help in finding james menzies mcdonald

[anniee]

hello could anyone help me to find any info on james menzies mcdonald not sure of his date of birth maybe around 1875 he married elizabeth downs

thankyou for your help

anniee

[SarahND]

Hi anniee,
Can you tell us where you got the info you now have about James? Is it from his marriage certificate? In which case, any more information you can give us will help, i.e. his occupation, his parents' names, his age at marriage, place of marriage.

All the best,
Sarah

[anniee]

hi sarah i got the info about james menzies mcdonald from my grandads birth cert all its says he was a forge labourer he married elizabeth downs february 15th 1895 mossend. they had 12 children one of them being my grandad **** sorry i dont have any more info hope you can help

anniee

Edited in line with TS guidelines on naming possible living persons. Paddyscar

[SarahND]

Hi anniee,
Then your next step is to download the 1895 marriage certificate from Scotland's People and see what it says about his parents (and hers as well!)

Regards,
Sarah

[SarahND]

Hello again,
This looks like it could be the family in 1901, although with a name like James McDonald, you'd really need to check the marriage cert to make sure you have the correct one, or it would be all-too-easy to go astray. There are a number of likely James/Elizabeth McDonald couples out there!

1901
228 North Sq, Old Monkland, Coatbridge, Lanarkshire
James McDonald, 32, Head, born Dalry, Ayrshire, Blast Furnace Filler
Elizabeth McDonald, 28, Wife, born Negg, Aberdeensh
James C Masson, 9, Son (ill), born Irvine, Ayrshire, Scholar
Elizabeth McDonald, 4, Daur, born Coatbridge, Lanarksh, Scholar
Janet McDonald, 5, Daur, born Coatbridge, Lanarksh, Scholar
David McDonald, 3 wks, son, born Coatbridge, Lanarksh
Davie McDonals, 22, Brother, born Kilman, Ayrshire, Assist Furnace Keeper
Samuel Ylen, 32, Boarder, born Greenock, Renfresh, Cailway Crakesman

There are some obvious mistranscriptions in the above record, but presuming the 9 yr old "son" actually did have a different surname, it looks like an interesting situation-- possibly an illegitimate son of Elizabeth's.

Also, the boarder is surely Samuel Glen or some such, and is presumably a Railway Brakesman... Someone had trouble reading those capital letters!

All the best,
Sarah

[nelmit]

That's the one I had flagged too Sarah, but like you say his marriage should help to confirm.

There is also a James Menzies McDonald born Perth 1868 but can't put him at the right location in 1901.

Regards,
Annette

Thought I'd better fix it.

[anniee]

hi, thankyou sarah, annette for the help you are giving me

anniee

[SarahND]

There is also a John Menzies McDonald born Perth 1868 but can't put him at the right location in 1901.

Yes, this one would seem more convincing, but I can't place him ANYWHERE after 1881. I'm thinking he is the one who is a boarder in someone else's house in 1871 and 1881, no parents in sight.

And the parents are odd too... at least the mother, Georgina Mulholland as given in the IGI. There are just not that many Georgina Mulhollands about. Do you think she came over from Ireland only briefly, missing censuses at both ends? Can't find her dying in Scotland either.

Anyway, until anniee buys the certificate, we can't be sure that we are not barking up the wrong tree and wasting our time over this one.

Regards,
Sarah

[LesleyB]

Hi anniee
You shouldn't have any problems finding the marriage to download at www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk
There is a marriage there for a James McDonald & Elizabeth Downs, in Lanarkshire and in 1895. The marriage entry will give you both sets of parents and other information too, such as the ages of the bride and groom their addresses, occupations etc.

Other than seeing that document there is no other way to establish you have the correct couple (e.g. in the 1901 census), and their parents' names, which will enable you to go on to find out about the rest of the family.

Best wishes
Lesley

[speleobat2]

Hi all,

I've been puzzling over this one so I got the cert and just uploaded it.

http://talkingscot.com/gallery/displayi ... ?pos=-1822

Georgina Mulholland is James' mother. She was deceased at the time of the marriage. I can't read the addresses for either bride or groom--something Colliery something! Also the brides mother's maiden name is pretty faint--maybe Grey? They were married in the RC church in Bellshill, Lanarkshire.

Maybe someone can pick this up and run with it now.

Carol

Gallery url added by marilyn