Baxter Family - Motherwell, Wishaw

[Rosinish]

Thank you.
I have the death certificate details etc, but no trace of his actual birth parents.
Any assistance is fully appreciated.

Maybe tell us what info. the DC gives so we know what we're needing to find?

What exactly do you mean by "no trace of his actual birth parents"?
Do you mean they're not mentioned on his DC?
What info. is recorded on his MC?

Annie

[Anniebc44]

Hi. I have attached his death details. One stating Andrew Kennedy (possibly this is Andrew Baxter) and the other James Kennedy (adoptive parent)
Cannot find his birth certificate. He was told birth father was Andrew Baxter, and given the middle name Baxter and Burns, perhaps mother’s maiden name was Burns.

[Anniebc44]

First attachment

[Rosinish]

Hi. I have attached his death details. One stating Andrew Kennedy (possibly this is Andrew Baxter) and the other James Kennedy (adoptive parent)
Cannot find his birth certificate. He was told birth father was Andrew Baxter, and given the middle name Baxter and Burns, perhaps mother’s maiden name was Burns.

Please can you take the time to type out all info. which is more helpful to people willing to help you rather than having to download images etc.

Visible info. is so much easier to work with/through.

Given the details from the MC of James Kennedy to Euphemia Storrie in 1862,
(thanks to Looby spending some credits),
it looks unlikely he was an 'Engineer'...family stories can become distorted over time.

Previously asked...

"Maybe tell us what info. the DC gives so we know what we're needing to find?

What exactly do you mean by "no trace of his actual birth parents"?
Do you mean they're not mentioned on his DC?
What info. is recorded on his MC?"

Do any of the certs. state he was 'Adopted'?

Annie

[Forfarian]

Hi. I have attached his death details.

These are not original death records, they are index listings or transcriptions from Ancestry, which is not the most reliable source of information in the worls.

Clearly at least one of them has to be wrong, because they contain different information. You need to track down the sources of these bits of information to find out if they are taken from a primary document or not - and if they aren't, don't trust them.

[Forfarian]

This may or may not be helpful, but in the 1841 census in Bothwell, at No 20 Carnbroe Iron Works, is a household consisting of
James Kennedy, 29, iron miner
Mary Kennedy, 24
George Kennedy, 1
John Kennedy, 18, iron miner
Bridget Kennedy, 62
Mike McSorley, 30, smelting furnace filler
James Burns, 25, smelting furnace filler
John Burns, 28 labourer
Francis Collins, 30, labourer
Arthur McDonnell, 30, labourer
Brian Burns, 35, labourer
Michael Murphy, 22, labourer
all except Mary and George born in Ireland.

In Glasgow Bridgeton in 1851 are
Peter Britten, 78
Agnes Duffey, 67
Mary Kennedy, widow, 34
James Kennedy, 9
Patrick Kennedy, 7
John Kennedy, 5
Mary Kennedy, 1
Bridget Farie, 77
Peter, Agnes and Bridget born in Ireland; Mary in Sanquhar, the children in Bothwell. I have seen Mary's death certificate, which confirms that Peter and Agnes are her parents.

By 1861 Mary has married her second husband, John Storrie, and they are in the parish of Shotts
John Storrie, 49
Mary Storrie, 45
Elizabeth Storrie, 20
John Storrie, 18
Helen Storrie, 14
Christina Storrie, 12
George Storrie, 5
James Kennedy, 20
Peter Kennedy, 17
Mary Kennedy, 12

Also in Shotts in 1861
Andrew Baxter, 56, stone quarrier
Sarah Baxter, 40
Andrew Baxter, 18, apprentice joiner, Shotts
James Baxter, 9
Can't find this Andrew jr in 1871. Could he be your missing one?

Now for a bit of a ramble which may or may not have anything to do with this query.

In 1841 there's a family at Gartsherrie in Old Monkland consisting of
Andrew Burns, 30, labourer
Mary Burns, 10
Margaret Burns, 8
Ann Burns, 6
Peter Burns, 4
Robert Burns, 3
Andrew Burns, 2
Katherine Burns, 20
Dommanick Burns, 20
John Galler, 18,
Felix Diver, 20
Thomas Campbell, 20
Dennis McGuire, 35
Anthony Gallaghan, 30
All the adults and Mary born in Ireland; all the adult males labourers

In 1851 there is a household in Coatbridge consisting of
Andrew Burns, 47, railway plate layer
Ann Burns, daughter, 17
Peter Burns, son, 15
Robert Burns, son, 13
Andrew Burns, son, 11
all born in Lanarkshire, except Andrew senior, who was born in Ireland

They might be the family of Andrew Burns and Anne Weir; their son Robert was baptised in St Andrew's RC, Glasgow in 1836 and their son Andrew was baptised there in 1838.

Andrew Burns, widower, 50, railway surfaceman, died in Sunnyside, Coatbridge on 23 August 1856. His father was Patrick Burns, blacksmith, and his mother was Mary Haggarty. The death was registered by Peter Burns, 15, son.

I haven't found either Peter or Andrew in the 1861 census. Nor can I find deaths of any male Burns with mother's maiden name Weir and born 1830 to 1840.

[Anniebc44]

Thank you all for your positive feedback and information. Much appreciated.
Annie

[Rosinish]

Thank you all for your positive feedback and information.

What you need is the MC of Robert Burns Baxter/Kennedy which will have info. given by himself rather than a 3rd party.

As it appears to have been an informal adoption there's always a chance his parents may be named?

Has the daughter &/or any male sibling taken a DNA test which would be helpful in tracing their ancestry?

Annie

[Rosinish]

Robert Burns Baxter, born in USA, maybe Alabama 1888/89
I believe his father to be Andrew Baxter, who trained as a mining engineer in Scotland, but cant make the link. No information on Robert's mother, although it is said she died 1888/89.
His father ? Andrew arrived at the home in USA of a fellow mining engineer (friends from Scotland) Mr and Mrs Kennedy.

Can you give us details regarding the arrival of Andrew Baxter, where from/where to/when?
Was there a name & address of a relative in Scotland?
What address & relationship was given regarding the Kennedys?

Annie