Really Stuck and need help

[David Nicoll]

Hi, can you explain how you get to James Leithead as a half brother.
Also be aware other people seem to have Robert McGregor son of James McGregor and Janet Ritchie as dying in Ontario.
There seem to be a lot of different trees claiming Robert!

[JacobusV]

Hi

I did a DNA test on Ancestry and I seem to share DNA with him and his descendents and the DNA markers show I am descended from Helen Porteous (who is on my 3 times Great Grandfathers death certificate as his deceased spouse). My Great great grandmother Jessie Hill (maiden name Mcgregor) was the informant of his death. I recall my father telling me about the Mcgregor and the Hills by direct word of mouth.

[David Nicoll]

Hi, so a couple of further questions.

If Jessie Hill was the informant on James Leithead’s death certificate, what relationship did she state.

Also if the Braemar connection is to be believed, I would expect dna matches to that extensive family, do you have any.

Also don’t forget that McGregor was a proscribed name for a long time, which may make things difficult.

[JacobusV]

Hi

Jessie Hill was the informant of my 3 times great grandfather Robert Mcgregors death not James Leithead. James seems to have been my 3 times great grandmother Helen Porteous potential half brother. Both were children of Isabel Craig, husband of Walter Porteous. Isobel would be my 4 times Great grandmother and I have a DNA link to descendents of her and her son James.

[JacobusV]

Sorry, Isabel Craig was the wife of Walter Porteous, it's been a long day.

J

[Neale1961]

... James seems to have been my 3 times great grandmother Helen Porteous potential half brother. Both were children of Isabel Craig, husband of Walter Porteous.

However, you have not verified any of that.

A DNA link could simply show that someone else who shares similar DNA, also shares the same errors in their tree. 

[jonwarrn]

Has any other record confirmed that the elusive Robert McGregor was a blacksmith?

[David Nicoll]

Ah,   
The mist begins to clear a little.

Are we talking about William Porteous and Isabell Craig of Newton?
if you are correct in linking to this Walter, welcome to a maze of Twisty passages that look all alike.

The mining families of Midlothian and East Lothian are very complicated.
You can pretty much forget using cM to predict MRCA date.

I have matches I know are matches, but pre date 1750 by a long way or are very hard to prove.

I would take that half brother thing with a very large pinch of salt unless you have documentary evidence as well.

Can I ask how you get to Walter and Isabella? What is your last documentation in the registration era?

There are a lot of Water Porteous’ and these families moved more than you might expect, a lot left for a better life overseas.

[Little Nell]

Can we go back to your original post, please?

You say:

Doing my own research I was under the impression that his grandparents were a James McGregor, born in 1792 in Perth but died in Tramore Bay near Waterford in Ireland and that his grandmother was a Jannet Ritchie, born 14th March 1774 in Glasgow, Lanarkshire (a bit of a wide age gap I know).

and in reply No 7 here: https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=893467.msg7677302#msg7677302

there is a screen shot of a Roman Catholic baptism for a Robert McGregor in 1816 with these parents named.

Please think about this carefully.  If it is true that Janet Ritchie was born in 1774 and James McGregor was born in 1792,  then he was 24 when his son was baptised in a Church of Scotland (i.e. presbyterian) church.  And his wife was 42.

Edited: Your Robert married in a Church of Scotland church, but according to the baptism you had identified as a possible record for him, his family was Catholic.

Searching the Catholic records on ScotlandsPeople, there are baptisms for the following children in the same district with the same parents named:
1802 Margaret (ages of parents 10 and 28)
1805 Mary (ages of parents 13 and 31)
1807 Jannet (ages of parents 15 and 33),
1819 Colin (ages of parents 26 and 45 for the mother)

(ScotlandsPeople is now misbehaving and I can't get to further results    )

However, I think this is fairly conclusive that the parents of Robert McGregor who married Helen Porteous are NOT James MacGregor and Jannet Ritchie, who seem to have been resolutely Catholic.

I think other possibilities need to be considered.

Nell

Edited: Robert born cir 1816 married in a Church of Scotland church, but according to the baptism you had identified as a possible, his family was Catholic.