23rd: Another FAIRBAIRN blacksmith; ANDREWS sidetrack

Check the Fairbairn DNA project diary for the links/details re the newly loaded pedigree - that of the family of Archibald and Jane (BLAKEY) FAIRBAIRN who emigrated from Northumberland to Ontario. One son, Archibald, moved to Parry Sound, another lived Orangeville, Wellington Co/Dufferin Co. Another, Robert, a miller, moved to Vegreville, Alberta, with descendants moving back to Ontario.

Archibald was a blacksmith, and the majority of the few available records, say he was born Scotland;
Probably complete coincidence, but the family of one other of the DNA project members were also in Orangeville, Dufferin Co at one stage.

I have now absolutely no idea where I was researching during the digging on the above, or who I was looking at, that led me to check for some updated details for the family of Abraham ANDREWS of Martock (then St Lukes, Middlesex), but next WorldConnect update there should be some more confirmed dates and places for the family.

6th: ANDREWS gets a look-in, (and DAW)

Brief flurry of corrections on the RUNDLE/FOREMAN portion of the ANDREWS tree (not online so the error has presumably not been propagated), thanks David and Brenda.

The DAW(E) DNA project now has a representative of the family of Isaac enrolled, but at the risk of never being thought satisfied, another is still sought, on a different line, to confirm whatever dna signatures result.

Oct 10, 2008: Do these names ring a BELL?

FAIRBAIRNs and BELL/THOMSON families. Wondering if it is complete coincidence that there are two FAIRBAIRN families connected to the same BELL/THOMSON family, or whether there just might be a link between them.
One family is that of the latest participant in the FAIRBAIRN Surname DNA Project, the other the subject of a Borders Family History Society Journal way back in Feb 1998 about Granny FAIRBAIRN the Bone-setter of Kelso - "Isabella (ROBERTSON) FAIRBAIRN 1859-1940".
The possible connection being made by adding 2 and 2 and probably getting 5.

Robert FAIRBAIRN, Isabella ROBERTSON's husband's lineage works back to a Robert FAIRBAIRN and Agnes JEFFREY, via a Robert FAIRBAIRN, writer in Duns (reputed father) and Ellen BELL.

Robert FAIRBAIRN and mother Ellen BELL are in the 1881 census with Ellen's sister Janet and her (2nd) husband John THOMSON at Kelso.

In 1901 Janet THOMSON nee BELL is at Kelso with a boarder, John FAIRBAIRN, 25 (he later married an Ellen THOMSON).

John's pedigree is now on the FAIRBAIRN Surname DNA Project Patriarchs page, with no known connection to Duns or Robert above.

Anyone actively researching Robert's family? Found part of it on OneGreatFamily
but the email address of the researcher (dtr of John M FAIRBAIRN, a journalist who emigrated to Australia) bounced.

Back to Meavy for a break. ANDREWS this time. I'd not taken the family of Henry Willcocks & Lydia (HELYER) ANDREWS beyond 1871 until contacted by Pauline, who has a family connection with them.
Merrily checking them off in census and BDMs and finally realised I was duplicating data. Dtr Mary Willcocks ANDREWS firstly married John SHILLIBEER, then remarried a Richard Henry BICKLE (I calculate they were 5th cousins once removed, or at least I did once I realised he was the son of John Creber BICKELL and Susanna HELYER).

Pedigree, and latest results, added to the ROWE Surname DNA project.

Aug 8, 2008: Caithness to New Jersey?; More Ontario FAIRBAIRNs

Where does the time go? Mostly been working on Ontario FAIRBAIRN and related families, in no particular order: GRIEVE, WINDOVER, HUFF, COUGHLIN, HUDSON, RAYCRAFT, ASSELSTINE, FRENCH, FITCHETT, PAGE, VADER.
FAIRBAIRN descendants chart updated.

Sidetracked from FAIRBAIRNs to investigate Livy's theory that her x-greats grandmother Johanna/Jean KERR nee BAIN, d/o of a James and Ellen BAIN, just might be Johanna, d/o James BAIN and Helen ANDREW.
My initial worry was that if the age was right, she had emigrated to America as a 16/17 yr old - but with whom?
However, a 1924 letter from her younger sister Hannah in Wick, written to the American relations, clearly states that the sister didn't remember her as she had left so young, and I quickly found a dth cert of this Hannah, with the right address, that showed we had the right parents. As the letter also mentions Kate, implying she is Johanna and Hannah's sister, I presume Johanna emigrated with her elder sister.
This could well explain how I've not had much joy finding most of the girls in this family after about 1871.

Rootsweb WorldConnect db LornaHenderson updated (prior to this BAIN find). Also updated are the Rootsweb pages (after this BAIN find).

May 14, 2008: Jasmine

The Original documents subsite has had the rest of the 1894 Tasmanian letter images included, as are all the people referenced, implicitly or explicitly. Would still love to track down present day DAW descendants of this lot (and any other lines for that matter).
DNA testing of a matrilineal descendant of Jane ANDREWS nee GIBSON has shown her to belong to "Jasmine" of the "Seven Daughters of Eve, as the descendant was haplotype J1a. There are some links at the bottom of Jane's page about this.

May 10, 2008: Simon writes home

Something seems to have changed with the Rootsweb GuestBooks, all posts are rejecting. I've logged an error and hope this will be temporary, and that the existing posts wont be lost, as I suspect this is something to do with the integration of Rootsweb into ancestry.com.
Been busy identifying and adding RICHARDSON photos to my database, thanks to Grace's photo album, nothing new online there as yet though.
Have included an 1842 letter home from Taranaki in the original documents subsite. It was written/dictated by Simon ANDREWS to his parents, and included in a book of "Letters From Settlers & Labouring Emigrants, in the New Zealand Company's Settlements of Wellington, Nelson, & New Plymouth" published in 1843. I note that it is now on Google books.
So this means that Simon ANDREWS, my 2greats, is finally online in my web pages, albeit only for his basic info. It's a fact of my life that those of the closest rellies that aren't on the web yet, have a bit too much data available, and I've not spent the time winnowing it down for the web.
The will of Margaret MOSSMAN nee SCOTT has a few more bits transcribed, and behind the scenes a bit more data on some of the people involved.

Sep 21, 2007: Pays to advertise

A Feb 2007 posting about ANDREWS/COATH has elicited a response from a 2*great grdson with some updates. Mind you, the relationship does rather depend on the right Ann BARTER being selected from the records as another contender has been found. They have an old family tree drawn up some years ago, which I wont get an update from until after a return from holiday. Hope it matches my diggings.