Died while in USA

[Steve Sinclair]

Hi

My G (x4) Grandmother Isabella Hay died in Scotland in 1870 and is buried in Elgin Cathedral. The headstone states my G (x4) Grandfather John Ross died in the USA with no further details.

I've used the IGI on the familysearch.org site and it states that he died on 2/11/1857 but doesn't reference a location of give other specifics. I'm not sure where the date stated actually comes from, I've been unable to find death details in Scottish records but maybe that's because he died outside Scotland.

I'm trying to find out more detail. I've tried searching online passenger lists to try and find him travelling to the USA on or before 1857 but I don't have a departure port (I've assumed Glasgow) or arrival port (I've assumed New York). So far I've had no success and have exhausted my current stock of ideas. I'm assuming he was travelling to the USA to work not to settle as he had a family in Scotland (he was a builder/stonemason) but it's an assumption.

Can anyone suggest any alternative strategy that might help me track him down at the point he travelled to or arrived in the USA or when he died there. I'd also like to try and establish if he was returned back to Scotland following his death. Does anyone know if there is a "usual procedure" in such circumstances?

Thanks for any help

[GrahamSimons]

Have you tried the US Census? Available on Ancestry1790 onwards (only a fragment of 1890) and also some on FamilySearch. Ancestry also has tax schedules from 1862. This might just nail where this gentleman was living - which might narrow your search for his death. No promises of success here - I have still mislaid some of my family who should be in the USA somewhere....

[Steve Sinclair]

Thanks for the suggestions - I'll give them both a go. I hadn't realised Ancestry had those resources.

[Galium]

I think you should be wary of assuming that John Ross died in 1857: the headstone that you mention also records John and Isabella's daughter Catherine, and

"Also her husband  John Ross  5th Dragoon Guards  died 2nd November 1857 on his way out to the Indian Mutiny"

Of course it is possible that both men died on the same day, but I suspect that someone has made a mistake.

Maybe your best hope of finding any record would be a newspaper death notice.

If you are a member of a public libray in Devon, you can access the 19th Century British Newspaper Collection at home, using your library card number:   

http://www.rootschat.com/links/0l27/

Perhaps searching for marriage notices of his John Ross's children would help narrow the possible date of his death,  as the fathers of the couple are often included along with whether they are "the late XXX".

Can't say for sure, but I think it unlikely that John's remains could have been returned to his homeland.  A possible lengthy overland journey, as well as the sea voyage would make it impractical, and expensive.

[Steve Sinclair]

Hi - thanks for the excellent advice. I wasn't aware that I could access the newspaper collection using a library card number and I'll get onto that.

It did seem unlikely to me that Johns remains would be returned home for the same reasons you suggest. I'll follow up the marriage notices for the children as you suggest and see what that gives me.

Thanks again for some very helpful pointers