Mackenzie: Finding Link between occupations and births

[Rena]

I'm still on the trail of my blacksmith ancestor Donald Mackenzie, whose children were born in the early 1800s in Lanarkshire, whereas he was born 1775 in Urray, R&C.

His father, or greater family, must have paid good money for his apprenticeship but according to historic documents, the Highland farming crofter scarcely had two coins to rub together.  This might mean that Donald's father earned extra income and I'm hoping rootschatters can put forward some occupations for consideration.

From the Urray Old Parish Register, the place and date of birth is given and from a website I've gleaned the approximate dates when each sibling was conceived.  Below is a list showing places and dates of conceivement/baptism.

One of the births was in Knockroy, which is in Mull.  However, I did somewhere see mention of a Knockroy House in Inverness (Invernesshire?), but I couldn't find any other mention of it.

If Don's father John M'kenzie was himself a blacksmith, why did he keep moving about? Could he have been ex army - couldn't find a steady job and thus travelled around with his blacksmith tools repairing and replacing farming tools.

If Donald's father worked on the land; To a lay person some of the dates look like the end of harvest and/or the end of planting seeds for the next Spring harvest.

I haven't been able to untangle the Lairds of the Manors or what pieces of land they owned, which could mean that Donald's father was sent to various farms by his employer.

If a farmhand or crofter didn't earn sufficient money to pay for appenticeships, I did wonder whether Don's father was hired for short periods as a tutor   

Parents: John Mackenzie and Anne Robertson;  their five children baptised in Urray

JANNET MACKENZIE b17 April 1765 in Balloan, baptised 21 April 1765
(conceived late July 1764)

ALEXANDER MACKENZIE Born 14 July 1770 in Knockroy, baptised 17 July 1770 Urray

I can only find “Knockroy” on Isle of Mull, now overgrown by a forest. (Conceived between 18-26th  October

MARY MACKENZIE born 27 August 1771 baptised 2 September 1771 Urray
 (conceived between 1st - 9th December)

DONALD MACKENZIE b 9 July 1775 in Belloan,  baptised 17 July 1775 Urray
(conceived between October  13-21st)

JOHN MACKENZIE (posthumous) b 26 June 1782 in Laigh Fairburn, baptised 30 June 1782 Urray
Conceived  between September 30 - October 08

[Forfarian]

ALEXANDER MACKENZIE Born 14 July 1770 in Knockroy, baptised 17 July 1770 Urray
I can only find “Knockroy” on Isle of Mull, now overgrown by a forest. (Conceived between 18-26th  October

The important point is that the baptism was in the parish of Urray. If the baptism says something like "John Mackenzie and Ann Robertson in Knockroy" and doesn't say "Knockroy in the parish of xxx" then you are looking for a place called Knockroy in the parish of Urray and therefore in Ross and Cromarty, not Inverness-shire, let alone Mull.

Knockroy is obvious from the Gaelic 'cnoc' meaning a small hill and 'ruadh' meaning 'red'. It could turn up as anything from Cnoc Ruadh to Redhill. Or it may have disappeared entirely, or its name may have been changed.

Balloan seems to be part of Fairburn Estate, so perhaps Knockroy was also part of Fairburn Estate?

[Rena]

ALEXANDER MACKENZIE Born 14 July 1770 in Knockroy, baptised 17 July 1770 Urray
I can only find “Knockroy” on Isle of Mull, now overgrown by a forest. (Conceived between 18-26th  October

The important point is that the baptism was in the parish of Urray. If the baptism says something like "John Mackenzie and Ann Robertson in Knockroy" and doesn't say "Knockroy in the parish of xxx" then you are looking for a place called Knockroy in the parish of Urray and therefore in Ross and Cromarty, not Inverness-shire, let alone Mull.

Knockroy is obvious from the Gaelic 'cnoc' meaning a small hill and 'ruadh' meaning 'red'. It could turn up as anything from Cnoc Ruadh to Redhill. Or it may have disappeared entirely, or its name may have been changed.

Balloan seems to be part of Fairburn Estate, so perhaps Knockroy was also part of Fairburn Estate?

Aha ! Thanks for the pointers Forfarian, especially about the red rock. The Scottish archives have many online transcriptions of expenses that contain names and actions, such as "expenses for sending Donald Mckenzie and boy to take prized cow ...."  Unfortunately nothin that I could hook onto.   It wasn't until you pointed out pertinent facts that had completely slipped my mind ( = old age) ref the parishioners and the above translation.   A couple of decades ago I received a clue from a medium - my notes state he     "used to fish for red rock salmon".    Obviously that's incorrect and it should have been written asl    "he fished for salmon at Red Rock" (Knockroy).  I haven't a clue as to whether "he" was Donald or his father John.

Most writings I've read seem to imply that fishermen were amongst the poorest of the highlanders.  The salmon calendar has this to say about the time of the year when the fish return to the rivers - not very helpful.   "Spawning usually occurs from November to December, but may extend from October to late February in some areas, particularly larger rivers."

 

According to a TV programme I watched years ago; Red Rock Salmon are found in Canadian rivers, thus I initially went looking in the wrong place

[Forfarian]

Actually, it may be that these are all names for the same place.

Belloan and Balloan are obviously alternative spellings of the same name. Laigh Fairburn means 'low Fairburn', which would be a reasonable description of Balloan. Urray is of course the whole parish.

What if Knockroy were another name for a cottage at Balloan/Lower Fairburn?

[Rena]

Actually, it may be that these are all names for the same place.

Belloan and Balloan are obviously alternative spellings of the same name. Laigh Fairburn means 'low Fairburn', which would be a reasonable description of Balloan. Urray is of course the whole parish.

What if Knockroy were another name for a cottage at Balloan/Lower Fairburn?

Thanks for your thoughts.  If there was one, I haven't yet found it mentioned in any of the old books that I've come across either mentioned on the local website or in any google books or in the world's online digital "book store"  https://archive.org/details/texts

[Skoosh]

Rena, I think rock salmon is what English chippies used to call dogfish, maybe they still do? 

Skoosh.

[Forfarian]

Rena, I think rock salmon is what English chippies used to call dogfish, maybe they still do? 

You're right, I believe they do, but I can't see an obvious connection between fishing in a parish with no sea coast in 18th century Scotland and sea fish being sold in chip shops in 20th century England.

[Skoosh]

That wee smiley thing at the end of my post means it's a joke! difficult I know!

Skoosh.

[Rena]

Rena, I think rock salmon is what English chippies used to call dogfish, maybe they still do? 

Skoosh.

Thanks for stopping by with the explanation Skoosh.  Altough I wouldn't know what they used to call them as the train of thought that carried trillions of memory cells is now consigned to a long lost siding.   What I do know about the incomer chippies in this little inland town is that they only advertise "fish and chips". 

I've just seen a picture of one - doesn't look anything like the salmon that Jack Charlton caught on the River Dee     "known as: Lesser-spotted Dogfish (LSD), Small-spotted Catshark, Rockfish".