Hi Michelle
We are having trouble receiving emails at present and cannot get through to xtra to find out what the problem is.
Without seeing the family tree you have where you mentioned that only one Francis Ballantyne appears, I cannot explain why, unless I was concentrating purely on our direct family. Do remember that the second Francis was actually John Douglas Francis Ballantyne - why he was later called Francis I don't know.
For what it is worth, and you may already have this information, but I will start right at the beginning of what we know of the Ballantynes.
Francis Ballantyne born abt 1749 possibly in Whithaughburn, Roxburgh. married Margaret Robson about 1775 We don't know where either Francis and Margaret came from. One theory is that they may have come from the Kinross area but cannot prove anything here. Francis was a grocer .
Their children were (not necessarily in the right order of birth)
Christian born
Elizabeth (betty) born 1776 married William Ingles
Isabell married John Inglies (spelling as this husbands were brothers)
William married Janet Armstrong
James born 1786
Francis married Frances Brown became merchant in Hawick, buried in Hawick
John born in Newcastleton in 1789 the youngest and our connection
John Ballantyne, the youngest I have as being christened 18/4/1779? married Mary Miller who was born in Brampton but was baptised in Bewcastle in Cumberland and grew up on a property called Steppings - house still there. They married about 1810/11. John Ballantyne died in Castleton on 9/11/1855. Their children were
Isabella born 1812
Francis born 1814
Margaret born 1815
Helen born 1817 died after 1853
John Douglas Francis born aboout 1819 our connection
Agnes born 1825
Archibald born 1826/27
It was this John Douglas Francis Ballantyne who married three times, your connection being from the second wife who died as they were arriving in Dunedin in 1860.
We would love to know what happened to the second family. Our Mary Ann Ballantyne, youngest of first family, was seen walking up Maori Hill in Dunedin when she was about 12, carrying a baby under one arm and a load of washing in other. Her brother in law (married to Jessie who became a Swannerton on marriage) saw her and felt so sorry for her that they took her in to live with them. Mary Ann was so grateful thatshe named her daughter (my grandmother )Jessie Swannerton Brown.
I think it was probably very difficult for the children of the second marriage as John Douglas Francis married for the 3rd time in about 1861/62 and then had another four children.
Hope I am not confusing you too much
My sister has just returned from the South Island where she met up with other Ballantynes and I gather she has brought back quite a bit of information we don't have so when I get this, will forward it on to you.
Meanwhile, keep asking questions - it helps us too.
Ngaio
PS We do have notes of a diary dictated by John Ballantyne, second child from John Douglas Francis Ballantyne's first marriage to Margaret Francies Archibald. He went blind some time after he came to New Zealand. He tells the story briefly of the family's life before they came to New Zealand and his life after he came here. The trouble is it would be too long to put on this website so would love to be able to send it to you. There must be a way!
