Alexander Noble - but which one?? (Re The Nobles in Fraserburgh)

[ablanchishere]

Hello! First-time poster here, was hoping to get some help with working out exactly who the Nobles in my family tree are.

I know they were originally from Fraserburgh/Broadsea. My great-grandmother was Mary Noble (b:1915), who came to Australia with her parents Joseph & Mary Noble from Fraserburgh. Here is the direct line as far as I've been able to work out (but correct me if I'm wrong!):

Joseph Noble (b:1868, Fraserburgh) - Mary Bella Hutcheson
Alexander Noble (b: 1846, Fraserburgh) - Ann Stephen
Andrew Noble (b: 1817, Fraserburgh) - Helen May
Alexander Noble (b:1775, Fraserburgh) - Mary Tait
... and here's where I've been getting a bit confused. I've seen conflicting connections on different family trees that I have seen on MyHeritage & Ancestry. I have limited expertise in navigating the older Scottish records/ resources as well.

I know that Alexander's (b:1775) father is also an Alexander Noble (& his mother: Christian Buchan). But which Alexander Noble is he? And who exactly is his father? I would love any help or suggestions that people could point me towards. His nickname seems to have been Alexander "Noch" Noble, which I know means 'little'. I have seen some people record Alexander "Noch" Noble's father as Alexander "Old Gunner" Noble (Mother - Elspet Ritchie). Other times I have seen his mother recorded as "Jean Noble" (and Old Gunner as her father) and his father as "James Gordon." Are there any distant relations on here that knows why this might be so? Or which sources of information I might be able to go to in order to work it out? I have seen some anecdotal discussion on Alexander "Noch" being an illegitimate child of Gordon's, but I have not been able to locate a source to confirm/deny this. Was there a particular tradition or practice in Scotland/ Aberdeen for illegitimate children that might be reflected in the records of c. 1700s?

With thanks to whoever takes the time to read this, Ashley from Melbourne, Australia. 

[ColC]

Have you checked the original records on https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk you can search for free and a small charge to pay to view the records.

As an example there are 9 Alexander  Noble's born Fraserburgh 1770-1780

Colin

[Forfarian]

I was under the impression that tee-names were passed down in families, so that a son's tee-name was the same as his father's, but maybe that's not right?

[Forfarian]

Joseph Noble (b:1868, Fraserburgh) - Mary Bella Hutcheson

The IGI has the birth of Joseph Noble, son of Alexander Noble and Ann Stephen, on 15 July 1868.

Alexander Noble (b: 1846, Fraserburgh) - Ann Stephen

Married 17 October 1867. Alexander baptised 3 June 1846 in Fraserburgh.

Andrew Noble (b: 1817, Fraserburgh) - Helen May

1851 census shows at Duke Street, Fraserburgh Andrew Noble, 32; Hellen Noble, 29; Joseph Noble, 6; Alexander Noble, 4; Helen Noble, 2. he 1871 gives his age as 53 and the 1881 says 64. So far, so good.

However Andrew Noble, married to Helen May, died in Fraserburgh in 1885, father Alexander Noble, mother Margaret Noble, maiden surname Noble. Not Mary Tait. The informant was Andrew's son Joseph.

There are three records of marriages of an Alexander Noble to a Margaret Noble
26 April 1809 in Inverness
14 November 1824 in Fraserburgh
19 November 1826 in Fraserburgh - though the last two could perhaps be the same one, the second record being a mistake.

The Inverness couple had four children baptised in Inverness between 1810 and 1816. It is possible that they might have moved to Fraserburgh and had Andrew there in 1817 or 1818.

The Fraserburgh couple(s) had three children baptised in Fraserburgh
Jean, 1 December 1832
Helen, 2 February 1833
Alexander, 4 June 1833
Obviously they can't all be the same family as there is only six months spanning all three.

... and here's where I've been getting a bit confused. I've seen conflicting connections on different family trees that I have seen on MyHeritage & Ancestry.

Never trust anything you find online, unless it's an image of an original document. In particular never trust any online tree, especially those on Ancestry or MyHeritage. See https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=714261.0

[ablanchishere]

Thank you both for your help - I'll be following up on both those leads.

I have been treating a lot of the family trees on those sites with caution, especially as it seems like a lot of the information has likely been replicated from 1 or 2 sources?  I’ll definitely be following up the info from Andrew's death record and correcting course.

I'm not sure what tee-names are - I assume that's what I've been calling 'nicknames'? Would love to know more about that.

[Forfarian]

I'm not sure what tee-names are - I assume that's what I've been calling 'nicknames'? Would love to know more about  (that.

Yes, they are nicknames of a sort.

In many of the fishing villages in the north-east of Scotland, a large proportion of the population has only a small number of proper surnames, and tee-names (there are other terms for them) are used to distinguish the members of different families.

See https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=779568.0
https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/sct/ABD/names
http://britishgenes.blogspot.com/2013/05/scottish-tee-names-in-valuation-rolls.html (but the links in the article don't work any longer)
https://www.oocities.org/taylorhomeca/teenames.html
https://www.whatsinaname.net/faq.html#13

The following is from https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/guides/surnames
To-names or T-names meaning 'other names' or nicknames, were prevalent particularly in the fishing communities of North East Scotland, but were also seen in the Borders and to a lesser extent in the West Highlands.
In those areas where a relatively small number of surnames were in use, T-names were tacked on to the name to distinguish individuals with the same surname and forename. The nickname may have referred to a distinguishing feature or be the name of the fishing boat on which the person was employed. These T-names have made their way into the records. For example, amongst the numerous John Cowies of Buckie can be found fisherman John Cowie Carrot who married Isabella Jappie of Cullen in 1892. Was this perhaps a reference to the colour of his hair?
The T-name appears on a statutory results page in brackets in order to distinguish it from a middle name for example James (Rosie) Cowie, James (Bullen) Cowie, Jessie (Gyke) Murray, and may be designated in inverted commas on the image of the actual entry.

[ablanchishere]

I've since been looking into Alexander and Margaret Noble, and have a copy of the death certificate of Andrew Noble (1817-1885). I was wondering if anyone can read the occupation/ profession of the father (Alexander) on this certificate? I've tried googling a few different kinds of abbreviations for common occupations, but had no luck. (I think I've attached it to this post)

[loobylooayr]

Hi,

I think Alexander's occupation could be Pilot

Looby 

[Forfarian]

Agree. Definitely Pilot.