Gowans

[mckha489]

Talk about being confused. Despite the marriage date of Margaret Campbell and John Gowans being on one of their children's birth certificate,  there is no marriage  for them on Scotland's People AND his death certificate show him as having been married to Margaret Campbell.

See reply #17

[Neale1961]

Talk about being confused.

I am not sure why there is confusion. After looking at the records yesterday, it was clear that he had not married Helen, because he was already married. You have just confirmed this through acquiring another record.
There was (and is) nothing unusual about a married couple splitting up, and having children with a different partner, or common law spouse.

This is the marriage (already posted)
GOWAN, JOHN
CAMPBELL, MAGGIE
1891
282 / 1 / 118
ST PETER

[patjohn]

OK final question. I have Elizabeth Gowans birth record 1915 showing John Gowans as Father, Helen Bisset as mother . Both signed the register yet Elizabeth is illegitimate.  How does that work out?

[mckha489]

It means John & Helen were not married.
They weren’t trying to hide the fact.
They both signed the register. (As if the father is going to be put on the cert of an illegitimate child he has to sign)

[Neale1961]

A couple more details  ….

In 1911 census 64 Blackness Rd Dundee
Margaret Gowans (John’s legal wife) age 42, Jute winder, still records herself as married. 3 children born – 2 still living.
Her daughter Margaret is the only other person in the household.

On 17 Sept 1915 when the daughter Margaret married, she names her father as John Nichols Gowans a lorry driver. So the occupation of lorry driver matches that with the birth of Elizabeth in August 1915.
Both families were living in Dundee by then, and probably knew of each other.
I would imagine that John would have been paying some kind of child support to his first family and wife.

[Forfarian]

OK final question. I have Elizabeth Gowans birth record 1915 showing John Gowans as Father, Helen Bisset as mother . Both signed the register yet Elizabeth is illegitimate.  How does that work out?

Proof positive that John and Helen were not married.

The law assumes that a mother's husband is the father of her child, unless she declares otherwise. If the birth is illegitimate, the father's name can only be recorded on the original birth certificate if he accompanies the mother when she goes to register the birth, and signs it alongside her.

So when you see both parents signing a certificate it means they were not married.

Also, a married mother's name is always recorded as xxx yyy M[aiden] S[urname] zzz, where xxx is her given name, yyy is her husband's surname and zzz is her maiden surname. In this certificate she is just xxx zzz, again proving that she isn't married.