Donald MacQueen, Isle of Skye

[chipchippotato]

Hi,

I have just started researching part of my family history and I have hit a snag. I found information about Archibald MacQueen (1819-1860) but I am struggling to find anything about his parents, Marry MacLeod and Donald MacQueen/McQueen. I found their marriage index (1811) but nothing else. I know that Archibald was born on the Isle of Skye in Bracadale and travelled to NZ in 1840 on the Blenheim.
I am assuming his parents are also from the Isle of Skye and I can find graves on grave index and a newspaper article, but I am unsure if this is even the right person given it appears to be a common name.
On Ancestry, most people say that his parents were Mary Nicholson and Alexander MacQueen but they don't have any sources and the baptism index on ScotlandsPeople don't show anyone with these names as parents for a Donald MacQueen. Does anyone have any information on who they might be?
Thanks! 

[Forfarian]

You are absolutely right not to trust online trees.

Archibald MacQueen, son of Donald MacQueen and Mary MacLeod, was baptised in Bracadale on 4 February 1819. (In the index their names are spelled Mac Queen and Mac Leod, and putting the space in always messes up the search results.)

There's a baptism of Donald MacQueen, parents Donald MacQueen and Mary MacLeod, in Portree on 1 October 1826. This Donald may be the one who died in Portree in 1884 aged 59.

1841 Census: Portree: Donald MacQueen, 50; Mary, 50; Donald, 20; Hugh, 15; Donald, 15; Evander, 12; Norman, 9.

1851: Donald, 60; Mary, 58: Norman, 18.

1861: Donald, 65, widower; granddaughter Mary, 4.

1871: Donald, 80; Donald, 40; Rachel, 50; Mary, 15.

Several Donald M*cQueens died Inverness-shire of an age to be the one above. See screenshot. Portree, Bracadale, Duirinish and Kilmuir are in Skye. I hazard a guess that the one whose mother's name is Buchanan is the right one.

However there's no death of a Mary M*cLeod or M*cQueen, so Mary may have died before the start of civil registration in 1855.

It appears, therefore, that Donald and Mary were in Bracadale, then in Portree; that Mary died between 1851 and 1854; and that Donald outlived her and may have died in Portree.

You can and should view the originals of all these documents at www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk for a small fee each.

[Neale1961]

Donald MacQueen and Mary MacLeod
Marriage 19 Dec 1812 in Bracadale


Children of the above
•   Angus baptised 1815 Bracadale, Inverness (father named  Donald MacQueen OR McDonald)
•   Mary baptised 1816 Bracadale
•   Rory baptised 1818 Bracadale
•   Archibald  baptised 1819 Bracadale
•   Christy baptised 1822 Bracadale
•   Donald baptised 1826 Portree


Sometimes further information about parents can be found by tracing other children in the family.

[chipchippotato]

@Forfarian, why do you think it's the one with the last name Buchanan, is that because he died in Portree? When I was researching it I was thinking that maybe he was still in Bracadale since there's a couple of Donald's who died there around the same time?

[Forfarian]

Because I think the one I found in the census was in Bracadale first and then in Portree from the time of baptism of Donald in 1826.

[chipchippotato]

Thanks so much! I looked at the Buchanan death cert and it says this Donald MacQueen was married to a Mary MacLeod so I am 90% it is the right one! The issue now is, I cannot find any trace of his parents who seem to be called Ewen MacQueen and Christy Buchanan. Seems like he was 96 years old when he died.

[Forfarian]

No, and I don't think you are likely to.

According to the research guides at Scotland's People, the earliest surviving record of a baptism in Bracadale is in 1802, and your Donald would have been born a a couple of decades before then.

You might be able to find a sibling; for example there's a death of an 85-year-old Alexander M*queen in Portree in 1876 whose mother's surname was Buchanan.

[chipchippotato]

I also just wanted to ask for confirmation on Archibald's (1819-1960) wife. Her name changes from Catherine to Christian depending on the source.
On her death certificate it says she was 65 when she died. This would put her birth in 1829 which doesn't line up with her marriage to Archibald (it says she was 16 and in Scotland when she got married - Catherine and Archibald both came out on the Blenheim to NZ in 1840 so she would have been born 1823/1824 and as there are no other marriages registered for an Archibald or a Catherine/Christian in Inverness-shire at the time it seems like the 1840 date is accurate).

On her gravestone (unsure if it is the actual one but both married names - she married twice - and her maiden name appear on it, so it seems accurate) say she was born in 1824.

Their daughter's birth (Jane born 1854) has no birth registration that anyone can find.

I initially thought she was born 1823 to Ewen Cameron and Catherine MacPherson (so she was 16 when married and turned 17 that year as shown in the Blenheim records) but I'm starting to think this might be incorrect as her death cert says 'Mary' (I think) is her mother but since the age is wrong, maybe that's wrong too?

If anyone could help point me in the right direction or let me know if I got the right parents that would be great!

[Neale1961]

Catherine’s second marriage in NZ was in 1865.
This marriage certificate should be viewed for the names of her parents.