Elizabeth Wither b.1811 Leswalt

[MonicaL]

I think you can be certain from the records that mother was an Elizabeth Wither 

Just a question, how have you arrived at Elizabeth Wither, born Feb 1811 and daughter of John Wither and Elizabeth Mulne?

Monica

[Esspee]

Hi Monica,
Old Parish Registers, Scotlandspeople. 
The mother's name was down as Mulne for Elizabeth 1811, and Helen 1813 but Milne for David 1815.
The church they attended was Stranraer, Ivy Place Associate.

[MonicaL]

Yes, I could see these records. Just wondered why you think this is the same Elizabeth who married James McHarg.

OPR records as you know are patchy pre 1855. It may be that the Elizabeth Withers you seek died before 1841 and there are no earlier records for her to be found.

I think because the Elizabeth you have seems to show as single from 1841 to her death, makes me wonder if this is simply another Elizabeth born in the same general area/county and around the same time you would expect.

Monica

[hmcc]

All on SP Statutory Death Register
John McHarg (33) 1868 Portpatrick, mmn Wether.
Mary McHarg (64) 1900 Portpatrick, mmn Wither.
Alexander McHarg (85) 1914 Plantation, mmn Wither.
hmcc

[Esspee]

There’s never been any doubt that the first 3 children were Elizabeth’s and the next two Minnie’s as they are recorded as such. It is fairly common for a second wife to be reported on the census as mother to all the children but I am convinced that though Minie Adair was reported on her death certificate and James’s as wife of James McHarg that they never married as Elizabeth was still alive.
How I would love to uncover the story behind all this.
I am struggling now to find any relevant Kirk Session Records via Scotlandspeople.  Any suggestions of where else I might look would be appreciated.

[Forfarian]

Do the baptism records of Minnie Adair's children describe them as lawful or natural?

[Esspee]

Monica, I take your point about how can I be sure I have the correct Elizabeth Wither, it is a hypothesis at the moment which has yet to be proved.
I have searched unsuccessfully for anyone named Elizabeth Wither in the appropriate age range and have found nobody in Scotland plus I haven’t found a death record for any Elizabeth McHarg.  Then there is the lack of a marriage between Minie Adair and James McHarg despite her later clearly being referred to as his widow.  If he wasn’t free to marry my theory would make sense.
I am now trying to seek contemporary confirmation of the break up of the marriage.  For example perhaps the Kirk session had something to say about Minie Adair living in sin with James McHarg.
It also appears possible that Elizabeth Wither had further children after returning to her father’s house but I have not had the time to research that.

hmcc I will take a look at that tomorrow, thank you for your input.

[Esspee]

Forfarian
I am not experienced in genealogy but assume lawful would indicate the parents were married. Unfortunately the extract in the records states neither term.

[Forfarian]

Yes, that is exactly the point. What a pain!

All five of James McHarg's children were baptised in Portpatrick. The Rev Andrew Urquhart was minister of Portpatrick from 1832 until the Disruption in 1843, so he would have baptised at least two of Elizabeth Wither's McHarg children and both of Minnie Adair's.

It is not credible that James McHarg could have set up house with Minnie Adair, either bigamously or unmarried, without the minister and at least some of the elders knowing about it, and hence that a child of his and Minnie's would have been baptised at six days old without some sort of record in the Kirk Session records.

Therefore I agree that it is unlikely that the Elizabeth Wither in Leswalt is the same person as James McHarg's wife.

The Portpatrick Kirk Session minutes from 1833 to 1853 are in the Virtual Volumes on Scotland's People. Go to www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk > Search our records > Advanced people search > Kirk Sessions > Search record creators > and type "Port Patrick" (two separate words) in the search box, and then click on 'Search'. Select the volume with 1833 to 1853, and read through the records from 1834 (baptism of Elizabeth Wither's youngest child) to 1839 (baptism of Minnie Adair's first) and see what you find. Pay particular attention to the accounts as they may contain a mortcloth payment in respect of Elizabeth Wither or McHarg that would settle the question.