Will "My" Coy Franklin Hicks Please Stand Up?

Mary Inez Muir was my first cousin once removed, the eldest daughter of my grand uncle, Henry "Jack" Muir and his first wife, Mary Frances Canterbury. Mary Inez was born on 8 January 1922 in Raven, Virginia. According to her granddaughter, she was married as many as nine times. So far, I have found at least the surnames of eight husbands. 

On 26 January 1994 Mary Inez married Coy Franklin Hicks in Tazewell County, Virginia. For years I could not find any additional information about Coy beyond his name. Earlier this week, I tried searching for him again. I had more success than I bargained for and found three men named Coy Franklin Hicks!

Virginia marriage record for Mary Inez and Coy Franklin Hicks; 
courtesy of Ancestry.com

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: 17 June 1917 in Caretta, West Virginia, to Mitchell and Rebecca "Beckie" (Boothe) Hicks.
• Died: 23 May 1999 in Tazewell County, Virginia
• Married: 1) Kathleen Hopkins (died in 1988) in 1938 and 2) Mary Inez Muir in 1994; no known children

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: 21 December 1918 in Davidson County, North Carolina, to Marvin and Cora Louise (Klass) Hicks
• Died: 8 June 1971 in Thomasville, North Carolina
• Married: 1) Dorothy Mae Loveless in 1938; one known child

Coy Franklin Hicks

• Born: after 1940 to Coy Harrison and Elma H. (Ward) Hicks
• Married: 1) Carolyn Joy Harris and 2) Trudy (maiden name unknown); three known children by his first wife

I was able to discount the North Carolina Coy Franklin Hicks fairly quickly as he died before the 1994 marriage to Mary Inez Muir. However, I added him to my tree in order to have facts about him readily available so I could better analyze each record I was finding to determine to which Coy Franklin Hicks they related.

However, I had a "stray" marriage record that led to the third Coy Franklin Hicks. On that record he and wife, Carolyn Joy Harris, were the parents of the bride. Was this "my" Coy Franklin Hicks? Determining there was actually a third man with that name was confirmed by the obituaries of Elma (Ward) Hicks and Tina Joy (Hicks) Stewart. To find those obituaries, though, required more researching. That's how I end up with unrelated people in my family tree. And research notes with links to all the men named Cory Franklin Hicks so I, and others in the future, don't have to do the research again.

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Unraveling Henry's Children: Mary Inez Muir (1922-2002) 

Early-Muir Marriages: Andrew Airlie (1877-1944) and Martha Muir (1876-1961)

Three children of my three times great uncle, Robert Orr Muir (1839-1917), married siblings. Andrew Airlie[1] and Martha Muir were the last of the three pairs of siblings to marry.

The Early-Muir marriages; created using Microsoft PowerPoint

Martha Muir was born on 12 April 1876 in Lesmagahow Parish in Lanarkshire, Scotland, to Robert Orr Muir and his second wife, MaryWatson Shaw. The birth occurred at her parent's home on Shoulderigg Road in the Coalburn area of the parish. Her father was a coal minter.

When the 1881 census was enumerated, the family still lived on Shouldrigg Road. The three living children from Robert Orr Muir's first marriage lived with their parents and several children from Robert's second marriage, but Martha was not listed with the family. By 1891 Robert had moved his family to Bathgate Parish, in West Lothian. He continued to work as a coal miner. Martha was 14 years old had finished her schooling and worked as a dress maker. By 1901, Martha worked as a domestic in the home of Robert Rutherford, a wholesale grocer, in Edinburgh.

She married Andrew Airlie on 27 December 1901in Gatashiels, a town in Bathgate Parish. Andrew was the son of Ralph Early and Catherine McNair White. He was a year younger than Martha, worked as a coal miner, and lived in Coalburn -- where Martha was born. They were married according to the forms of the United Free Church of Scotland, a Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the unification of several denominations which had broken away from the national church after the Schism of 1843.

Martha had their first son, Alexander, on 3 August 1903 in Coalburn. Nearly a year later, on 21 May 1904, the family left for Nova Scotia aboard the Allan Line's SS Mongolian. Their destination was Sydney in the Cape Breton area of Nova Scotia. The province was Canada's foremost producer of coal from 1827 until 1945, according to the Nova Scotia Museum of Industry.

Coal pier in Sydney, Nova Scotia, circa 1900; courtesy of Wikipedia

Their second son, Robert Orr Muir Airlie, was born on 8 June 1905 in New Aberdeen, Nova Scotia. The neighborhood developed in the latter part of the 19th century to house workers at the Number 20, or Dominion Number 2 coal mine. The mine was owned by the Dominion Steel and Coal Company.

They returned to Scotland by 1906 and rented a house in Bridgend, which was located in Bathgate. Their third child, Andrew Airlie was born on 23 April 1907at that location.  He died on 16 April 1908 of food poisoning.

Their youngest child, Mary Watson Shaw Airlie, was born on 31 August 1910 at Smith's Buildings in Bridgend. The family lived at the same location when the 1911 census was taken. However, in 1915 they had moved to 16 Tinto View Terrace in Coalburn.

By 1920 the family was back in West Lothian and lived at 10 George Terrace in the Blackburn area of Whitburn Parish. They remained at there until they moved to their final address, 36 Redmill, in the same parish by 1930.

Andrew remained a coal miner the rest of his life and died suddenly on 4 July 1944 at his home of a supposed heart attack. His widow, Martha (Muir) Airlie lived another 17 years, dying on 15 April 1961 in Coalburn. She had suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage a month earlier. Her son-in-law, Archibald Naismith, was present at the time of her death and registered it with parish authorities.

Children:

1. Alexander Airlie, born 3 August 1903 in Coalburn, Lesmahagow, Lanarkshire; death date and location unknown; married Jane O'Rorke, daughter of James O'Rorke and Anne Keirnan, on 31 December 1925 in Whitburn, West Lothian
2. Robert Orr Muir Airlie, born 8 June 1905 in New Aberdeen, Nova Scotia, Canada; died 23 April 1981 in Hollywood, Florida; married 1) his second cousin, Annie Lee Muir, daughter of Robert Muir and Annie Robertson Lee, on 3 October 1930 in Finleyville, Pennsylvania, and 2) Mary Madeline (White) Kenny, on 14 April 1979
3. Andrew Airlie, born 23 April 1907 in Bathgate, West Lothian; died 16 August 1908 in Bathgate
4. Mary Watson Shaw Airlie, born 31 August 1910 in Bathgate; died 3 June 1986 in Coalburn, Lanarkshire; married Archibald "Archie" Gray Naismith, a son of George Naismith and Margaret Taylor, on 29 March 1952 in Whitburn, West Lothian. Neither had been married previously

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[1] The Airlie surname was spelled in a variety of ways in the records on ScotlandsPeople, including Airley, Earlie, Early, and Earley. Andrew's surname was spelled Early on his birth registration but he changed it to Airlie and all his children followed suit.

Early-Muir Marriages: Ralph Early (1863-1909) and Elizabeth Hamilton Muir (1867-1902)
Early-Muir Marriages: Robert Muir (1863-1927) and Janet Early (1868-1939)
Immigration Redux

Early-Muir Marriages: Ralph Early (1863-1909) and Elizabeth Hamilton Muir (1867-1902)

Three children of my three times great uncle, Robert Orr Muir (1839-1917), married siblings. I wrote about Robert Muir and his wife, Janet Early, last week as they were the first of the three Muir siblings to marry Early siblings. Two years later Robert's sister, Elizabeth Hamilton Muir, married Ralph Early, the brother of Janet Early. Elizabeth and Ralph's lives were tragic and all too short.

The Early-Muir marriages; created using Microsoft Powerpoint

Elizabeth Hamilton Muir was born on 3 April 1902 in Stonehouse, Scotland, to Robert Orr Muir and Jane Paton Loudon. She was their third child and first daughter. Elizabeth's mother died when she was two years old. Her father married Mary Watson Shaw in 1871 when Elizabeth was four years old. Mary had two illegitimate children who joined the family in Lesmahagow where Robert worked in the coal mines.

