Rebecca Macfarlane Stewart - parents information

[melwebb]

Thanks Monica, fingers crossed they reply

[MargP]

Can we compare both the signatures, of Jessie on the Birth and Marriage records

[MonicaL]

Jessie Naismith Burnett remarried in 1932, a Cyrus Miller Alexander, a merchant seaman aged 35. As you can see from the snippet, Jessie put herself down as a spinster, no reference to her marriage to David Graham. This time the marriage was conducted by the minster of the Milton Free Church in Anderston Glasgow.

This Jessie died in 1983 at the age of 83 on record in Saltcoats, Ayrshire.

We still need more facts though for her to get more confident that this Jessie was Rebecca's mother...but at least we have a possible Jessie to focus on.

[MonicaL]

This is the family of Robert Burnett and Margaret Kennedy in 1901:

Robert Burnett 42 coal miner b. Bellshill, Lanarkshire
Margaret K Burnett 32 b. Overtown, Lanarkshire
Agnes Burnett 12
Francis Burnett 8
William Burnett 6
Robert Burnett 5
Jessie Burnett 3 b. rhinds, Lanarkshire
John Burnett 1
Patrick McArdel 19

Address: Rhinds, Old Monkland Western District, Lanarkshire

Mel, there is also a family tree online for this family on a/try, following the line of Agnes. Nothing there re Jessie though.

Monica

[melwebb]

no match to the signatures - on birth cert it is signed Jessie Burnett

[MargP]

no match to the signatures - on birth cert it is signed Jessie Burnett

Hi, Have you checked the handwriting of the signatures

[melwebb]

its completely different writing

[MonicaL]

I always have a memory block on this issue of signatures on Scottish certs etc  ...so I sent a PM to Forfarian, who has a huge wealth on knowledge on this type of information.

Her response to me (have checked and OK to post now here):

There were two copies of each register. One was the original, signed by the informant/couple themselves. The other was a duplicate made by the Registrar. At the end of each year the Registrar had to send one copy to Edinburgh. If he sent the original, you get the actual signatures on SP, but if he sent the copy you don't.

The copy not sent to Edinburgh was retained by the Registrar and in due course most of them were collected in a central registration office in each county. There was a move to destroy some if not all of these, which was being fought by the genealogical world. I don't know what the outcome is.

Hope this helps. Don't think we can necessarily rely on signatures in the standard sense. Mel, could you post some snippets from Rebecca's birth cert in 1922 please. I have the other cert images.

Monica 

[melwebb]

Not sure how I can attach docs monica