Elizabeth Murray & George Barclay

Elizabeth Murray
[10/10/1879-19/12/1952]

married
George Barclay
[died pre 1952]

Elizabeth Munro Murray, known as Bessie or Betsy, was born at Rhemusaig, Rogart, daughter of Alexander Murray and Jane Mackenzie. Bessie lived with her grandmother, Elspat Mackay, Widow Mackenzie, at Torbreck, Rogart as a youngster – she was admitted to Blairich School on 22nd November 1887 where her parent or guardian was given as Widow Mackenzie, Torbreac – she had previously attended Rogart Public School – at Blairich she was presented for standard 2 in 1889 and standard 5 in 1892 – she left Blairich school on 5th August 1892 – reason for leaving ‘passed standard five’ – Bessie was only 7 years old when she started at Blairich having already attended another school and left when she was 11.

Elizabeth and George married at 10 Chalmers Crescent, Edinburgh, on 17th July 1914. Elizabeth died in Edinburgh, widow of George Barclay, varnish maker. They are known to have had at least one child, a son, who may still be alive.

Mary Ann MURRAY & George TAYLOR

Mary Ann MURRAY [11/6/1877 - 10/4/1928]
married
George Robert TAYLOR [born circa 1879]

Mary Ann was born at Rhemusaig, Rogart, daughter of Alexander Murray and Jane Mackenzie. At the time of Mary Ann's birth her father was described as a general merchant. She moved from the croft at Rhemusaig to Edinburgh where she found work as a dressmaker. At the age of 23 years Mary Ann married George Robert Taylor, son of George Henry Taylor and Helen Elliott of Kent, England. George was twenty-one years old and worked for a spirit merchant in the city. The wedding took place on the 29 March 1904 in the United Free Church, Mansionhouse Road, Edinburgh. Their only child; Jean was born in the city on 1 June 1906 [died 15 August 1976 Edinburgh].

Mary Ann died, aged 50, in the Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh. Her sister-in-law, Margaret Ann Murray, widow of William Murray, was present.

Mary Ann's daughter, Jean Taylor, married Edwin Hull and they in turn had a daughter, Doris. The family lived in Edinburgh until their deaths.

Janet Mackenzie MURRAY & James WATT

Janet Mackenzie MURRAY (Jess)

[11/6/1893 - 19/8/1981]
married
James WATT
[10/6/1893 - c1960]

Janet, known as Jess, was born at Rhemusaig, daughter of Alexander Murray and Jane Mackenzie. Jess went down to Edinburgh where she worked as a cable car conductress. She met James, a cable car driver, and they married on 12th September 1919 at the Melbourne Halls in Edinburgh. They lived their lives in the city. Jess died in 1981 aged 88 years.

They had the following children:
JEAN WATT born 1920 in Edinburgh and died in 1975 in Vancouver, Canada
JAMES WATT born 1926 Edinburgh and died in Cape Town, South Africa 2002 - photograph above shows James as a young man.
Plus two daughters who are still alive today.

Jean Watt, above, married Norman Hossack who died in 1974 in Vancouver at age 80. They had four children one of whom, David, lives in Vancouver and communicates with me.

James Watt, above, married a daughter of his mother's sister Margaret Ellen Mackenzie MURRAY who is still alive and living in South Africa. Their daughter is Pam Thomson who has helped me tremendously with this part of the family tree.

William MURRAY & Margaret Ann MACKENZIE

William MURRAY
[1/1/1876-1923]
married
Margaret Ann MACKENZIE
[7/10/1883-8/7/1970]

William was born at Torbreck, Rogart, the eldest child of Alexander Murray and Jane Mackenzie of Rhemusaig. He was named after his paternal grandfather, William Murray of Rhemusaig. As a young boy William lived with his widowed maternal grandmother Elizabeth Mackay [Mrs William Mackenzie] at Torbreck where she farmed seven acres. Young William was there with his grandmother and Aunt Christina in 1881. The 1891 census shows him still there with his younger sister Bessie, aged 11 years. Granny Mackenzie was now 78 years old. Life was hard on the crofts - crofters struggled to support the large families and many children were boarded out to grandparents.

William was with his parents at Rhemusaig in the 1901 census. He left Sutherland within the next few years heading south to Edinburgh where many of his sisters were already settled. He found work as a jobbing gardener in the Morningside area of Edinburgh. On 10 June 1910 he married Margaret, daughter of John Mackenzie, a farm servant and his wife Mary Mackenzie. Margaret was born in Inverness. The marriage took place at the United Free Church, Polwarth Terrace, Edinburgh. After the wedding they moved into Morningside Road, an address which would be the family home for at least sixty years. William continued to do gardening and odd jobs while Margaret [Meg] cleaned at the big houses in the area.

The 1914/18 war required all men under forty to be enlisted - William was called up. He served with the Black Watch attaining the rank of Sergeant. In the trenches of Northern France he suffered very severely from gas poisoning. He lived until 1923 when his death certificate showed he died from illness associated with gassing. His young widow continued her life as before bringing up her children.

They had the following children:
ELIZABETH MURRAY [Bessy], born 27 February 1911 Morningside, Edinburgh [died 30 September 1976 Edinburgh] [married John Mackay in Edinburgh 1931] – had family, some of whom still live in Scotland
WILLIAM MURRAY, born 18 October 1912 Morningside, Edinburgh [died 29 April 1969 England] [married Robina Gordon Wilson in Edinburgh 1940] – had family of three, two of whom now live in England - these are my parents
ROBERT MURRAY, born 21 September 1914 Morningside, Edinburgh [died 8 April 1968 Edinburgh] [married Isabella Christina Chisholm in Edinburgh 1943] – had family some of whom still live in Scotland
MARGARET MURRAY [Peggy] born 5 May 1921 Morningside, Edinburgh [died 14 May 1977 Stirlingshire] [married James Thomson in 1944] – had family one of whom lives in Dundee
JOHN MACKENZIE MURRAY, born 3 February 1923 Morningside, Edinburgh [died 11 July 1975 Edinburgh] [married in Edinburgh where his widow still lives]
William Murray and Margaret Ann Mackenzie are my grandparents. Their son William, my father. Photograph above shows 'Gran Murray', Margaret Ann Mackenzie with three of her children, Bessie, William and baby Robert taken in 1914.

Janet MURRAY & James MACKAY

Janet MURRAY
[24/8/1820-27/12/1898]
married
James MACKAY
[7/4/1824-18/8/1884]

Janet (Jessie) Murray was born at Rhemusaig, Rogart, daughter of William Murray and Catherine Grant. James was born in Thurso, Caithness, son of Donald Mackay and Janet Shearer.

James, a coachman from St. Cuthberts, Edinburgh, and Janet, a servant at Lairg Inn, married in Lairg on 23 November 1850 (OPR). Jessie and James moved to Edinburgh where their daughter was born before finally settling in Dumbartonshire.

In 1881 the family were living at Market Street, Mackie's Lane, Cardross, Dunbartonshire. James was a commercial clerk and gas collector. Daughter Jessie was a dressmaker. When their only child, Jessie, had grown up they took Janet's youngest sister, Catherine's, child in and brought her up also. Janet Murray, widow of James Mackay, Clerk at Printfield, died in 1898 at Carman Road, Renton. The informant of the death was an Alexander Murray, Undertaker, 74 Main Street, Renton — a relative?
James and Janet had a daughter:
JANET MACKAY(Jessie) born 9 September 1856, Edinburgh [died 7th October 1914 Glasgow] [married William Cumming] - 1881 census with parents, dressmaker