In 1878, at the age of 12, William Brown Shaw followed his step-father, Robert Orr Muir, into the coal mines. He worked at the Auchlochan Mine near Coalburn. On 5 October, William was ascending the shaft of the No. 2 pit, known as "Major Pit," when he fell out of the cage used to raise and lower miners. He sustained fatal injuries but survived 18 hours after the accident. He died the next day at home. This tragedy seemed to set the tone for the remainder of Elizabeth's life.

Elizabeth Hamilton Muir married Ralph Early[1] on 7 March 1890 in Hamilton, Scotland. Ralph was born on 26 July 1863 in Dalziel, Scotland, to Ralph Early and Catherine McNair White. He was their eldest known child, and his father was also a coal miner. He joined his father in the mines at the age of 12 or 13. Ralph's father died in 1881 of heart disease and dropsy at the age of 42, and his mother remarried in 1884.

Ralph and Elizabeth settled in Hamilton parish at 74 South Windsor Street in Burnbank where they were enumerated when the census was taken during the night of 5 April 1891. Elizabeth was pregnant with their first child, Jane Loudon Early, who was born on 5 June. Son, Ralph Early, was born 15 February 1893 in Hamilton parish at the same address. Daughter, Catherine White Early, was born on 25 March 1895 in Kirkfieldbank parish at Tillework Cottage. The youngest known child, Elizabeth Hamilton Muir Early, was born on 26 March 1897 Newtown, which was in Lesmahagow parish.

When the 1901 census was taken, Ralph Early lived with this four children in Hamilton. His wife, Elizabeth, was a patient at the Hartwood Asylum in Shotts. The census form indicated she had been a lunatic since birth. Elizabeth died at the asylum on 3 April 1902 of tuberculosis. She was 35 years old at the time of her death. I suspect Elizabeth may have suffered from epilepsy, which due to the seizures, was considered a mental disease at the time.

Ralph married Margaret (Martin) Taylor on 15 July 1902 at his home in Hamilton at 8 Hall Street. She was a widow and her first husband, Robert Taylor, died the previous year. A 1914 government housing report described the housing in which Ralph and Margaret lived as follows:

"This is a scattered group of houses belonging to the United Colleries, Ltd. They are situated on the outskirts of the Quarter district, and consist of 10 one-apartment and 6 two-apartment houses. The houses are very old, and are of a rather mean type. The sanitation and other conveniences can only be described as wretched. We are of the opinion that these houses are wholly unfit for human habitation."

Miners' housing at Low Quarters; courtesy of Scottish Mining Website

Margaret died on 8 January 1904 at their home in Airdrie of chronic bronchitis and cardiac failure. She was 42 years old. Ralph Early died on 4 August 1909 of apoplexy at the poorhouse in Airdrie. He death registration entry said he had been removed to the poorhouse from Hamilton. His mother registered his death. I wondered what became of Ralph and Elizabeth's children, who at the time of his death ranged in age from 18 to 12. I certainly don't have all the answers yet.

The Children

Jane Loudon Early was named for her maternal grandmother. In 1911 she was a patient at the Hartwood Asylum as her mother had been a decade previously. She was listed on the census as a lunatic. She died there 29 August 1913 at 22 years of age of epilepsy. The disease is hereditary and her cause of death made me wonder if her mother, Elizabeth Hamilton (Muir) Early also suffered from the disease.

Ralph Early was named for his paternal grandfather and father. In 1911 he served as a private in the Army Special Reserve at the Hamilton Barracks on Almada Street in Hamilton. I have not been able to find any records about Ralph after 1911.

Catherine White Early was named for her paternal grandmother, who she lived with when the 1911 census was taken. She married Edward Hunter 13 October 1916 in Lesmahagow at the home of her grandmother. Edward was the son of Harry Hunter and Agnes Halliday. He worked in the mines and Catherine worked as a shop assistant at the time of their marriage. I do not yet know if they had children. Catherine died 26 March 1954 in Douglas, Scotland, of polycystic kidney disease. Edward, her widower, still worked as a coal miner.

Elizabeth Hamilton Muir Early was named for her mother. In 1911 she was a boarder in the home of David and Maggie Munro. The home was next door to her aunt and uncle Robert and Janet (Early) Muir. Robert was the brother of Elizabeth's mother and Janet was the sister of her deceased father, Ralph. I have been unable to find Elizabeth after 1911.

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[1] The Early surname was spelled in a variety of ways in the records on ScotlandsPeople, including Airlie, Airley, Earlie, and Earley.

Early-Muir Marriages: Robert Muir (1863-1927) and Janet Early (1868-1939)
Fatal Coal Pit Accident

Early-Muir Marriages: Robert Muir (1863-1927) and Janet Early (1868-1939)

Three children of my three times great uncle, Robert Orr Muir (1839-1917), married siblings. For the next three weeks, I will be exploring the similarities and differences between these three married couples. Each of the men were miners and each of the women were daughters of miners, yet each of the three couples made different choices when it came to immigration -- to stay in Scotland or leave.

The eldest of those three Muir siblings and the first to marry a child of Ralph Early[1] and Catherine McNair White was Robert Muir. He and his wife, Janet Early, also chose to immigrate to the U.S. when they were in their 50s.

The Early-Muir marriages; created using Microsoft PowerPoint

Robert Muir was born on 23 October 1863 in Birkenshaw, a village in Larkhall parish, Scotland, to Robert Orr Muir and Jane Paton Loudon. His father was a coal miner. Not long after Robert's birth, the family moved to Stonehouse where Robert was joined by two younger siblings, John and Elizabeth Hamilton. Between 1868 and 1869 the family moved back to Larkhall, where his mother gave birth to a fourth child. She died six days later of "congestion of the brain," which doctors now believe was scarlet fever or meningitis. Robert's youngest sister, died four months later. Young Robert was just five years old.

His father kept the his children with him and boarded at the home of a widow in Lesmahagow. He married Mary Shaw Watson on 23 June 1871 in Lesmahagow. Mary was the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Rennie) Shaw. She worked as a servant on the Auchenheath Farm and had two illegitimate children. She and Robert's father had nine children of their own during the course of their marriage.

Robert's family continued to move around south Lanarkshire and he joined his father in the mines when he finished his compulsory schooling at age 12. His step-brother, William, was killed in mining accident in 1878 at age 12.

On 13 July 1888, at the age of 24, Robert married Janet Early[1], daughter of Ralph and Catherine McNair (White) Early. She had been born on 29 February 1868 in Dalziel and like Robert her father was a coal miner. He died in 1881 when Janet was 13 and her mother remarried in 1884. Janet worked as a domestic servant at the time of their marriage.

Robert and Janet (Early) Muir had 12 children during the course of their marriage:

1. Robert Orr Muir born 26 July 1889 in Bothwell; died in 1970 in Hove, England; married Katie Kerr Morrison on 29 June 1912 in the Blythswood district of Glasgow
2. Alexander Muir born 9 March 1891 in Lesmahagow; died 7 March 1892 in Bothwell of convulsions
3. Catherine "Katie" White Muir born 26 February 1893 in Lesmahagow; died 3 December 1961 in the Kelvin district of Glasgow; married John Falconer on 25 November 1921 in Dalserf
4. Mary Shaw Muir born 31 March 1895 in Lesmahagow; died in 1969 in Motherwell and Wishaw; married Robert Stewart Struthers on 31 December 1919 in Larkhall
5. John Muir born 10 May 1897 in Lesmahagow; died 19 March 1938 in Larkhall; married Jeanie Hastie Hawthorn on 7 December 1922 in the Blythswood district of Glasgow
6. David Early Muir born 25 December 1898 in Lesmahagow; died 14 March 1900 in Lesmahagow of enteristis, and infectious intestinal disease
7. Nathaniel Muir born 24 June 1900 in Lesmahagow; died in December 1985 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; married Margaret Weir Nixon on 19 June 1925 in Wellsburg, West Virginia
8. Andrew Airlie Muir born 26 August 1902 in Lesmahagow; died on 19 October 1929 in Larkhall 
9. Thomas Muir (twin) born 16 November 1904 in Lesmahagow; died 23 February 1908 in Lesmahagow of measles and pneumonia
10. Ralph Earlie Muir (twin) born 16 November 1904 in Lesmahagow; died in May 1980; married Sarah Ann Roberts 22 October 1932 in Wellsburg, West Virginia
11. James Muir born 19 April 1906 in Lesmahagow; died 20 March 1981in Fulton County, Georgia; married Eleanor Henderson before 1930
12. Alexander McLure Muir born 12 March 1908 in Lesmahagow; died 1989 in Nottingham, England

Robert and Janet's son, John, enlisted in the British Army in 1916 and was called into service in 1917. He was wounded in action on 29 September 1918. 

