A Month of Gravestones - Stephen Mitchell

Today's post features the gravestone of Stephen Mitchell. Stephen was born near Linlithgow and is buried in St Michael's Kirkyard, next to Linlithgow Palace.

Following a four year apprenticeship with merchants in Leith, Stephen joined his father's tobacco business, Stephen Mitchell & Son. This comprised both snuff mill and a tobacconist shop. Following the death of his father, Mitchell took over the family business and watched it prosper despite changes in trade regulations. 

Mitchell retired to Moffat where he also suffered the accident that caused his death. He was out for a walk and seems to have lost his footing and fell. His fall appears to have caused a fractured skull and it was several hours before he was found. By that time, he was deceased. His body was returned to Linlithgow to be buried alongside his parents. 

Mitchell had no children and so left his vast fortune to various staff and charities. He left almost £67,000 for the establishment of a public library. Many genealogists will be familiar with this part of his legacy, The Mitchell Library in Glasgow. 

A Month of Scottish Gravestones - Ancient Burials

One of the things that absolutely fascinates me about Scotland is the age of it. And the remnants of past history that remain to this day. Often relatively untouched, even if it has deteriorated a bit. 

One such remnant is the Clava Cairns in Inverness. The cairns lie approximately a mile from Culloden Battlefield. They lie in a field, down a country road, past open fields. And given that they are about 4500 years old, they are in remarkable shape. Of course, there has been a lot more footfall since the Outlander series was filmed here, but all in all, the cairns are well preserved. 

One of the passage cairns at Clava

There are three large rings, across a diagonal. The two outer cairns are passage cairns, meaning they have a short entryway (passage) into the centre of the cairn. These passages face southwest to meet the midwinter sun as it sets. The sun lights up the passage into the cairn. It is likely that only one person was buried within each cairn and given the size of the cairns, these persons may have had important status within their community. The centre ring has no passage or entryway and it is believed that this may actually have been used as a funeral pyre to burn bodies that could later be buried as ashes. 

The centre ring was possibly used as a funeral pyre

Around the whole of the three cairns stand remnants of a stone circle.

Remnants of the stone cirlce 

Newer graves have been added such as the smaller kerb cairn, which may, in fact, have been used to bury either a body in a cist or the urn holding the ashes of one or more bodies. These cist or cremation burials were often in shallow graves and covered with a light mound of dirt. The stones around the outer rim of the burial place mark the ground where remains are buried. 

The "newer" kerb cairn

An example of a burial cist

Ancient burial cairns are abundant in the northern isles as well. Again, these date from neolithic times. Places like the famed Maeshowe, the smaller Unstan Cairn, or the incredibly diverse Tomb of the Eagles. These three are chambered cairns. Each cairn has a number of chambers (pockets or shelves) where bodies were buried, so each cairn would hold several bodies. Each chamber may have held one person or a small group - husband and wife perhaps, or mother and child. Again, the passageway or entry to the cairn tends to face the midwinter sun. 

Inside the Tomb of the Eagles. You can see the chambers on the right and left of the photo, built into the walls of the cairn. 

Fascinatingly, at Tomb of the Eagles, there were three chambers. One held bones of women. One held bones of men and the third held the bones and talons of eagles. It is unclear what the significance of the eagles were to the people buried in the other chambers. 

What about you? Have you encountered any ancient burial sites in your travels?

Research, Webinar and More Research

The research has begun in earnest. We have spent our first two days at the Mitchell Library bouncing between the Glasgow City Archives and the ScotlandsPeople hub. Poor law applications, school admissions and city directories have been consulted. Birth, marriage, death records and census returns have been transcribed, printed or saved. Stories have been uncovered and discoveries made. And not always happy ones. Such were the lives of our ancestors trying to survive in very trying times. 

Within the group of researchers, friendships have started to bloom and some will cement and endure long after the tour ends. This is such a heartwarming part of the tours for me. After all, genealogy really is about connecting.

Last night I had the pleasure of presenting a webinar for the GWSFHS. It was very well attended and as such, the discussion after was quire exciting with lots of questions asked, lots of ideas shared and new ideas proposed for ways to preserve and share the stories we have uncovered and the years of research we have undertaken.

