Upper Level: Hugh Findlay and Lilias Cleland

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Hugh Findlay and Lilias Cleland

Coal Miner Family

Hugh Findlay
Parents: John Findlay and (possibly) Margaret Campbell
Born 1785 Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner
Married Lillias Cleland 11 Dec 1801 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland

Hugh Findlay and Lillias Cleland's marriage record

Died
Buried
Sources
Marriage: Kilmarnock Parish Register - also FHL Film number 1041386
To find our more about Kilmarnock: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilmarnock
ancestry.com
Family Search
Lilias Cleland
Parents: Alexander Cleland and Mary Houston
Note about parentage: I have seen Archibald Cleland and Jean Stewart listed as her parents, but this would be impossible as the birth and christening for THAT Lilias was in December of 1798 and the marriage between Hugh and Lilias took place in 1801, with firstborn child in 1802. On top of this is the fact, there is a Mary Houston Findlay in this group of children, which ties back to this Lilias's mother.
Born: about 1785 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Died 12 May 1835 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Buried
Sources
Family Search
ancestry.com

CHILDREN

James Findlay
Born 31 October 1802 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner

Married Elizabeth Holland 22 Dec 1822 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Children: Hugh, John, unnamed boy, Elizabeth, Mary, James, David, Lillie, Caroline
Immigration: At the age of 30, (1832) he took his wife and four children on the Ship "Mercator" and after a voyage of 35 days, landed in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia

The ship Mercator

Died 16 July 1877 Pennsylvania
Buried: Huffs Union Cemetery, Huffs Church, Berks, Pennsylvania

James Findlay headstone
Note the Mason's symbol

Good information about his young life, but the following two pages regarding
his adult life and family born in Nova Scotia and the move to Pennsylvania were missing!

Sources
Picture of ship: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercator_(ship)

Book: History of Berks county in Pennsylvania, By Morton L Montgomery, Pub 1886 page 1055
Family Search
ancestry.com
Nova Scotia Finlay family: http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/~ac794/genea/finley.html
Headstone: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/31644908/james-findlay
Alexander Findlay
Born 17 Oct 1804 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner (1841-51)

Marriage: Janet Richmond 22 July 1825 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Children: Agnes, Lilias, Hugh, James, Janet, John, Margaret, Thomas, Jean
Died 28 February 1862
Buried
Sources
1841 Scotland Census (age 35)

1851 Scotland Census (age 46)

Family Search
ancestry.com

Hugh and children memorial
Erected by Hugh - see
transcription below

Hugh Findlay
Born 20 Feb 1807 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner (1851-1871) Coal Miner and Grocer (1861)

Married Elizabeth Wallace Brown 05 Oct 1827 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Children: Hugh, Elizabeth, Lillias, Agnes, William, James, Mary, Hugh, Robert
Died 11 June 1873 Hurlford, Ayr, Scotland
Buried Kilmarnock Low Churchyard, East Ayrshire, Scotland

from findagrave
Erected by Hugh Findlay, thirdpart
in memory of his son of Hugh Findlay died 2 Oct 1844 (17y)
and of his daughter Lillias Findlay died 17 Nov 1864 (13y)
also of his son Robert died 31 March 1856 (7y)
Also of the said Hugh Findlay died 11 June 1873 (66y)
Father Hugh Findlay died in Gargeston 9 Oct 1845 (64y)

Sources
1851 Scotland Census Portland Row, Kyle, Ayr, Scotland (age 42)

1861 Scotland Census Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland (age 54)

1871 Scotland Census Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland (age 64)

Scotland Marriages

Family Search
ancestry.com
Headstone: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/173563086/hugh-findlay
David Findlay
Born 20 Feb 1809 Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner (1841-1871) Underground Manager (1861)

Married 1) Susan Strachan 23 May 1832 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Children: Hugh, Peter, Mary, Helen, James
2) Margaret Brown abt 1849 Scotland
Children: David, Margaret, Agnes, Alexander, Robert, John
Died 30 June 1873 Galston, Ayrshire, Scotland

