« Reply #4 on: Tuesday 23 May 06 23:58 BST (UK) »
Hi Dorothy,
I'm grasping at straws approaching you. In my husband's line, I've followed a Wm Shirras, tinsmith lampmaker, up from Northumberland but have lost the family in Old Machar, Aberdeen. The earliest date I've got is a baptism of John 1803 to John & Isabel.
There's been some musings that the family lived in Banff but I wouldn't know. I'm English born and bred and pronounce the surname as 'sheer-ass' but my cousin up in Aberdeen pronounced the name 'sherris'. Presumably ye olde spelling has changed.
All thoughts appreciated.
Rena
I have several booklets and will do some lookups, books are:
General Register of Sasines, Banff, Elgin, Forres, Nairn & Kincardine 1701-1720 (Sasines are records of transfer of lands some within family members)
Birth Briefs of Aberdeen, this is a fascinating record of declarations sworn under oath primarily of people born outside of Scotland, showing their parents names including maiden names.
Kirkyard of Keithhall & Kinkell - memorial inscriptions
Dorothy (Wilson) Graham
Aberdeen: Findlay-Shirras,McCarthy: MidLothian: Mason,Telford,Darling,Cruikshanks,Bennett,Sime, Bell: Lanarks:Crum, Brown, MacKenzie,Cameron, Glen, Millar; Ross: Urray:Mackenzie: Moray: Findlay; Marshall/Marischell: Perthshire: Brown Ferguson: Wales: McCarthy, Thomas: England: Almond, Askin, Dodson, Well(es). Harrison, Maw, McCarthy, Munford, Pye, Shearing, Smith, Smythe, Speight, Strike, Wallis/Wallace, Ward, Wells;Germany: Flamme,Ehlers, Bielstein, Germer, Mohlm, Reupke