Organize and Share your Family History

Join Clare Wilson and I in July to learn tips for organizing and sharing your family history. We will run 4 sessions, one each week for 4 weeks in July. We will alternate between Organizing and Sharing. All four sessions for one low price of $17cad (about £10)

Learn more at: https://www.genealogytoursofscotland.ca/

Watch the promo video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikB_ipHoihM&t=12s

Family History Writing Course - Online

 

We have all heard, all of our lives, that time flies, especially as we get older, but I had never been so acutely aware of that until the start of the pandemic, when two weeks morphed to two plus years. And we are still in it. Yes, times look more like they used to but we are now all acutely aware of just how precarious life (as we know it) really is. 

I’m at that stage of life where people my age are passing on. My age! Those sorts of things also tend to add to our understanding of just how precarious life really is. It could be any one of us, any time. Time. As much as we always think we have plenty, I need to stop frittering it away and be more mindful of what I want to accomplish and, as a good ancestor, what I want to leave behind. 

I was recently in a conversation with a cousin and she noted that within 3 generations, we (and our stories) will be forgotten. And I instantly recognized the truth in this. I know my story. I know my parents’ stories and I know my grandparents’ stories. I knew them. I heard them tell me their stories. I knew their personalities, their likes and dislikes, their hopes for their family. And while I think I know the stories of my great grandparents and perhaps great-great grandparents, I don’t really know them. Not on the same level. I made this realization when my eldest aunt passed away. She was the living connection to her grandparents. She knew them. Knew their personalities, their temperament, their sounds, their smells. I can only guess from documents and perhaps some degree of supposition as I piece the puzzle together. But that’s all that most of us can do. Suppose. 

I want my grandkids to know my mum and dad. To know my granny and grandpa. To know their great aunts, uncles, and their myriad of cousins. And the only way I can guarantee that my grandkids and great grandkids will really know past generations is for me to document, preserve and share those stories. Firsthand. 

I find so many of us, as family historians, want the same thing. And now that my tours are coming to an end, I will have more time to focus on this. I want to help you do the same. I have created an online writing course. This course will help you to get those stories out of documents and into a shareable format – preferably a book. Something easy, sturdy and shareable. Something that can be on a coffee table or on a shelf and can quickly and easily be taken out and shared. The course will run on 5 consecutive Wednesday evenings in May for one hour. We will work together as a small group of 12 to get the stories out of documents, out of our minds, and onto paper. To write them down, to preserve them and to create a book so that they can then be shared with future generations. By the end of the 5-week course, you can have your ancestral book (one ancestral line or one ancestor’s stories) completed. 

Please note that this course is structured. It is not just an opportunity to get together to talk about writing 'one day'. This is about getting the work done. We are not gathering to share the stories with one another or to look at what we have already done. We are gathering to do work. 

The course is designed for a small group (12). Registration is on a first come-first serve basis. 

To learn more: https://www.genealogytoursofscotland.ca/family-story-writing-courses

 

Scotland is Home. Canada is Where we Live

 

This month in Kilted Ancestors, we have been sharing stories of our ancestors or family members who left Scotland only to return. 

My mum was from a very large sibling group. My grandpa and his first wife had 6 children. Sadly, Sarah died in childbirth with baby number 6 and the wee lad succumbed just three months later. None of the five remaining children ever left Scotland. 

My grandpa and my granny had another 16 children. One was born asleep. The rest all made it to adulthood. The eldest daughter from this couple was the first to come to Canada. And she paved the way for others to follow, including my mum, my dad and me. Two uncles came over, a further three sisters, and a niece. This was over the span of several years, of course. 

One of the aunts stayed about 18 months and decided her home and her life were back in Scotland and so she returned to her beloved Scotland, to her mum and dad and her many siblings. A second aunt stayed for a couple of years and then decided she wanted to see more of Canada before she returned to Scotland. So she bought a train ticket and headed out west. She arrived in Vancouver and knew she was where she was meant to be. She stayed for well over 40 years, only returning to live in Scotland when her mum took ill. The third aunt remained in Canada. Like the first one that came, she said that as soon as she hit Canadian soil, she knew this was where she wanted to live. 

Of the two uncles, one headed to Saskatchewan and remained there. The other stayed for a handful of years, and then returned, not to Scotland, but to England. 

My granny loved Canada. She traveled over several times. She came for three weeks. She then started coming for 6 weeks. Then three months at a time and then the last couple of visits, she was here for 6 months each time. She never wanted to be here permanently because most of her children were still in Scotland. But she loved visiting her children here as well. 

My two aunts that stayed, my mum, my cousin and myself have all returned to Scotland several times. It is our home, but Canada is where we live.