COD: Softening of brain (probably dementia) and apoplexy (heart attack)
Buried: Scotland
Sources
1841 UK Census Riccarton, Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom (age 30)

1851 UK Census Portland Row, Riccarton, Ayr, Scotland (age 42)
1861 UK Census Riccarton, Ayr, Scotland (age 52)
1871 UK Census Titchfield Street, Galston, Ayr, Scotland (age 62)
Death Record

Family Search
ancestry.com
Mary Houston Findlay
Born 8 May 1811 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Married 1) James Muir 22 June 1832 Auchinleck, Ayr, Scotland
Children: Andrew, Hugh, Hugh, Elizabeth, John

Mary and John's marriage record

2) Peter Mcluskie 20 January 1852 Riccarton, Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom
Children: Catherine, Lillias

Mary and Peter's marriage record

3) James McGhee 26 Jan 1857 Riccarton, Ayr, Scotland
No Children together
Died 17 January 1886 Prestwick, Ayr, Scotland
COD: Cerebral Apoplexy

Mary Houston Findlay Muir McLusky Mchee death record

Buried 17 January 1886 Prestwick, Ayr, Scotland
Sources
1841 UK Census Ayr, Scotland (age 25)
1851 UK Census Paisley Middle Church, Renfrewshire, Scotland (age 37)
1861 UK Census Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland (age 47)
Marriage Records with all three husbands
Death record
Family Search
ancestry.com
Jean Findlay
Born 31 Aug 1813 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Died
Buried
Sources
Family Search
ancestry.com

-M-
3rd ggmother
*Janet Findlay
Christened 6 April 1816 St Quivox and Newton, Ayr, Scotland
Married William Howat 18 Nov 1856 St Quivox and Newton, Ayr, Scotland
Children: Lillias, James, Jean, Hugh, Euphemia, Agnes, William, Mary, Grace, Janet, Hugh

Occupation: Cotton Weaver (1871)

Died 25 March 1898 Scotland
Buried
Sources
Marriage: IGI Film 1041406 Batch M116128 dated 1820-1854
1841 UK Census Riccarton, Ayr, Scotland
Note: address was Old Engine
1851 UK Census Riccarton, Ayr, Scotland
Note: address was Howies Square
1861 UK Census Galston, Ayr, Scotland
Note: same address as 1851
1871 UK Census Galston, Ayr, Scotland
Note: address 6 Ironwork Square
1881 UK Census Galston, Ayr, Scotland (age 63, widow)
Note: same address as 1871
1891 UK Census Galston, Ayr, Scotland (age 74, widow, living with daughter Grace and kids)
Note: address 31 Ironwork Square
Family Search
ancestry.com
John Findlay
Born 18 Aug 1818 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Occupation: Coal Miner (1841)

Married Janet McGee
Children: Mary, Lillias, Hugh, Agnes
Died
Buried
Sources
1841 UK Census Kilmarnock, Ayr, Scotland (age 20, with parents)

1851 UK Census Nourish Bank, Kyle, Ayr, Scotland (age 32)

Family Search
ancestry.com
Archibald Findlay
Born 02 Jun 1821 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland
Occupation: Ironstone Miner

Married Elizabeth Shields 9 Dec 1843 Beith, Ayr, Scotlandand
Children: Ann, Ann, Lilias, Hugh, Elizabeth, Archibald, Mary, James
Died 18 Feb 1860 • Kilbirnie, Ayrshire, Scotland
COD: apoplexy (heart attack)

Archibald's death record

Buried
Sources
1851 Scotland Census Kyle, Ayr, Scotland (age 30)

Marriage: Scotland Marriages

Death Record
Family Search
ancestry.com

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From a Funeral Program

When I come to the end of the road

And the sun has set for me

I want no rites in a gloom-filled room

Why cry for a soul set free?

