a reservoir contract at Pateley Bridge, Middlemoor, Yorkshire. If that man gave the correct information (apart from marital status) I do think he could be Mirren's missing man.
There were 4 Alexander Craigs born in Ayrshire during the 1871/72 timeframe.
One was Alexander Dean Craig.
Two died as infants.
One is on the 1911 Census at Kilwinning and I think he could be the man who marries in 1918 in Kilbirnie.

Looby