13th: Caithness gets some overdue attention

The flurry of activity on the Caithness GRAY family as a result of Bobby finding and sharing his updated info on Ann SINCLAIR nee GRAY shows that several notes to myself several years ago to investigate whether or not Catherine GRAY's sisters married x and y have been proved to be valid hunches.
We've done a lot of digging and swapping our finds over the last couple of days.
Another sister also survived well into civil registration times, living to age 93, Barbara GRAY, married James McGREGOR, lived at Baderyrie, Latheron.
That leaves the fates of sisters Elizabeth and Isobel GRAY to be determined.
For some time I'd wondered if Isobel was the one who married John SUTHERLAND, but that isn't the case. However, investigation of this did lead me to correct what I had on that family on my WorldConnect database LornaPotential, which will show these updates shortly (her parents weren't Alexander GRAY and Margaret SUTHERLAND, but David GRAY and Christian BAIN);
Newly connected surnames for my GRAY family now include: GUNN, more SINCLAIRs, MUNRO, BAIKIE, McLAREN; Places are: Thurso; Mid Clyth; Stemster; Lybster; Duffus (Moray); Charlestown (Little Dunkeld, Perthshire);
Mysteries: What happened to Mary SINCLAIR and Alexander GUNN, married 1860 Lybster, appear in 1861 census at Mid Clyth, then vanish.

Also did some work on the Tongside GRAY families, whom I'm sure do connect in somehow, if only I knew how/where: Alexander & Margaret (SUTHERLAND) GRAY, who lived next to my William & Isabella (MANSON) GRAY, as did their respective descendants over the years.

Both Rootsweb WorldConnect databases are in the process of being updated, so use these links to access them until the indexing catches up over the next 2-3 days: LornaHenderson, LornaPotential.

11th: Seen it all now

I don't yet know how accurate the Ancestry Census transcription I've just seen is, but I've just found a Janet SINCLAIR enumerated with an occupation of "deceased daughter"!
This being part of the investigations into the newfound GRAY twigs that Bobby put me onto. I don't think she's the Janet I'm looking for however.
The family being researched is that of Ann, dtr of Donald GRAY and Janet SUTHERLAND, and sister of the Catherine GRAY who married John BAIN, married a James SINCLAIR. Bobby found her 1857 death certificate and I'm fossicking to see what else I can find.
So far the extended family includes McGREGORs, and another SINCLAIR family.

10th: Revival of interest in BAINs

A descendant of Elizabeth BAIN's husband James SUTHERLAND's first wife has found my web pages, and suddenly discovered he has a whole heap of BAIN relations as well as the SUTHERLAND ones he knew about.
Good to hear from you Tim.

Found a conversation on Rootschat which I'd missed, re Jessie SINTON and Donald McFADEN. I'm fully convinced that Jessie is one of my Southdean SINTONs, but am at a loss to see exactly where she would fit. Good to "meet" you Bev.

Aug 9, 2008: Back to Caithness

Amazing what an unexpected find does to spur on further research to fill gaps. Several more twigs on the James BAIN/Helen ANDREW portion of the BAIN tree. Most of the charts updated with work to date, more to come - the daughters turn out to have married: SUTHERLAND, FALCONER, MOWAT, GUNN

Mar 24, 2008: Aberdeen to Portsmouth STEPHENSONs, new McDONALDs

Two postings in my Guestbook on the same day from newfound rellies, or at least since I last read it.
One had info on a new twig on the WIGHT/STEPHENSON line, which just happens to be the line where Harry and I have been chasing a mysterious Hugh STEPHENSON with dtr Margaret who married a John WIGHT, who may or may not have been the widower living in the same building in 1841 in the Fleshmarket, Edinburgh in 1841.
Hugh is highly likely to be the father of the Robert STEPHENSON who married Isabella WIGHT, so who on earth is John WIGHT, horse dealer, or is he just a complete coincidence?
The other was on the BAIN/SUTHERLAND line down from James BAIN's dtr Helen Sutherland BAIN who married George McDONALD. Good to know a bit more about that line.

Look forward to hearing more about both families.
WIGHT and BAIN descendant charts updated with interim findings.

Sep 13, 2007: Back to BAINs & no luck with LUCOCK

Hope to get Thomas SCOTT on the web soon as I've had fun chasing assorted Cumberland SCOTT families around the records the last couple of days. No great conclusion re Eleanor's relationship to them though. Someone, somewhere might hold the key to where Eleanor fits in.

Also hope to get out an update to my WorldConnect db LornaHenderson as there seems to have been a sudden rush of updates.

GenesReunited hot matches has put me in contact with another of the BAIN/SUTHERLAND/THOM descendants in Australia, so that's a few more dots on i's and t's crossed (how are you meant to write that, doesn't look right with "is" for plural of i!). Thank you Peter M., 4th cousin once removed. The BAIN chart has therefore had a few twigs added.

Received a reply from the LUCKOCK researcher, but dipped out on enough information to solve the Agnes Gair HENDERSON & Joseph LUCOCK marriage mentioned below, at least not without paying for a certificate anyway.

Linda H called my attention to the McGREGOR GenForum activity in response to one of her posts. Looks like we've been found by another HENDERSON descendant of Margaret H, sister to my James H. Not sure where as yet, but her husband is a descendant of James Addison McGREGOR.

Update: digging around from the hints on GenForum and the fact that Canada might be a good place to find James, I came up trumps as he started off in Ontario where I can access BDM data online via Ancestry, and there were a couple of dths in the British Columbia index too so the HENDERSON chart has a few extra twigs under James McGREGOR now.