Ancestors of Kenneth Macleod born abt 1759 Parish of Durness

[djct59]

A potentially better lead might be Neil McLeod, who lived in Sango, as did your ancestor Kenneth. He fathered daughters named Isobel in 1772, and Janet in 1775. There were a number of male McLeods fathering children in Durness at the time, but parish records do not exist in any written form before Reverend Thomson started them in November 1764

[pam4kids]

Wow! Thank you. This gives me something to work with! Is there someplace I should be looking?

[djct59]

Hew Morrison's Parish Register of Durness 1764-1814 (pub Scottish record Society 1911) is available free of charge online

[djct59]

http://archive.org/details/scottishrecordso26scotuoft

[pam4kids]

I have a copy of that in my files. Kinda hard to figure the names and the aliases etc! I'll just have to try!! :-D

[djct59]

If you have (a) a rudimentary knowledge of Gaelic names, (b) a printed paper copy, and (c) a decent understanding of parish geography, then it takes about an hour and a bit to get the hang of it.

TOP TIP: Do not try to work off a screen in working out families - you're bound to miss somebody or put somebody on the wrong tree - paper and coloured marker pens work far better.

Okay...let's play detective.

Your ancestor is Kenneth McLeod from Sangobeg, who married Ann Morrison, daughter of John the son of William the son of Hugh in Islandhall. What or where is Islandhall? On a modern map it's called Eilean Hoan - it's been uninhabited since the early 19th century, but was tenanted for sheep for many years, and the shepherd's cottage can still be seen. Landing a boat on the mainland, you would beach at...Sangobeg. That fits perfectly.

Kenneth has no patronymic. This suggests either or both of (a) he was an incomer, or (b) his name was rare enough in the parish that there was no-one he could be confused with. Likewise, Neil McLeod from Sango is the only "Neil" in the parish register. His residence fits with Kenneth's, and the last listed child he fathered was in February 1775. A mother giving birth over sixteen to twenty years was fairly commonplace. Kenneth McLeod the son of Neil would be enough of a rarity not to need a further identifier, so I think he's your man...

[pam4kids]

Great detective work!! Amazing!
 

[djct59]

If Janet (b.1775) lived till she was eighty, then her death would have to be recorded in the new Register of BDMs that came into force at the start of 1855. If so, that would disclose her mother and father's names. It's a long shot, but that's how I found the name of my great great great great grandfather Teárlach MacAllister's wife - one of his daughters, born in 1772, lived until 1870, so her parents' details are recorded.

I cannot find any trace of a marriage for *your* Janet McLeod in the Durness records though - there are two other Janets, one in Sango, who married Murdo McPherson in 1790, was widowed, and remarried the scooolmaster John McDonald in 1800.  Janet the daughter of Neil is too young to have married in 1790, so this Janet (daughter of Donald) seems to be an aunt or older cousin. The only other Janet McLeod is in Achunahanait, on the opposite side of the parish, a good two hours walk from Sangobeg in the days when there were no roads on that side of the village

[pam4kids]

Kenneth's son, my 3rd great grandfather is George MacLeod  born about 1801. He died in Irishtown, Lot 20, PEI. They came to PEI when George was 9 (1808), I think. I don't know how much that helps. All the history I have was retrieved from the Island Register and one of the researchers there has provided as much as she can. We are related, I found out, so I stick with her as far as validity of conclusions. She refuses to document anything beyond Kenneth without solid records. This is fine with me but I would really like to go further back. I've been looking at the parish records and  was wondering if they were mandatory or did people just go to Rev Thomson?