Miss me a little - but not for too long

And not with your head bowed low

Remember the love that we once shared

Miss me, but let me go.

For this is a journey that we all must take

And each must go alone

It's all part of the Master's plan

A step on the road to home.

When you are lonely and sick at heart

Go to the hills we know

And bury your sorrow among the trees

Miss me, but let me go.

The Line

Every minute someone leaves this world behind.
We are all in “the line” without knowing it.
We never know how many people are before us.
We can not move to the back of the line.
We can not step out of the line.
We can not avoid the line.

So while we wait in line -

Make moments count.
Make priorities.
Make the time.
Make your gifts known.
Make a nobody feel like a somebody.
Make your voice heard.
Make the small things big.
Make someone smile.
Make the change.
Make love.
Make up.
Make peace.
Make sure to tell your people they are loved.
Make sure to have no regrets.
Make sure you are ready.

I'm My Own Grandpa

Many, many years ago when I was 23,
I got married to a widow
who was as pretty as could be.
She had a grown up daughter
who had a hair of red.
My father fell in love with her
and soon the two were wed.
This made my dad my son-in-law
And changed my very life.
My daughter was my mother,
for she was my father's wife.
To complicate the matters worse,
although it brought me joy,
I soon became the father
of a bouncing baby boy.
My little baby then became a brother -in-law to dad
and so became my uncle though it made me very sad.
For if he was my uncle,
then that also made him brother to the widow's grown-up- daughter,
who of course, was my stepmother.
Father's wife then had a son,
who kept them on the run.
And he became my grandson, for he was my daughter's son.
My wife is now my mother's mother
and it makes me blue.
Because, although she is my wife,
she's my grandma too.
If my wife is my grandmother,
then I am her grandchild.
and every time I think of it,
it simply makes me wild.
For now I have become the strangest case you ever saw.
As the husband of my grandmother,
I am my own grandpa!

Quotes from the Prophets

President Gordon B Hinckley: "It is good to look to the past to gain appreciation for the present and perspective for the future. It is good to look upon the virtues of those who have gone before, to gain strength for whatever lies ahead. It is good to reflect upon the work of those who labored so hard and gained so little in this world, but out of whose dreams and early plans so well nurtured, has come a great harvest of which we are the beneficiaries. Their tremendous example can become a compelling motivation for us all, for each of us is a pioneer in his own life."

President Spencer W Kimball: "I hope to see us dissolve the artificial boundary line we so often place between missionary work and temple and genealogical work, because it is the same great redemptive work!"

President Joseph Fielding Smith: " The responsibility on behalf of our kindred dead rests with equal force on all, according to our individual ability and opportunities...the greatest and grandest duty of all is to labor for the dead."

The Passing of the Pot (Chamber Pot)

As far back in childhood
As memory may go
One household vessel greets me
That wasn't made for show
Beneath the bed twas anchored
Where only few could see
But served the entire family
With equal privacy
Some called the critter Peggy
And some the thundermug
And others called it badger
A few called it jug
To bring it in at evening
Was bad enough no doubt
But heaven help the person
Who had to take it out
Our big one was enormous
And would accomodate
A watermelon party
Composed of six or eight
When nights were dark and rainy
It was a useful urn
On icy winter mornings
The cold rim seemed to burn
At times when things were rushing
And business extra good
Each took his turn a waiting
Or did the best he could
Sometimes when in a hurry
To our disgust and shame
We fumbled in the darkness
And slightly missed our aim
The special one for company
Was decorated well
But just the same it rendered
That old familiar smell
Today this modernism
Relieves me a lot
And only in my vision
I see that homely pot.
(author unknown)

Poem about ancestors

Though steep is the path I follow today,
The footprints of time will show me the way.
For many have traveled a smiliar road,
And carried an equal of heavier load.

No troubles I face are new to this earth,
That man has not faced from time of his birth.
The route has been charted and roads have been paved
By legions before me who were stalwart and brave.

