This posting is dedicated to our 2nd earliest generation for which I have records for - William Scott and Isobel Bell. This William Scott was born in Traquair Parish about 1779 to the shepherd William Scott and his wife Euphemia Smail.
The Scottish naming tradition was that the first born son be named after the father's father so it's likely our William born about 1779 was the shepherd's first male child and it's also likely that our shepherd's father was also named William.
The Scottish naming tradition was that the first born son be named after the father's father so it's likely our William born about 1779 was the shepherd's first male child and it's also likely that our shepherd's father was also named William.
Some 20 years later, in 1800, the young William married the even younger Isobel Bell (born about 1783 in Haddingtonshaw, Dunbar) at Catslacknowe, a cottage of the Yarrow Feus that is situated on the bank of the Yarrow Water. Catslacknowe is therefore the earliest specific place where we know our family once lived.
Yarrow Feus is labelled on the map below...situated on the A708 road just east of the B709 turnoff north to Traquair where the label reads Mountbenger Hotel. (I should try to figure out the GPS coordinates for Catslacknowe Cottage and add them here.)
Yarrow Feus is labelled on the map below...situated on the A708 road just east of the B709 turnoff north to Traquair where the label reads Mountbenger Hotel. (I should try to figure out the GPS coordinates for Catslacknowe Cottage and add them here.)
During our visit to the area in 2011 we travelled south from Traquair on that B709 road which climbed into the same steep hills that our shepherd tended his flock in the 1700's. I was happy to be travelling thru these hills in summer weather because I'm not sure whether I would have tackled it during a famous Scottish winter. How our Shepherd managed is certainly beyond me.
As the Yarrow river and valley came into view I was struck by its beauty. Thru the heart of the valley flows the Yarrow Water, meandering slowly from St. Mary's Loch in the west to where it joins the Ettrick Water, some 8 miles east. Steep rolling hills rise quickly from both sides of the river. It's no wonder this picturesque setting was a favorite of Sir Walter Scott's, the 19th century poet and novelist. But he wasn't the only one to write about the Yarrow as it seems agreed that more has been written about the Yarrow than any other river in Scotland.
Catslacknowe Cottage is situated on the north side of the A708 road which travels from Moffat in the west to Selkirk in the east. The road winds its way thru the valley travelling alongside the Yarrow Water for the most part and it seems that every turn in the road provides another place name rich in history.
To locate Catslacknowe cottage you can begin at Tibbie Sheils Inn, situated on the western end of St. Mary's Loch. This was a favourite rest spot for Scott and his friend and writing colleague James Hogg. A monument to Hogg is situated just a stroll up the hill from the Inn where it stands gazing out over the lake.
Travelling east as you leave the Inn you will quickly be crossing the xxxx Burn which trickles into St Mary's Loch from the very hills was at one time home to the Black Douglases during the infamous years of reivers and thuggery.
What seems like only a few yards further along the A708 road and those with sharp eyes will find another old stream bed running into St Mary's Loch. Follow that creek up the hill and you will find the remains of "St. Mary's of the Lowes" also called the "the Forest Kirk". It is argued that here, not Selkirk, was the "Church of the Forest" where William Wallace was proclaimed Guardian of Scotland in 1298 after his defeat of the English at Stirling the year before. Many a Scott and Grieve were buried here during the reiving times and the church itself wasn't replaced until the Church down the road at Yarrow was built in more modern times - 1640.
Back on the A708 road and still travelling east your next point of interest is Dryhope Tower, situated on the north side of the road as you near the eastern end of the lake. The tower can be seen from the road and is only a short walk up the hillside. Now set up to receive visitors you can go into the old tower and read the information signage explaining its place in history. Once the home of the ancient family of the Dryhope Scotts this tower was typical of the peel towers built along the waterways to guard against the English who would would arrive at Berwick (pronounced Bear-ick) on the east coast and make their way inland along the Tweed, Yarrow, Ettrick and other rivers. Built for protection this tower was once the home of the 'Flower of Yarrow', Mary Scott, who's love story with the famous reiver Watt Scott of Harden is well documented. They are the direct ancestor's of Sir Walter Scott.
leaving their shady spot as Kathy strolls up to the entrance, 2011.