On 29 August 1923, Robert Muir and his sons, Nathaniel and James, boarded the White Star Line's RMS Olympic in Southampton. They arrived in New York City on 5 September. Their destination was Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, to a cousin of Robert's, also named Robert Muir. He was the son of Robert's uncle, Nathaniel Muir, and had immigrated to the U.S. in 1902.

Robert Muir's declaration of intent to become a naturalized
citizen of the U.S.; courtesy of Ancestry.com

Robert's wife, Janet, and her sons, Andrew, Ralph and Alexander, boarded the Anchor Line's SS California, in Glasgow on 6 January 1925. They arrived in New York on 15 January. They joined Robert, Nathaniel and James in Homestead, Pennsylvania.

Son, Andrew, remained in the U.S. for a year and half before returning to Scotland aboard the Anchor Line's SS Caledonia. He was killed by mining accident in a stone fall. He never married.

Son, Alexander, lived with his brother, James, was unemployed in 1930 when the census was taken. He returned to Scotland on 30 April 1939 aboard the Anchor Line's SS Cameronia. His intended destination was to his sister, Katie's house.

Robert Muir died on 24 December 1927 of apoplexy at his home in Fredericktown, Pennsylvania. He worked as a miner for Clyde Coal Company at the time of his death. He was interred at the Beallsville Cemetery in Beallsville, Pennsylvania. No stone marks his grave. His widow, Janet, lived with her son, James, who had recently married. Janet (Early) Muir died at her home in West Homestead on 21 April 1939 of a coronary occlusion. She was interred at an unknown cemetery in Homestead, Pennsylvania.

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[1] The Early surname was spelled in a variety of ways in the records on ScotlandsPeople, including Airlie, Airley, Earlie, and Earley.

A British Memorial Plaque from the Great War Finds a Home

Today is Remembrance Sunday in the United Kingdom, and I would like to remember the ultimate sacrifice young Joseph Barr made on 11 December 1917 when he died in Palestine during the Great War (now known as World War I.) He was born on 4 January 1897 in Blantyre, Scotland, and was inducted into the British Army on 11 May 1915. Two weeks later, he was shipped to Gallipoli. Joseph served as a private with the 1/8 Cameronians (Scottish Rifles), which was part of 156th Brigade, 52nd (Lowland) Division. They were moved to Eygpt in 1916. The division fought in the battle of Romani and three battles for Gaza before taking Jerusalem. Gen. Edmund Allenby walked into the walled city on 11 December 1917 and reviewed the troops amid much fanfare on the day Joseph Barr died. Joseph Barr was 20 years old and had never married.

In 1919 the British government devised a Next of Kin Memorial Plaque, a bronze medallion approximately 4-1/2 inches in diameter inscribed with the name of someone who died serving with the British and Imperial forces during the war. The plaques were mailed to the next of kin, along with a scroll containing the King's message and a facsimile of his signature. Joseph's sister, Mary Barr, was listed in his informal will as his sole heir and would have received a Next of Kin Memorial Plaque in remembrance of her brother.

Next of Kin Memorial Plaque for Joseph Barr; photograph courtesy of
Bill McLauchlan,

Fast forward to February of this year. I received a Facebook message from the son-in-law of a gentleman named Joe Barr, who asked that I contact his father-in-law. Joe Barr lives in Inverness, Scotland, and is the grandson of a man also named Joseph Barr, who was killed in in 1914 during the Great War. He has his grandfather's Next of Kin Memorial Plaque. But a woman sent him another memorial plaque for a Joseph Barr. Her daughter had won it in primary school as a prize in a competition after lessons about World War I. She sent the plaque to Joe after her daughter's death. After researching all the men named Joseph Barr, Joe concluded this new medallion must be for the Joseph Barr who died in 1917.

Joseph found a blog post I wrote about that Joseph Barr, He Died A Long Way from Home, and wanted to send me the plaque. I was touched, but felt I was not the right person to have the medallion as I was only related to Joseph through a marriage. (He was the stepson of the mother-in-law of a second cousin twice removed.) I promised to search for a closer relative to whom he could give the memorial plaque.

Email from Joe Barr; personal collection

I discovered Joseph Barr was listed in three other public family trees besides my own and the nearest relative was the great grandson of Agnes Laird (Muir) McLauchlan (1876-1935). She was the younger sister of Joseph Barr's mother, Isabella (Muir) Barr (1871-1905). I contacted the owner of the tree and asked him if he would be interested in Next of Kin Memorial Plaque of his 1st cousin twice removed. He responded quickly and said he would be honored.

On 27 February 2018, Bill McLauchlan received the Next of Kin Memorial Plaque for his ancestor Joseph Barr, from Mr. Barr of Inverness, and that's how I was able to play a small part in reuniting medallion to its rightful family. On the day Bill received the medallion, he sent me this message:

Message from Bill McLauchlan; personal collection

In an interesting coincidence, Bill's father also served with the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) during World War II. If by chance you ever find yourself in High Blantyre, Scotland, Joseph Barr's name is on the War Memorial. He was interred in the Kantara War Memorial Cemetery in Eygpt.

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He Died a Long Way from Home

Video about the 314th Engineers During World War I

In 2015 I wrote a post about the World War I experiences of my first cousin twice removed, Alexander Hutchison entitled "An American's Experience During World War I." Alex served with the 314th Engineers, which were attached to the 89th Division. His parents, Alexander Hutchison and Janet "Jessie" Semple, had immigrated from Scotland; married in Streator, Illinois; returned to Scotland when Alex was three years old; and came back to the U.S. nine years later, settling in Novinger, Missouri.

Alex Hutchison was inducted into the U.S. Army on 2 April 1918, trained at Camp Funston in Kansas, was sent overseas on 12 June 1918, and was honorably discharged on 26 May 1919. During the war his division participated in the St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne offensives.

Recently, I was contacted by Susan Barrett Price. Her grandfather, Walter Price, also served with the 314th Engineers. Susan produced a video of his World War I experience and graciously allowed me to share it on my blog.

Thank you, Susan!

The book Susan mentioned in her video, American Armies and Battlefields in Europe may be downloaded from the Center of Military History (CMH). Other helpful CMH publications about World War I may be found here.

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An American's Experience During World War I

Rewriting the Biographical Sketch about John Riddell (1877-1975)

I first wrote the biographical sketch about John Riddell in 2014 for the multi-volume book I am writing about the descendants of Robert Muir (c1800-1869), my three times great grandfather. John Riddell was one of his great grandsons. (John Ridell >> John Ridell >> Martha Muir >> Robert Muir)

John was born on 26 April 1877 in the village of Kirkton, East Kilbride to John and Helen (Bain) Riddell.  He was their third child, but only his sister, Margaret, was still living at the time of his birth. She had been born in 1875 and in 1876 his mother had a premature baby girl who died the same day she was born. When John was 14 months old, his mother had David Riddell in 1878, but he died of tuberculosis at the age of four months. In 1879 a son, Robert Riddell, was born.

In 1881 the family remained of village East Kilbride where his father worked as an agricultural laborer. However, by 1885 the John's family had moved to Cambuslang Parish where his parents rented a house at 12 Silverbanks Row. When the 1891 census was enumerated the family lived in Vicarfield Terrace in the village of Cambuslang.

At the age of 13, John was already working in the coal mines. His father died in 1897 and by 1901 John, his mother, and brother, Robert, were living in the village of Bishopbriggs, in Cadder Parish. Also living with them was a 5 year-old granddaughter of John's mother, named Ellen. John and Robert were listed as being single. My assumption is Ellen was the illegitimate child of John's older sister Margaret, but I can find no registration record for the child's birth.

