James and John Galbraith/McMaster, born 1857

[CraigM63]

While delving into my paternal grandmother's family history, I found a family tree on Ancestry, with all the usual caveats about Ancestry family trees, that suggests that her great grandmother, Margaret McMaster gave birth to twin illegitimate sons in 1857, before she married Thomas Hunter in 1860. In this case the information is backed up by an image of what appears to be the parish register of baptisms, which states the father's name, James Galbraith, the twins' date of birth which was 27 September 1857, and the baptism date which was 15 April 1858. Margaret's address is given as Saddle Hill, which fits with where the McMaster family were living at the time. I can also find a record of the baptisms of a James and John Galbraith in 1858 for the East Taieri parish in the Presbyterian Research Centre's baptism indexes which fits with the image.

What I am struggling with, however, is finding any formal record of their birth registrations on the Births, Deaths and Marriages Online website in New Zealand, under either the surnames McMaster or Galbraith. I am assuming that the registration of births was a statutory requirement by the time of their births, which means that their births should have been registered. While the baptism record gives their surname as Galbraith, they seem to have both been known by the surname of McMaster for the duration of their lives.

[Fresh Fields]

Helllo.

One family I've been researching lately, [1855/1875] did not record all the births of their Children. Unless indexed to incorrect spellings.

Their business saw them living in outback places, and some of the children did not see out their 1st year of life. The father was recorded on the electorial rolls, and the births, in some cases, were recorded in the press. But not others. However the Mother's diary accounts, and later life reflections of her children give reference to the "missing" births.

Alan.

[shanreagh]

My grandmother born 1871 in Charleston on the West Coast is another whose birth was not registered.  She was baptised though and had a certificate of baptism and this was accepted for official purposes. 

[kiwihalfpint]

It has been known that families that lived in the bush, only ventured into town once in a blue moon to restock up on essentials, one that I know of, didn't register the births for five years when they decided to visit family.


Cheers
KHP

[CraigM63]

Thank you all for your very helpful comments. I must admit I hadn't thought of Saddle Hill and the East Taieri plains as being out in the sticks at that time, and was more leaning towards the fact that the births were illegitimate as being a possible reason for the non-registration of the births. I'm not sure who the boys were raised by, although given that they went by the surname of McMaster for the rest of their lives and what I know of the Scottish approach to illegitimate births, one might speculate that it was their maternal grandparents.

Anyway, it now sounds as though an e-mail to the Presbyterian Research Centre in Dunedin is the way to go, just to tie everything down.

[SignalHill]

Hi Craig

Is it possible that the birth of illegitimate twins was the event that brought Margaret to NZ ?

Do you know when she arrived ? and who was with her ?

Have you seen the Supreme [High] Court claim and counter-claim ODT 3 Nov 1862 ?

SignalHill

[CraigM63]

SignalHill

Margaret arrived on the SS Strathmore on 2 October 1856, accompanied by her parents, younger married brother with his wife and child, and two other unmarried sisters. Another older brother and his wife had arrived in 1849 on the SS Mooltan. The twins were born in late September 1857, so conception must have been around Christmas 1856, three months after Margaret arrived. No sign of a James Gabraith in the passenger list for the SS Strathmore, so presumably Margaret didn't meet him until after she had arrived in Otago. I notice there is a James Galbraith who features fairly regularly in the newpapers around this time running a hotel in Port Chalmers, but I'm not sure if this is the same James Gabraith who fathered the twins or is just coincidence.

Thomas Hunter, his first wife, and family arrived earlier the same year on the SS Southern Cross on 26 February 1856. His first wife, also coincidentally called Margaret, died in childbirth on 31 December 1859, and he then married Margaret McMaster on 2 August 1860.

I hadn't seen the Supreme court claim and counter-claim before, so thank you for that.

[minniehaha]

"I notice there is a James Galbraith who features fairly regularly in the newpapers around this time running a hotel in Port Chalmers, but I'm not sure if this is the same James Gabraith who fathered the twins or is just coincidence."
 
Just a coincidence I hope! He is very much part of my family tree.........


Minniehaha.

[CraigM63]

Just a coincidence I hope! He is very much part of my family tree.........

Where's the like button when you need it?

I hope so too. It would have been quite the trek from Saddle Hill to Port Chalmers.