Back on the A708 road again and you will next come to the junction where the B709 road to Traquair and Innerliethan heads off north past Hogg's birth place at Mountbenger. On the map above there is a spot called Mountbenger Hotel which may have been the name of the later Gordon Arms Inn which was another watering hole with a rich history of its own. Staying on A708 to Selkirk we next pass the turnoff to Sundhope on the right before we come to new build Catslacknowe cottage which lies on the left side of the road just before the cluster of houses called Yarrow Feus. Once a small stone cottage typical of the area the new build cottage with its flat roof line does not seem to resemble anything nearby...and perhaps that was the builder's hope.
A small turnoff in Yarrow Feus takes you left, up the hill above the Catslacknowe cottage to where the Catslacksburn farmhouse is situated. At one time this entire hillside was feued off or leased into several parcels of land on which about 14 families lived, each with different trades to offer their community.
The Old Parish Records for Yarrow include the marriage of William Scott to Isobel Bell at Catslacknowe Cottage on Oct 12, 1800. Isobell was only 17 or so therefore it's likely that Catslacknowe was where her parents lived.
Our William was to become a Hand Loom Weaver which was considered quite the artisan during these days before the industrial revolution. Below is a etching showing the cottage of a Hand Loom Weaver who is working on the left side of the picture while his wife and children gathered around the fire watching the smoke rise up thru a hole in the roof. This was their modest life.
at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, 2012.
National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, 2012.
As a Hand Loom Weaver our William would have earned a bit more money than most other trades so it's not surprising to see that their marriage is recorded in the Old Parish Records as are the births of their first three children. Again following the Scottish naming tradition their first born son was named after the father's father......the shepherd William. This baby William is our direct ancestor and he was born March 11, 1801 at Catslacknowe.
In 1803 a second son was born at Catslackknowe and named John so if they continued following the Scottish naming tradition then John was also the name of Isobel's father. By 1805 our young family had left Catslacknowe and their first daughter, Margaret, was born at Singlieburn on the Ettrick Water which travels the valley to the south of the Yarrow. Tradition was to name the first female child after the mother's mother therefore it's likely Isobel's mother was named Margaret. Their next child born was another girl and you would have been correct to guess that she was named after the father's mother - Euphemia. In all, William and Isobel had 12 children and I can confirm that the final 8 were born at various cottages along the Ettrick Water.
To get to the Ettrick Valley from the Yarrow one continues on the A708 road from Catslacknowe heading east to Selkirk. A little over a mile further along is a junction where you turn to the off the A road to the right and cross the Yarrow Bridge..... but before you head over the bridge check out the Yarrow Church and Manse at the junction. You can be sure that our ancestors regularly worshipped here....perhaps much longer than for just a generation or two.
After your visit at Yarrow church head south over the Yarrow bridge on the narrow and winding little road that doesn't even rate to be called a B road. This C or D road takes you south through Kirkhope and joins the B7009 which travels alongside the Ettrick Water.
Finding records about Willliam and Isobell's later children was not an easy task for me because none of their births were registered with the church. This may have been an indication that the family was now very poor and simply didn't have the money to pay the pennies needed for registration. How could this happen to our (well paid) Hand Loom Weaver? Well, one clue is that this was the beginning of the Industrial Revolution and woollen mills were being built all around the Borders incorporating powered weaving looms. Wages began to fall dramatically after 1820 as immigration into weaving towns like nearby Selkirk and Galasheils created a labour surplus. By the 1840's, when powerlooms had been perfected, the handloom weavers of Scotland had declined to destitution and near extinction. This unforutnately was the fate of our William too, which I'll explain shortly.
In 2012 I rented a small basement flat in Edinburgh for a month and conducted my family history research at the Registry House there called Scotlands People. I found records for all 12 of the William and Isobel's children and traced most of the children for a few generations more. I can report that the family stayed in the Ettrick Valley from 1805 through 1826 when their final child was born and that earlier homes were at Singlieburn, Gilmancleugh and Ettrickbridge.
Ettrickbridge from Selkirk, 2011.
Two of William and Isobel's children, both boys, died young and another two boys aren't found on later Scottish records so it's likely they emigrated to England or abroad. All of the rest of children moved into either Selkirk or Galasheils and took jobs working in the woolen mills there. The only exception was the eldest son, our William. He was working in Ettrickbridge in 1826 when he married Mary Scott from Ashkirk Parish, a farming community just over the hills to the south. William and Mary chose not live in the mill towns and instead raised their family in the more peaceful setting of Ashkirk, but more about their generation in my next chapter.