On 6 October 1904, John Riddell and his friend, Thomas Sorbie, boarded the Anchor Line's S/S Furnessia. They traveled in the steerage section and landed in New York on 18 October. Both John and Thomas were miners. John lived in Glenboig before leaving Scotland and Thomas had lived in Dalserf.  Thomas Sorbie's parents were John and Margaret (Hamilton) Sorbie. Interestingly, John Riddell's grand uncle, Thomas Muir's first wife was a Sorbie, Janet Sorbie (1844-1870). Perhaps Thomas Sorbie was a cousin of John's.

Anchor Line's S/S Furnessia; photograph courtesy of ClydeSite

When they arrived in New York, they told U.S. immigration officials their destination was Imperial, Pennsylvania. Imperial was in Allegheny County about 17 miles west of Pittsburgh. Underground was the northern tip of the Pittsburgh coal seam, the thickest and most extensive bed of coal in the Appalachian Basin.

During first decade of the 1900s, when John Riddell and Thomas Sorbie arrived in Imperial, mining companies were sinking new mines at a rapid pace. The growth of mining was so massive and so intertwined with coke production for the iron and steel industry that the era was called the "Golden Age of King Coal, Queen Coke, and Princess Steel." By 1910, however, the golden age was fading, new coke production technology used a lower quality of coal than that of the Pittsburgh seam, which greatly reduced demand.

Pittsburgh coal seam; map courtesy of Wikipedia

Regardless of the reasons why John Riddell left Imperial, he was not there when the 1910 U.S. federal census was enumerated and has not been found in any U.S. documentation after his arrival.

The Rest of the Story

And the rest of John's life remained a mystery until a few weeks ago when a DNA match provided his year and place of death.

It seems the United States didn't suit John for whatever reason and he likely returned to the United Kingdom aboard the Cunard Steamship Company's RMS Campania, arriving in Liverpool on 10 March 1906. He only stayed a few months before immigrating to New Zealand aboard the New Zealand Shipping Company's SS Tongariro, which departed London on 9 August 1906 bound for Wellington. The voyage would have taken 30 to 40 days.

In 1908 John's widowed mother, Helen (Bain) Riddell and brother Robert joined John in New Zealand.

In 1910, John married Amy Alberta Roberts, who was born in 1882 in Bolton, England, to Jessie Alberta Roberts. Amy's mother married John Linihin five years after her birth. In 1901 the Linihin family was enumerated in Farnworth, England, where Amy's step-father worked as a coal miner. They immigrated in 1905.

John's mother died in 1914 and Amy's mother in 1924. John's brother, Robert, died in 1961.

John and Amy lived their lives in Auckland, New Zealand, and had four children, though one was born stillborn in 1915. Amy died on 22 January 1957 and was interred at the Waikumete Cemetery in Glen Eden. John lived to be 98 years old and died on 13 August 1975. He was interred beside his wife.

The children:

1. Jessie Bain Riddell born 13 May 1911 in Auckland; died 15 May 2011; married David William Storey in 1935.
2. Margaret Alberta Riddell born 16 February 1918; died 15 January 2002; married George William Allan Laird in 1941.
3. John "Jack" Victor Riddell born 18 Aug 1920; died 31 July 2015; married Lennox "Lyn" Blanche Jones.

DNA

A new DNA match provided enough clues to find my "lost" second cousin twice removed. And sometimes one more clue is just what you need to continue your research:

Family tree attached to my new DNA match; courtesy of Ancestry.com

The tree attached to my new DNA match said John Riddell was born in April in East Kilbride, Scotland, and died in 1975 in Auckland, New Zealand. I had a John Riddell born in April 1877 in East Kilbride. Could they be the same person? I suspected they were as his daughter's middle name was Bain and that was his mother's maiden name. After hours of research, I know the end of John Riddell's story.

Now if I could just find John's missing sister, Margaret Riddell! She's the only one in the family who is still "lost." Margaret was born on 18 January 1875 in East Kilbride, Scotland, and was enumerated in the 1881 and 1891 census with her family. If anyone knows her story, please contact me.

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John Riddell (1877-Unknown)

Descendants of Robert Muir (c1800-1869), Volume II: Descendants of John and Martha (Muir) Riddell

52 Ancestors #31: Alice (Muir) Jennings (1906-1993): Grandma Jennings

Ancestor: Alice (Muir) Jennings, grandmother

Alice Muir was born on 16 March 1906 in Novinger, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin. She was their second and last child as her mother died of tuberculosis in 1909. Alice was born blind in her left eye, having a detached retina. In 1910 newly widowed Robert Muir lived in Nineveh, Missouri, with his two young children -- Henry and Alice. The children's paternal grandmother, Margaret (Semple) Muir and her youngest daughter, lived next door.

Alice's father remarried in 1911 and Alice and Henry were sent to live with their grandmother, Margaret Muir, while their father raised a new family in East St. Louis, Illinois, and he worked in nearby coal mines. Robert Muir moved his family to West Virginia some time before 1920 as one of his daughters was born there that year.

When the 1920 census was enumerated, Alice continued to live with her grandmother in Nineveh, but her brother had left and joined his father in West Virginia. Grandmother Muir died on 31 May 1920 three days after an operation. At the age of 14 Alice Muir was on her own. She lived for brief periods of time with various Muir aunts and uncles.

According to an article in the Troy Call, she attended the fifth annual Riggin family reunion held at her maternal grandmother, Clementine (Wells) Riggin Collins' home on 19 August 1921 in Troy, Illinois. Eventually, she made her way to West Virginia, and worked with a family as a maid/governess in War. There she met Marvin Edward Jennings, a clerk with the Norfolk & Western Railroad. They met at a silent movie. Alice was reading the movie to her employer's young son and Marvin and his friends sat behind Alice and mimicked her during the movie.

Marvin and Alice dated for a few months but eventually Alice moved back to East St. Louis. When she discovered she was pregnant, Marvin quit his job with the railroad, traveled to Illinois, and married her on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis.

Alice Muir standing on the station platform of the East St. and Suburban
Railway, which was an electric commuter train, circa 1925; personal
collection

Their daughter Pearl was born on 19 September 1924 but died a few months later on 30 December 1924. The coupled lived at 870 North 80th Street in East St. Louis, just a few houses away from a house her father owned. Her husband worked for the Illinois Central Railroad Company.

Marvin and Alice's oldest son was born in 1927. Alice, my grandmother, used to say after Uncle Marvin was born, she was unable to get pregnant and went to a doctor in St. Louis. He told her that her womb was twisted. So she went every week for 26 treatments, which apparently consisted of untwisting her womb a little bit at a time. Two months after her last treatment, she was pregnant. Their youngest son was born in 1931.

Marvin and Alice (Muir) Jennings with their sons; personal
collection

When the Depression struck, Marvin Jennings lost his job with the railroad. He did odd jobs to make a little money but the family was on Relief for a period of time. In 1941, Marvin took a job with the federal government and the family moved to Washington, DC, where they lived for a year before buying a house in Arlington County, Virginia.

Marvin Jennings died in 1961. Alice was left with a mortgage and a $1,000 in the bank. She got a job as an accounting clerk with the U.S. Navy and worked on expense reports submitted by Naval officers. However, to get to work, she had to buy a car and learn to drive. My father, her youngest son, always said teaching her was quite an experience.

Alice sold the family home and lived in a series of apartments until she retired. She and Marvin had bought a fishing shack on a tidal creek of the Chesapeake Bay in Deale Beach, Maryland, just before his death. Her youngest son, winterized it and built an addition, and she retired there.  She also began wintering in Saint Petersburg, Florida. When her sons moved to North Carolina, building homes next door to each other, Alice bought a mobile home and had it placed on their property, living there until her death.

Alice (Muir) Jennings died on 14 December 1993 of a cerebrovascular accident in Pamilco County at Britt Haven Nursing Home, where she had been treated for two months prior to her death. She was interred beside her husband at National Memorial Park in Falls Church, Virginia.

Alice and her husband were active in the Odd Fellows and the Daughters of Rebekah lodge organizations and both held offices in their local chapters. After her retirement, Alice indulged her love of travel visiting Europe several times, the Middle East, Hawaii, and took several cruises.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Oldest," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Alice (Muir) Jennings, is Ancestor number 5 on my family tree:

5 Alice Muir was born on 16 March 1906 in Novinger, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin; died on 14 December 1993 in Alliance, North Carolina; married Marvin Edward Jennings on 13 May 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois.

