Who is John Melrose in NYC 1870, and what happened to him?

[maddys52]

Maddys52 - that's a messed up census entry on ancestry! 

I actually used FreeCen to find the 1871 census for the family.
https://www.freecen.org.uk/search_records/59045dcbe9379091b10aa6a4

[zumaro]

Thanks for this ongoing help! I am at work, so technically am not reading any of this, let alone replying, but I will be looking again tonight in 7 or 8 hours time. I love the way that so much has been filled in on son James, even down to a photo of him. Mary Middlemass I assume died in Trenton as well, but I can't find any trace of her either.  She doesn't seem to be in the same cemetery as daughter "Jeannie Melrose" (Jane Ballantyne Henderson). What a difficult family!

[maddys52]

I can't remember if this has been found already - a death notice for son John in Queenstown, SA:

"MELROSE—On April 15, at Whittlesea, near Queenstown, South Africa, John Middlemass Melrose, younger son of the late John Melrose, Peebles, aged 44 years."
South Africa (a Weekly Journal) 1902 2 April - June

https://www.eggsa.org/newspapers/index.php/south-african-magazine/317-south-africa-1902-2-april-june

Can't see any other mentions in South African newspapers, though I'm not an expert in searching South Africa!

Modified to add:
I had a quick look in Australian and New Zealand papers too, though nothing jumped out at me. 

[Lisa in California]

Trenton Evening Times
Sunday, Feb 05, 1911
Trenton, NJ
Page: 10

==========
Trenton Evening Times
Wednesday, Oct 15, 1913
Trenton, NJ
Page: 14

Thanks for this ongoing help! I am at work, so technically am not reading any of this, let alone replying, but I will be looking again tonight in 7 or 8 hours time. I love the way that so much has been filled in on son James, even down to a photo of him. Mary Middlemass I assume died in Trenton as well, but I can't find any trace of her either.  She doesn't seem to be in the same cemetery as daughter "Jeannie Melrose" (Jane Ballantyne Henderson). What a difficult family!

Re Mary, according to the 1913 newspaper clipping, James had been visiting his mother in Scotland.  Perhaps she passed away in Scotland.

[Lisa in California]

Thanks for this ongoing help! I am at work, so technically am not reading any of this, let alone replying, but I will be looking again tonight in 7 or 8 hours time. I love the way that so much has been filled in on son James, even down to a photo of him. Mary Middlemass I assume died in Trenton as well, but I can't find any trace of her either.  She doesn't seem to be in the same cemetery as daughter "Jeannie Melrose" (Jane Ballantyne Henderson). What a difficult family!

To clarify, you are looking for Mary, John’s wife?

Scotland National Probate Index
Mary Middlemass Melrose, died 28 Nov 1917 in Bournemouth.
“Confirmation Date - 22 Mar 1918.  Confirmation Place - Peebles, Scotland”
It mentioned her daughter, Jeannie.

[zumaro]

Hi Lisa - John is who I am really looking for, but Mary Middlemass is his wife.  And I just found her, thanks to the information that son James was visiting her in Scotland in 1913. She is definitely not dying in Scotland, as a search of ScotlandsPeople shows, but checking the GRO records instead I find:
MELROSE, MARY  MIDDLEMASS  85  GRO Reference: 1917  D Quarter in CHRISTCHURCH  Volume 02B  Page 84
Success!
Now back to John........