I find it interesting that our ancestors lived in the Ettrick Valley because this is the area central to the origins of the Scott Clan. All the mighty Scott reiving families originated here in what was called the Ettrick Forest. Much has been written about the Scott clan and its many colourful reivers who lived along the Ettrick. All the local towers and stately houses seems to have been owned by Scotts at one time or another and it's tempting to think that our family's lineage began where the Scott clan itself began but that is hard if not impossible to prove. Any search of Google will list books related to the Ettrick but if it's local history you want then a must on your book list Thomas Craig Brown's book written in 1886 and titled "The History of Selkirkshire; Or, Chronicles of the Ettrick Forest".
The cheif of the Scott clan has always been the Duke of Buccleugh and his family's lineage has been traced back to the days of King Kenneth MacAlpin himself. As the story goes the King was out with his hunting party at a spot about 2 miles up from the junction of the Ettrick and the Rankelburn. It was here that the Scottish King was so impressed with a young local lad that he named him John Scott of Buccleugh. It's said that this young lad was from Galloway which is to the east of the Borders and would indicate that his ancestors were Gaels that came from northern Ireland - a branch of the Celts. This seems to tie in nicely with other historical reports as all seem to agree that the name Scott derives from the Scots who invaded Dalriada (Argyle) from Ireland in earlier times. Even the Romans knew these Scots well and called them Scoti's, meaning 'sea pirates' which described well their combative relationship with the Romans.
When the days of reiving were finally 'put down' in the early 1600's it's said the mighty rieving clan of the Scotts turned in their swords for pens and became lawyers and businessmen. Today's Duke of Buccleugh is the largest land owner in all of Britain and his home at Bowhill (open to the public) is situated nearby.
With the children moving into Selkirk, Galashiels, Ashkirk and abroad I found that William and Isobel had moved from Ettrick too. By the 1841 census William and Isobel were no longer in Ettrick but were living north of Edinburgh in Milton of Balgonie, a small village in Markinch Parish, in what is fondly remembered as the Kingdom of Fife. What drew them there? Balgonie was an established coal mining community for centuries and during the early 1800s many woolen mills were being built in Markinch so perhaps employment was the draw? Or, perhaps they were drawn there for family reasons because living next door to them in 1841 was the 83 year old weaver's widow, Margaret Bell. Perhaps this Margaret, who was born in the Yarrow, was Isobel's mother as I had indicated earlier regarding the naming tradition? As Margaret Bell was born in Yarrow and her husband was a weaver I've often wondered if our William learned the trade from his father-in-law at the Bell family home in Catslacknowe? There are always mysteries to solve in genealogy.
The widow Margaret Bell was 93 in the 1851 census and still living next door to William and Isobel but she didn't appear in the 1861 census so one can assume she passed. I do know that Isobel died a short time after the 1851 census because by 1854 William have moved to Selkirk and was living near his son James. A year later, in 1855, William died at the age of 76 and his death registration reports him as a widow and a pauper. There is no grave marker for him in the old Selkirk cemetery which may indicate that his family did not have the money to pay for one. However, there is a simple grave marker back in the churchyard at Ettrickbridge which only states "William Scott 76 years". Maybe his children buried him back home on the Ettrick but that is a mystery which I haven't yet solved.
You have a photo of the CATSLACKBURN BRIDGE and the Cottage, at the rear, was tenented by the HOWIE family who emigrated to Canada Post WW 11 - I remember it as a post office - across the road was a hand pump for water - progressing West past a few buildings set back from the road (perhaps 100 feet) was MISS SCOTT'S ( thatched roof ) cottage cows and chickens to the left, living quarters to the right, and about 20 feet away was a small dug out spring for water (it used to have a small trout in it on the assumption that if it was alive the water was good - Miss Scott was gie old as I remember her in the early 1930's and the next house West was Mattie Turnbull's . Right on the edge of the road and it had a tiny wooden erection of wood to protect the front door It had little windows and Mattie kept a man's hat there on view to discourage 'Tinkers' calling - Miss Scott's had a fire and a tin roof replaced the thatch - - Post WW11 a Professor JAMES( retired Ed. Paediatric surgeon (?) took it over - only one door remained and he had built a lean - to sun room as I remember, with a peach (?) tree in it as I remember about 1958 the last time I was by - - - I see on GOOGLE Earth that a second story has been erected(with a large propane tank in view) and a drive way has been constructed and the old gate with 2 curling stones walled up - I emigrated to Canada in 1956 - AJ BERRY, NANAIMO BC CANADA - SCOTSDOC@GMAIL.COM
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