5.1 Pearl Marie Jennings born 19 September 1924 in East St. Louis, Missouri; died 30 December 1924 in East St. Louis.

5.2 Marvin Edward Jennings, Jr. born 23 July 1927 in East St. Louis, Missouri; married Rachel Mildred Lange, daughter of Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin, on 5 April 1952 in Arlington County, Virginia.

2 Charles Theodore Jennings born 14 December 1931 in Centreville, Illinois; married Dorothy Ailein Lange, daughter of Gustav Lange and Wilhelmina Schalin, on 15 November 1957 in Arlington County, Virginia.

________________
'Alice Muir at train station,' personal collection
1910 Federal Census, Census Place: O'Fallon, Saint Clair, Illinois; Roll: T624_323; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0155; Image: 641; FHL microfilm: 1374336
1920 Federal Census, Census Place: Nineveh, Adair, Missouri; Roll: T-625_902; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 17; Image: 330
1930 Federal Census, Census Place: East St Louis, St Clair, Illinois; Roll: 557; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 61; Image: 55.0; FHL microfilm: 2340292
1940 Federal Census, Census Place: Signal Hill, St Clair, Illinois; Roll: T627_879; Page: 19B; Enumeration District: 82-35
Global, Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, 1993 Alice Jennings
Riggin Family Reunion, Troy Weekly Call, 25 August 1929
Riggin Family Reunion, Edwardsville Intelligencer, 8 August 1948
Social News Notes, Troy Call, 19 August 1921
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1926 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1928 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, City Directories, 1822-1939, 1930 East St Louis, Illinois (Alice Jennings)
US, Illinois Marriage License,  No. H-11915
US, Illinois Marriage License 1924 Jennings, Marvin - Muir, Alice
US, Missouri Delayed or Special Certificate of Birth, No. 524307
US, North Carolina, Certificate of Death 060-482
US, North Carolina, Certificate of Death, Book 26, Page 181
US, North Carolina Death Index, 1908-2004, Deaths: 1993-96
US, Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume I, 1993 Arapahoe, North Carolina (Alice M Jennings)
US, Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume II, Alice M Jennings (St Petersburg, Florida)
US, Virginia, Find A Grave Index, 1607-2012, 1993 Alice M Jennings

52 Ancestors #30: Robert Muir (1875-1956): Union Mine Organizer?

Ancestor: Robert Muir, Great Grandfather
Haplogroup: Unknown

Robert Muir was born on 16 March 1875 in Swinhill in the parish of Dalserf, Scotland to James and Margaret (Semple) Muir. He was the couple's second child together but their oldest son had died the previous year. When the 1881 census was enumerated Robert lived with his mother at the farm of his maternal grandparents, Peter and Janet (Torrance) Semple. His father was not at the home when the census was taken.

Remains of Robert Muir's Sottish birth registration; personal collection

In June of 1887 James Muir immigrated to the United States. Margaret followed later that year with their living children.  They arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 30 September 1887 aboard the Allen Line's S/S Manitoban. The ship had sailed from Glasgow, Scotland, and made a brief stop in Ireland before reaching Philadelphia. Margaret, Robert, and his siblings likely took the train to Streator, Illinois, where James worked as a coal miner. Robert Muir became a naturalized United citizen on 10 October 1896 at the Livingston County Courthourse.

In 1900 he lived with his mother and two younger brothers in Reading, Illinois, where he worked as a coal miner beside his brother Peter. Each had been unemployed for six months during the previous year.

He and Ida Mae Riggin applied for a marriage license on 12 October 1902 in Collinsville, Illinois, and were married shortly thereafter. They lived in Troy for about a year after their marriage; then moved to Novinger, Missouri, where they were living when Robert's cousin, Peter Muir, listed him as his contact when he arrived in the United States in 1903. They moved to O'Fallon, Illinois, just before Ida Mae (Riggin) Muir died in 1909. The couple had two children, Henry and Alice.

In 1910 Robert and his two young children lived in O'Fallon, Illinois, next door to his mother. I imagine she helped care for his children as they were not yet school aged.

On 26 September 1911 Robert married Elizabeth "Liz" Fausz in St. Louis. They both claimed to be over 18 years old and that was certainly the case with Robert, but Liz was only 17 and pregnant. When Robert was required to register for the World War I draft in 1918, the family lived in the Edgemont Station area of East St. Louis, Illinois. Robert's appearance was described as being of medium height and stout build with blue eyes and partially gray hair. He and Liz had four children together. All but Henrietta was born in Illinois.

Robert was not enumerated in the 1920, 1930, and 1940 U.S. federal census. However, he was listed in the East St. Louis city directories between 1924 and 1930. He owned a home on 436 North 80th Street.

His daughter, Alice, my grandmother, always said her father was a union organizer and traveled frequently to coal mines across the country trying to get the workers to unionize. She said he'd been blackballed from several mines, threatened and even shot at. I always thought these stories were fantasies of a young girl who didn't know her father very well. However, not finding him in so many census records makes me wonder.

Robert Muir applied for the new Social Security insurance program on 4 December 1936. At the time he submitted his application he lived in Iaeger, West Virginia, and worked for the Pocahontas Red Bird Mining Co.

Social Security application with Robert Muir's signature; personal
collection

He divorced Liz some time before 1940. When he retired from mining, some time after 1942, he bought a small piece of property along a river in Van Buren County, Tennessee. On that property he lived in an abandoned bus.

Robert Muir's Coal Miner's Certificate from the West Virginia
Department of Mines; personal collection

He was hospitalized in September 1956 while in southwest Virginia visiting his family. He died on 23 September 1956 at the Clinch Valley Clinic Hospital in Richlands, Virginia, of a cerebral hemorrhage due to hypertensive cardiovascular disease. He was 81 years old at the time of his death and was interred at Iaeger Memorial Cemetery in Roderfield, West Virginia.

Robert Muir died without a will. His real and personal property was auctioned off in two separate sales on 11 October and 15 November 1956. When his estate was settled in 1957, each of his six children received $310.52.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Colorful," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Robert Muir, is Ancestor number 10 on my family tree:

10 Robert Muir born 16 March 1875 in Swinhill, Dalserf, Lanarkshire, Scotland, to James Muir and Margaret Semple; died on 23 September 1956 in Richlands, Virginia; married 1) Ida Mae Riggin, daughter of John Wesley Riggin and Clementine Wells, on 12 October 1902 in Collinsville, Illinois, and 2) Elizabeth "Liz" Fausz, daughter of Peter Fausz and Margaret Dietrich, on 26 September 1911 in St. Louis, Missouri (divorced)

10.1 Henry "Jack" Muir born 29 May 1903 in Adair County, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin; died 24 May 1986 in Gretna, Louisiana; married 1) Mary Frances Canterberry, daughter of Howard Canterberry and Nancy Robertson on 3 July 1921 in Walls Creek, West Virginia, (divorced) 2) Armitar Ormmueth Alleman, daughter of Arrestide Alleman and Alice Istre, on 24 February 1930 in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, (divorced) 3) Eppa "Eppie" (Swan) Childs Swafford, daughter of William Henry Swan and Edna Sarah Norvell, before 1953, likely in Louisiana, and 4) Edith Mary (Davenport) Samples in May 1979 in St. Bernard Parish.

5 Alice Muir born 16 March 1906 in Novinger, Missouri, to Robert Muir and Ida Mae Riggin; died 14 December 1993 in Pamlico County, North Carolina; married Marvin Edward Jennings, son of Charles Edward Jennings and Effie Beard, on 13 May 1924.

10.3 Robert Muir, Jr. born 7 January 1912 in O'Fallon, Illinois, to Robert Muir and Elizabeth Fausz; died 22 February 1959 in Welch, West Virginia; married 1) Sadie Viola Cline, daughter of John Estil Cline and Maude Rasnake, on 1 November 1930 in Russell County, Virginia, (divorced) and 2) a woman named Carrie after 1949.

10.4 Verna Muir born 3 July 1917 in Illinois to Robert Muir and Elizabeth Fausz; died 18 April 2010 in Ravenswood, West Virginia; married Franz "Frank" Burglechner, son of Unknown Burglechner and Maria "Mary" Miller, before 1935.