Creating Family Stories Workshop - #KILTEDKULTURE for #YS2022

 JOIN US FOR A WORKSHOP ON CREATING YOUR FAMILY STORY 

AS PART OF #KILTEDKULTURE'S SUPPORT OF #YEAROFSTORIES 

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15th from 9 am eastern

 

Showcasing Your Family Photos in the Best Light 

 During her Presentation Angela will provide photography tips, a guide to scanning & making minor repairs to images as well as providing options on ways you might wish to display your images

 

Angela Daye is a Brand and headshot photographer based in South Lanarkshire, Scotland.  She is also a holistic therapist and coach where she loves helping people work through their stories to help them understand themselves better. 

This curiosity of ‘the story’ has developed into a keen interest in her own family tree and over the past decade she has been on the hunt for family photos and new ways to showcase the many photos she has uncovered. 

 

Engaging Children and Older Relatives 

Engaging with children and older relatives is fun and can also be challenging, but how do we engage with them, and how do we keep their attention and enhance their learning and memories?  We will reveal how we have created an active, fun filled learning experience for both children and older relatives across the country.

 

Sean Szmalc’s fascination with history began, when as a small boy, he saw ‘A Night to Remember’, the classic British film about the Titanic. His interest is also in war history in particular the two World War Wars and the story of JFK. 

Since then he has actively researched the stories in detail for over thirty years. Over the decades he has become personally acquainted with Titanic survivors, war veterans and their families, people who knew JFK including members of his secret service detail, learning more incredible and fascinating stories and facts first hand. 

Sean approaches his work not only as a profession, but as his passion. He enjoys all aspects of his work and strives to preserve history and educate with both his exhibitions and outreach programmes.  He works frequently with schools, care homes, museums and galleries across the world, acting as a historical advisor to both the media and television.   Outside of his work, he enjoys time with family and friends, and strives to help others who are less fortunate in life.

 

 Story Creating Workshop 

You've researched your family history and now want to write a story but don't     know where to start.

 Let me guide you through the story creating process: how to get to know your characters, the questions to ask yourself when you are writing a story and the process to get your ideas on paper or computer. 

 I will also explain the next steps, from editing your manuscript to publishing a  book. 

 Come with me on a journey of discovery and learn how to hold a dream in your hand.

 

Claire Miller, Author, has been writing seriously since 2001. She is a published author of four children’s books and The Story Creator. Her books are Pure Human City, a teenage book, I Can Create Stories, an A4 interactive story creating book and I Can Create Stories (Story Edition), an A5 interactive story creating book. The Choice, a teenage novel, is her fourth book which was meant to be a 1000 word story and grew a bit! 

She is passionate about helping children and adults gain confidence in themselves and their abilities through story creating workshops. Please get in touch with her if you’d like to know more about her workshops. 

She loves diving into her imagination and creating stories and now considers herself a fulltime, accomplished, professional writer. When she’s not writing she loves to play the piano and take photographs.

 

 Genealogy Journaling 

Researching your Family Tree is a journey of self-discovery, therefore it is important to not only record what you discover in relation to your family history but to record the journey in doing so & how it made you feel.  Another important thing to document are the family stories that have been passed down through the generations, it is so important that these are not lost & can be passed on further.

Clare Wilson is a Professional Genealogist based in Central Scotland. Passionate about Scotland, she loves that she can assist clients worldwide to discover more about their own Scottish Ancestors. She runs various projects & groups including Kilted Ancestors, New Monkland Back in Time, the Scottish Tourism Collective & the Allied Air Force Research Group. Her other passion is Allied Air Force Research & she has recently set up a new website dedicated to this subject.

 

 Pulling It All Together 

We are the Chosen. We are the ones our ancestors call up to preserve their stories and to make them live again in the memories of our children, our grandchildren and the generations yet to come. As family historians, we have an obligation to honour our ancestors and to share their stories with others. In this presentation we will look at various ways to do just that. We will learn how to honour the lives of our ancestors by pulling together the stories of their lives.

 

Christine Woodcock began her descent into family history by creating a family history book to record the descendants of her maternal grandfather. Since then she has created numerous family history books for her family and has assisted others in doing the same. Whether honouring the life of one individual or telling the story of one line through the generations, Christine recognizes that it is only through our stories that we live on for future generations.

 Access to the recordings remains open for 30 days following the live event

Click here to register