Their steps never faltered nor courage grew dim,
For they trusted the Lord and let Him led them.
If my faith and my trust remain steadfast and true,
God will guide and protect me in all that I do.
- Dolores Karides

The Elusive Ancestor

I went searching for an ancestor.
I cannot find him still.
He moved around from place to place
and did not leave a will.
He married where a courthouse burned.
He mended all his fences.
He avoided any man who came to
take the US census

He always kept his luggage packed,
This man who had no fame,
and every 20 years or so,
This rascal changed his name.
No one else inthis world is
searching for this elusive man,
so I play "Gene-solitaire"
To find him, if I can!

I'm told he's buried in a plot,
with tombstone he was blessed;
but the weather took engravings,
and some vandals took the rest.
He died before the county clerks
were appointed to keep records
No family Bible has emerged -
In spite of all my efforts.

To top it off, this elusive ancestor
who has caused me many groans -
left me even one more challenge:
He brothed a lady,
by the name of "Jones"!
(Got this from a publication
put out by the DUP organization
that names the author: Merrell Kenworthy)

Poem: Heaven's Door

If I should go before you,

If life on earth were through;

I'll stop just inside Heaven's door,

and there I'll wait for you.

You've but to look 'cross star filled skies,

Past the moon and then beyond;

To know my leaving could never break,

This heart's undying bond.

And if you should go before me,

If your journey on earth were through;

You know I will be close behind,

I'll never be far from you.

Across the span of time and space,

This love will reach this far;

For you'll always carry a bit of my heart,

No matter where you are.

Allison Chambers Coxsey©1995 ~ All Rights Reserved

Which Shall It Be? by Adelaide Proctor

Which shall it be?

"Which shall it be? Which shall it be?
I looked at John and John looked at me,
And when I found that I must speak,
My voice seemed strangely low and weak:
˜Tell me again what Robert said,"
And then I, listening, bent my head.
This is his letter:˜I will give
A house and land while you shall live,
If, in return, from out your seven,
One child to me for aye is given."

I looked at John's old garments worn;
I thought of all that he had borne
Of poverty, and work, and care,
Which I, though willing, could not share;
I thought of seven young mouths to feed,
Of seven little children's need,
And then of this.

˜Come, John,said I,
We'll choose among them as they lie
Asleep. So, walking hand in hand,
Dear John and I surveyed our band:
First to the cradle lightly stepped,
Where Lilian, the baby, slept.
Softly the father stooped to lay
His rough hand down in a loving way,
When dream or whisper made her stir,
And huskily he said: ˜Not her!"

We stooped beside the trundle bed,
And one long ray of twilight shed
Athwart the boyish faces there,
In sleep so beautiful and fair;
I saw on James rough, red cheek
A tear undried. E'er John could speak,
He's but a baby, too," said I,
And kissed him as we hurried by.

Pale, patient, Robbie's angel face
Still in his sleep bore suffering's trace.
˜No, for a thousand crowns, not him!"
He whispered, while our eyes were dim.
Poor Dick! bad Dick! our wayward son”
Turbulent, restless, idle one”
Could he be spared?
Nay, He who gave
Bade us befriend him to the grave;
Only a mother's heart could be
Patient enough for such as he;
˜And so," said John, ˜I would not dare
To take him from her bedside prayer."

Then stole we softly up above,
And knelt by Mary, child of love;
˜Perhaps for her ˜twould better be,"
I said to John. Quite silently
He lifted up a curl that lay
Across her cheek in a wilful way,
And shook his head: ˜Nay, love, not thee,
The while my heart beat audibly.

Only one more, our eldest lad,
Trusty and truthful, good and glad,
So like his father. ˜No, John, no!
I cannot, will not, let him go."

And so we wrote, in courteous way,
We could not give one child away;
And afterward toil lighter seemed,
Thinking of that of which we dreamed,
Happy in truth that not one face
Was missed from its accustomed place;
Thankful to work for all the seven,
Trusting the rest to One in heaven."

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Hugh Findlay and Lilias Cleland

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