10.5 Henrietta Muir born 14 January 1920 in Tralee, West Virginia to Robert Muir and Elizabeth Fausz; died 23 February 2008 in Eglin, Illinois.

10.6 Margaret Elizabeth Muir born 26 September 1924 in East St. Louis, Illinois, to Robert Muir and Elizabeth Fausz; died 14 June 1988 in Richlands, Virginia; married Cecil Roy Hess, son of Charles Robert Hess and Jessie Mae Fitzgerald, on 24 October 1942 in Buchanan County, Virginia (divorced).

_________________
'Remains of Robert Muir's Scottish Birth Registration,' personal collection
'Robert Muir's Coal Miner's Certificate,' personal collection
'Social Security Application,' personal collection
1881 Scotland Census, 03/04/1881 Semple, Peter (Census 1881 638/02 002/00 018)
1900 US Federal Census, Census Place: Reading, Livingston, Illinois; Roll: 318; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 0114; FHL microfilm number: 1240318
1910 US Federal Census, Census Place: O'Fallon, St Clair, Illinois; Roll: T624_323; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 0155; Image: 641; FHL microfilm: 1374336
Alice (Muir) Jennings' Genealogy Notebook, page 4, 8
Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1855-2013, 1875 Muir, Robert (Statutory Births 638/02 0037)
US, City Directories, 1821-1989, 1924 East St. Louis, IL (Muir, Robert)
US, City Directories, 1821-1989, 1926 East St. Louis, IL (Muir, Robert)
US, City Directories, 1821-1989, 1928 East St. Louis, IL (Muir, Robert)
US, City Directories, 1821-1989, 1930 East St. Louis, IL (Muir, Robert)
US, Illinois, Livingston County Court, Naturalization Application, 10 Oct 1896
US, Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002, 1911 Muir, Robert - Fausz, Elizabeth
US, Pennsylvania, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1800-1963, 1887 Muir, Robert
US, Social Security Application, Number: 235-10-9644
US, Social Security Card, Number 235-10-9644, State: West Virginia
US, Tennessee, Van Buren County Court Administrator, Settlement of and with C. C. Greer, Administrator, 27 Jun 1957
US, Tennessee, Van Buren County Court Administrator, Goods and Chattels Sale, 11 Oct 1956
US, Tennessee, Van Buren County Court Administrator Estate Sale, 11 Nov 1956
US, Virginia, Death Certificate 1956, Muir, Robert, No. 22810
US, West Virginia, Department of Mines, Coal Miner's Certificate No. 93665
US, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, State: Illinois; County: St. Clair; Roll: 1614579; Draft Board: 1

52 Ancestors #29: James Muir (1848-1926): Scoundrel

Ancestor Name: James Muir, great great grandfather
Haplogroup: Unknown

James Muir was likely the twelfth child of Robert and Henrietta (Brown) Muir. No parish church record exists for his birth. His birthday, 13 June, is listed on his death certificate and in my Grandmother's genealogy notebook. The birth year is more confusing. My Grandmother believed it was 1847. James' second wife believed it was 1845. I have settled on 1848. The closest record to his birth is the 1851 Scotland Census. That census was enumerated on the night of 30-31 March, which would make James Muir 2 years old, and that is his age as recorded on the census. He would turn three in June, hence 1848 as his year of birth.

When the 1851 Scotland census was enumerated, he was living with several siblings in Kirkton village, but his parents were not at home the night the census was taken. It is likely his mother had died by this time. We know she died before 1856.

Ten years later, James was living at 2 Birkenshaw in Larkhall with his father and several siblings. He was 13 and already working full-time in the coal mines. His father was no longer working in the mines but his older brothers still living at home were also miners. I have been unable to definitively locate James Muir in the 1871 census.

He married Margaret Semple on 4 Jul 1873 in Swinhill, Dalserf, Lanarkshire. She was the single mother of a young girl named Janet "Jessie" Semple. Margaret was pregnant with their first child at the time of their marriage, and that child was born on 4 October 1873. Their first son was named Robert Muir, after his paternal grandfather. Sadly, little Robert died on 25 January 1874 of hydrocephalus, which is the build up of too much cerebrospinal fluid in the brain. It is commonly called "water on the brain."

Parish church in Dalserf; photograph commissioned by me and taken by
Andrew Scorgie in 2013

My great grandfather also named Robert Muir was born on 16 March 1875. After my great grandfather, six more children were born in Scotland:

• Peter Semple Muir (14 February 1877 -- 23 March 1877)
• Peter Semple Muir (5 July 1878 -- 8 September 1878)
• Peter Muir (12 July 1879 -- 23 July 1879)
• Henrietta Brown Muir (29 July 1882 -- 9 January 1884)
• Margaret "Maggie" Muir (6 May 1884 -- 29 August 1966)
• Peter Semple Muir (3 February 1886 -- 30 October 1947)

Peter Semple was Margaret's father's name and naming a child in his honor was obviously important to her.

On 27 May 1887 James boarded the Anchor Line steamship Ethiopia in Glasgow and sailed to the United States. He arrived in New York City on the 6th of June and traveled to Streator, Illinois. Because the 1890 census was destroyed by fire, I do not know if he had relatives or friends who had already immigrated and settled in Streator or if he saw advertisements for Streator at the train station. 

James' wife, Margaret, and the living children followed him to Illinois, arriving in the U.S. on 30 September 1887. Margaret's daughter, Jessie, also traveled with her mother and half-siblings.  Margaret and James had two more children in Illinois: Alexander Muir (13 May 1889 -- 6 May 1957) and Jane "Janie" Muir (29 November 1894 -- 23 January 1990).

In 1900 James was living in Mystic, Iowa, a lodger at the home of Mrs. Margaret Greenbank. Appanoose was described as "one continuous mining camp" when James arrived. He claimed he was divorced. His wife, Margaret (Semple) Muir, however, was living in Reading, Illinois. According to her census records, she still believed she was married.

James married Margaret (McIntosh) Greenbank on 9 January 1913 in Princeton, Missouri. Princeton is in Mercer County, Missouri, which borders Iowa. I am left wondering after looking at the map, if Mercer County was a "Gretna Green" county, meaning it was possible to get a quickie marriage. Or perhaps county officials didn't look too closely at your documentation. I've found no evidence that James Muir actually divorced his first wife, nor can I find any evidence that Margaret Greenbank was divorced from her husband, Thomas, who was still alive, though living in the Mount Pleasant Hospital for the Insane.

Proximity of Appanoose County to Mercer County; image courtesy of
FamilySearch.org

I have not found James in the 1910 census. When the 1915 Iowa state census was taken, James claimed he had lived in Iowa since 1895. If that is true, then he left his first wife when their youngest child was barely a year old. In 1920 he lived in Nineveh, Missouri, and was a boarder in the home of Mrs. Ida Logsdon. Her home was very close to the home James' first wife and the home of their daughter, Maggie, and her husband, Robert Caswell.

The 1925 Iowa state census indicated James was still married and back in Mystic, Iowa, and lived with his second wife. At the time two of Margaret's sons by her first husband also lived in the home as well as 11-year-old Robert H. Muir, who was listed as a grandson. I believe he was actually the son of Ethel Greenbank, one of Margaret's daughters by her first husband. James Muir did have a grandson named Robert Muir, Jr. He was born in 1912 so it is possible he was living with his grandfather in 1925 though I do not know why this would be.

James Muir died on 18 March 1926 at his home in Mystic of arteo-sclerosis and chronic bronchitis at the ripe old age of 81. He was miner, retired from the Egypt Coal Company. He was interred in Highland Cemetery in Mystic on 20 March 1926. His second wife was the informant listed on the death certificate. She is also buried in Highland Cemetery.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Music," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, James Muir, is Ancestor number 20 on my family tree:

20 James Muir born 13 June 1848 in East Kilbride, Scotland; died 18 March 1926 in Mystic, Iowa; married 1) Margaret Semple, daughter of Peter Semple and Janet Torrance, on 4 July 1873 in Dalserf, Scotland, and 2) Margaret (McIntosh) Greenbank, daughter of William Keir McIntosh and Christian Brown and wife of Thomas Greenbank, on 9 January 1913 in Princeton, Missouri. Interred at Highland Cemetery in Mystic, Iowa.

20.1 Robert Muir born 4 October 1873 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 25 January 1874 in Dalserf.

10 Robert Muir born 16 March 1875 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 23 September 1956 in Richlands, Virginia; married 1) Ida Mae Riggin, daughter of John Wesley Riggin and Clementine Wells, on 12 October 1902 in Collinsville, Illinois, and 2) Elizabeth Fausz, daughter of Peter Fausz and Margaret Dietrich on 26 September 1911 in St. Louis, Missouri (divorced between 1930 and 1940).

20.2 Peter Semple Muir born 14 February 1877 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 23 March 1877 in Dalserf.

20.3 Peter Semple Muir born 5 July 1878 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 8 September 1878 in Lesmahagow, Scotland

20.4 Peter Muir born 12 July 1879 in Lesmahagow, Scotland; died 23 July 1879 in Lesmahagow.

20.5 Henrietta Brown Muir born 29 July 1882 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 9 January 1884 in Dalserf.

20.6 Margaret "Maggie" Muir born 6 May 1884 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 29 August 1966 likely in Vermilion County, Illinois; married Robert Caswell, son of John Caswell and Elizabeth Russell, on 3 August 1902 in St. Joseph, Michigan.

20.7 Peter Semple Muir born 3 February 1886 in Dalserf, Scotlankd; died 30 October 1947 in Detroit, Michigan; married Mame Zebio, daughter of Louis Zebio and Mary Frey, on 1 July 1908, according to my grandmother's genealogy notebook.

20.8 Alexander Muir born 13 May 1889 in Streator, Illinois; died 6 May 1957 in Seattle, Washington; married Bertha I. Cloren, daughter of John Patrick Cloren and Janet Ann Milnes on 13 June 1914 in Adair County, Missouri.

20.9 Jane "Janie" Muir born 29 November 1894 in Reading, Illinois; died 23 January 1990 in Centralia, Washington; married Herbert Bartist Beck, son of John B. Beck and Christina Beyerle, on 20 Jun 1912, according to my grandmother's genealogy notebook.

Margaret Semple had a daughter, whose father is unknown, before she marred James Muir. Jessie was raised as part of the Muir family.

20.10 Janet "Jessie" Semple born 25 November 1871 in Dalserf, Scotland; died 23 February 1942 in Adair County, Missouri; married Alexander Hutchison, son of Alexander Hutchison and Lilias Ewings, on 2 January 1889 in Streator, Illinois.

_______________

Sources:

Alice (Muir) Jennings Genealogy Notebook, undated, personal collection
'Dalserf Parish Church,' personal collection
'Iowa and Missouri Counties' map, FamilySearch
1851 Scotland Census, Parish: East Kilbride; ED: 15; Page: 17; Line: 2; Roll: CSSCT1851_152
1851 Scotland Census, 30/03/1851 Muir, Elisabeth (Census 1851 643/00 015/00 016)
1861 Scotland Census, Parish: Dalserf; ED: 6; Page: 34; Line: 18; Roll: CSSCT1861_95
1861 Scotland Census, 07/04/1861 Muir, Robert (Census 1861 638/01 006/00 034)
1900 U.S. Federal Census, Census Place: Mystic, Appanoose, Iowa; Roll: 416; Page: 18A; Enumeration District: 0024; FHL microfilm: 1240416
1920 U.S. Federal Census, Census Place: Nineveh, Adair, Missouri; Roll: T625_902; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 17; Image 329
Global, Find A Grave, 144021172
Scotland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950, 1873 Muir, James (father)
Scotland, Select Marriages, 1561-1910, 1873 Muir, James - Semple, Margaret
Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1855-2013, 1873 Muir, James - Semple, Margaret (Statutory Marriages 638/02 0011)
U.S., Iowa Gazetteer, Appanoose County, page 93
U.S., Iowa Select Deaths and Burials, 1850-1990, 4-1537
U.S., Iowa Census Collection, 1836-1925, 1925 Muir, James
U.S., Iowa Census Collection, 1836-1925, Card No. A239
U.S., Iowa, Certificate of Death, 1926, Muir, James, 4-1537
U.S., Missouri Marriage License, 1913, Muir, James - Greenbank, Margaret, 4850
U.S., Missouri Marriage Records, 1805-2002, License No. 4850
U.S., New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1857, Year 1887, Muir, James
U.S., Washington, Select Death Certificates, 1907-1960, Muir, James (father)

52 Ancestors #28: Robert Muir (c1800-1869): Coal Hewer

Ancestor: Robert Muir
DNA Haplogroup: Unknown

Robert Muir was born about 1800 in Ireland; and, according to his death registration, his father's name was James Moore.  From other records, we know Robert Muir was not Catholic so this may be his baptismal record. Much more research needs to be accomplished to prove it is correct.

Possible baptismal record from Roots Ireland

Robert came to Scotland sometime before 1828 when he married Henrietta Brown on 28 January in Avondale parish, Lanarkshire. Robert and Henrietta had 13 known children, eight of which lived to marry and have children of their own. Two of their children, Henrietta and James emigrated from Scotland to other countries after marrying. Henrietta, her husband and children went to Australia and were early settlers of Bundaberg, Queensland. James Muir, his wife and family settled in the United States and lived in several coal “patches” in Illinois and Missouri. At this time, not much is known about Robert and Henrietta's first-born child and first son, William Muir.

In 1854 the Registration of Births Deaths and Marriages (Scotland) Act was enacted. The law required compulsory registration of births, deaths and marriages at the local parish registrar beginning on 1 January 1855.  Previously, families recorded these significant events at the established Church of Scotland or at their Roman Catholic parish. Many of these pre-1855 records have been lost over time, as they were not required to be sent to any type central repository. This has made tracing Robert Muir and his family somewhat challenging. 

Lanark county, or Lanarkshire, is the area of Scotland in which Robert Muir settled. It was in the central lowlands and was traditionally the most populous shire in the country. From the mid-18^th century to the early 20^th century Lanarkshire benefited from its rich seams of coal. So it’s no surprise the Muirs were mostly miners. Robert’s occupation is only mentioned in four records: on his daughters’ 1830 and 1834 birth registration entries, he is listed as “coal hewer” and “coal cutter;” "coal cutter" again on the 1841 census, and on the 1861 census, his occupation is “formerly coal miner.”

Coal Mining

Coal had been mined in Scotland since 1210 when monks at Prestongrange were granted the right to quarry it. During Reformation the mines passed out of control of the church and were owned by landowners. The Act of 1606 bound all miners to the mines and gave coal masters the right to “apprehend all vagabonds and sturdy beggars to be put to labor.” In 1641 the restrictions were extended to those who worked at the surface of the mine. The Act of 1775 freed miners after a period of 3 to 10 years. Four years later, the Emancipation Act was enacted and declared miners free of servitude.  In 1842 the Mines Act prohibited children under 10 and women from working in the mines.

Children were mostly educated in schools run by the established Church of Scotland. However, by 1847 the Free Church claimed over 44,000 children were being taught in their schools. Education did not become compulsory for children aged 5 to 13, however, until 1872.  Robert and Henrietta’s children could not read or write and signed legal documents by making their mark. Most of their children received at least some education and were literate.

1845 Map of Lanarkshire, Scotland, from the Statistical
Account of Lanarkshire published in 1841

Robert Muir and his family lived in Avondale, Glassford, East Kilbride and Larkhall parishes -- all in Lanark county. The family moved to East Kilbride by 1837 and eight of Robert's youngest children were born there. The town is located about 8 miles southeast of Glasgow in the Scottish Lowlands.

East Kilbride

The earliest evidence of habitation are ancient graves near a local river and Roman coins and footwear have also been found. The town takes its name from St. Bride, an Irish saint, who founded a monastery for nuns and monks in Kildare, Ireland.

In 1836, about 960 people lived in the town and most of them were considered very poor. Rev. Henry Moncrief, one of the contributors to the Statistical Account of Lanarkshire, which was published in 1841, wrote that:

"A considerable portion of the people are very poor. This is particularly the case in the village of Kilbride where there is a number of weavers, but no regular manufactory to keep the people in employment. In the rural parts, the population are generally comfortable, industrious, contented, and influenced by the religious habits of their forefathers. There are many persons in the villages of excellent character, both intellectually, morally, and religiously. Poaching in game, it is to be feared, used to be prevalent, but is not so now."

The average wage for a general laborer was about 10 to 12 shillings a week. Men who worked in East Kilbride's many limestone quarries may have earned a little more. Sixteen pecks of potatoes cost 16 shillings in 1840.

According to Rev. Moncrief, there was a parish library and a subscription library. There were three district parochial schools in the parish and a "very excellent school in Maxwellton, supported by the liberality of Sir William Maxwell. In all the schools, ordinary branches are taught. Some of the modern improvements have been introduced, with great advantage, into Sir William Maxwell's school."

The parish also had a savings' bank, which was connected with the Glasgow National Security Savings Bank. There were 19 inns and public houses, which Rev. Moncrief thought "prejudicial to the morals of the people."

East Kilbride Old Parish Church; photograph
courtesy of the Scottish War Memorials Project

The original parish church had been built on the site of a pre-Christian well. The current church was built in 1774 near the original site. It was the church in which Robert and Henrietta's children were baptized. 

On 30 Mar 1851 when the census was enumerated, Robert and Henrietta’s children were living in East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, but their parents were not in the home at the time. It is possible Henrietta was sick, perhaps she never fully recovered from Nathaniel’s birth, and was in a hospital. This is merely supposition on my part.

Robert and Henrietta's daughter, Jean Muir, who was born in 1837 died on 19 August 1856. Her death registration indicated that her mother was deceased. Henrietta's youngest son, Nathaniel, had been born in December 1850; so Henrietta died sometime between December 1850 and 19 August 1856.

Robert Muir was enumerated as a widower in 1861 in the parish of Dalserf and had formerly been a coal miner. Six of his children lived with him. His daughter Henrietta worked as a servant and the five sons living with him worked in the coal mines, even Nathaniel who was 10 years old at the time the household was enumerated.

Robert Muir died on 20 April 1869 in Stonhouse, Scotland, of heart palpitations and chronic bronchitis. His son registered his death with the civil authorities and stated that his father's name was James Muir and his mother's name was unknown.

Which Robert Muir?

Another Robert Muir was born about 1801-1803 in Ayrshire, Scotland. Many, many public trees indicate that Robert Muir is the same person who married Henrietta Brown. I do not agree. Though records are scarce, the 1841 and 1861 census are consistent. The 1841 census stated Robert Muir was foreign born, which included England or Ireland. The 1861 census indicated he was born in Ireland. I believe this misidentification has occurred because there a photograph of the Robert Muir, born in Ayrshire, exists.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Travel," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Robert Muir, is Ancestor number 40 on my family tree:

40 Robert Muir was born in Ireland about 1800 to James Muir and an unknown woman; died 20 April 1869 in Stonehouse, South Lanarkshire, Scotland; married Henrietta Brown on 26 January 1828 in Avondale, South Lanarkshire, Scotland.

40.1 William Muir, born about 1826 (no more is known about this child at this time)

40.2 Elizabeth Muir born about 1829 at Avondale, Lanarkshire; died 27 October 1863 at Dalton, Cambuslang, Lanarkshire. She married Matthew Cassels on 15 December 1851 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire.

40.3 Martha Muir born 2 September 1830 at Glassford, Lanarkshire; died 6 June 1876 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire. She married John Riddell on7 August 1852 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire.

40.4 Jean Muir born 8 April 1834 at Avondale, Lanarkshire. She likely died before 1837.

40.5 Henrietta Muir born 29 January 1836 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire. She likely died before 1841.

40.6 Jean Muir born 8 October 1837 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; died 19 August 1856 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire.

40.7 Robert Orr Muir born 1 October 1839 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; died 8 July 1917 at Bathgate, Linlithgow, Scotland. He married twice: 1) to Jane Paton Loudon on or before 1863 and 2) to Mary Watson Shaw on 23 June 1871 at Lesmahagow, Lanarkshire.

40.8 Henrietta Muir born 21 May 1841 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; died 1 September 1929 at Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia. She married James Williamson on 27 September 1861 at Avondale, Lanarkshire. They immigrated to Australia on 6 May 1885 aboard the cargo ship S/S Waroonga.

40.9 Thomas Muir born 25 November 1842 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; died 5 May 1901 at Larkhall, Lanarkshire. He married twice: 1) to Janet Sorbie on 6 November 1863 at Stonehouse, Lanarkshire, and 2) to Isabella Moore on 4 October 1870 at Glassford, Lanarkshire.

40.10 James Muir born on 2 August 1844; likely died before 1847 or 1848.

40.11 John Muir born 28 June 1846 at East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; died 2 June 1932 at Larkhall, Lanarkshire. He married Lillas Weir 6 October 1865 at Stonehouse, Lanarkshire.

20 James Muir born on 13 June 1847 or 1848; died on 18 March 1926 at Mystic, Appanoose, Iowa, USA. He married twice: 1) to Margaret Semple on 4 July 1873 at Dalserf, Lanarkshire, and 2) to Margaret “Maggie” (McIntosh) Greenbank on 9 January 1913 at Princeton, Mercer, Missouri, USA. He immigrated to the U.S. on 6 June 1887 aboard the steamship Ethiopia.

40.12 Nathaniel Muir likely born sometime in December 1850; died 23 February 1923 at Whitburn, West Lothian (was Linlithgow previous to 1921). He married twice: 1) Janet Shaw 1 May 1870 at Avondale, Lanarkshire, and 2) Christina Ure on 29 May 1899 at Bathgate, Linlithgow.

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1841 Scotland Census (database), Ancestry, Robert Moore, Kilbride, Lanarkshire; citing Parish: East Kilbride; ED: 4; Page: 10; Line: 1149; Year: 1841(accessed 14 Nov 2014)
1845 Map of Lanarkshire, Statistical Account of Lanarkshire, 1841 (accessed 6 Apr 2014)
1851 Scotland Census (database), Ancestry, Elizabeth Muir, East Kilbride, Lanarkshire; citing Parish: East Kilbride; ED: 13; Page: 8; Line: 3; Roll: CSSCT1851_152 (accessed 14 Nov 2014)
1861 Scotland Census (database), Ancestry, Robert Muir, Dalserf, Lanarkshire; citing Parish: Dalserf: ED; 6; Page: 34; Line: 13; Roll CSSCT1861_95 (accessed 14 Nov 2014)
Brown, Henrietta (O.P.R. Births 644/01 0210 0036 Glasgow)
East Kilbride Old Parish Church, Gazetteer for Scotland, ScotlandsPlaces (accessed 9 Jul 2018)

Ireland, Church Baptisms, Donegal Ancestry, 1799 Muir, Robert

Ireland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1620-1911, 1911 Moore, James
Questions, Questions, Questions, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 9 Jul 2018)
Robert Muir (c1800-1869), Robert Muir Family (accessed 9 Jul 2018
Robert Muir's Parents! Yes? Maybe? No., Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 9 Jul 2018)

Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 26/01/1828 Muir, Robert (O.P.R. Marriages 621/00 0040 0232 Avondale)

Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 08/04/1834, Muir, Jean (O.P.R. Births 621/00 0040 0088 Avondale)
Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 14/02/1836, Muir, Henrietta (O.P.R. Births 643/00 0030 0085 East Kilbride)
Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 05/11/1837, Muir, Jean (O.P.R. Births 643/00 0030 0096 East Kilbride)
Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 22/08/1844 Muir, James (O.P.R. Births 643/00 0030 0124 East Kilbride)
Scotland, Old Parish Records, 1538-1854, 13/12/1851 Muir, Elizabeth (O.P.R. Marriages 643/00 0030 0220 East Kilbride)
Scotland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950, 1834  Jean Muir
Scotland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950, 1837 Jean Muir
Scotland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950, 1844 James Muir

Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1854-2013, 1856 Muir, Jane (Statutory Deaths 643/00 0038)

Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1855-2013, 1863 Cassels, Elizabeth (Statutory Deaths 627/00 0073)
Scotland, Statutory Registrations, 1855-2013, 1869, Muir, Robert (Statutory Deaths 656/00 0018)

The Robert Muir Family Blog
I am writing a multi-volume book about the descendants of Robert Muir (c1800-1869) and his wife, Henrietta Brown. Volumes I and II may be downloaded from the above link.