Alexander McKinlay

This poignant gravestone stands in Cumnock old cemetery from 1782. 

Here lyes the corps of Elizabeth, their only child who died 3 November 1782 aged 7 years 8 months.

Your heart goes out to the parents Alexander McKinlay and wife Margaret Aitken. But there is more to the story.

A quick look at the old parish records finds no record of this child but they went on to have two more, Alexander in 1784 and another Elizabeth in 1790. Elizabeth no 2 was born and baptised on the same day 12 Mar 1790, in the Nest which was a house on Dumfries House Estate suggesting that the father was an employee on the estate. The haste at which she was baptised may suggest she was not expected to survive and I have no further record of her.

I found son Alexander's marriage to Janet Samson in 1820. The banns were read in Ayr and Cumnock. Banns are read for three consecutive weeks in the parishes where the bride and groom are residents. The latest date being 15 Sep 1820 in Cumnock. The actually wedding is usually at the bride's home. However Janet Samson was from Newton in Ayr suggesting that it was Alexander who was in Cumnock.

They had one son Alexander and then 5 daughters. The first 2 children were born in Cumnock. On Alexander's baptismal record of 1821 his father is a forester in Dumfries house estate.  In the 1841 census they family is in Green St in Newton on Ayr, sometimes referred to as Samson's land.  Alexander is now described as a vocal musicianer. He is in the Ayr directory of 1845-6 as a wood forester so I presume he sidelined as a singer. In 1851 census he is again a wood forester and confirms he was born in Old Cumnock. Alexander died at Green St on 19th April 1851 ages 68 and is buried with his Samson in-laws in Newton Burial ground Ayr, the headstone supplying this information. As his death preceded statutory registration there is no death certificate to confirm his parents but I am confident he is the son of Alexander, naming his son Alexander after his father as is traditional, plus the wood forester link to Dumfries House estate.

See them on the Cumnock Connections tree here

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Hadden family 3 - the Hutchison Connection

 We've already met Mary Hadden 1866 - 1947 and her 2 children with James Welsh.

Mary had two other earlier illegitimate children prior to the Welsh boys. Her first child a girl Mary was born on January 1885 at the home of her mother and stepfather at 410 Brick Row, Cronberry in the parish of Lugar, when Mary was 18. The baby died there at 3 weeks old of whooping cough.

young John Hadden 

John Bruce Hadden was born at Pathhead in New Cumnock on the 2 Jan 1888. He is registered as John Hadden by his mother Mary a domestic servant and signed with her X mark, meaning she couldn't read or write which was normal for the time period.  Mary continues to work and young John is found living with an aunt and uncle in the 1891 census, by which time Mary had also had James Welsh who was living with Grace Connell. Illegitimate children were either left with another family member often grandparents or else boarded out. Mary would be paying for the upkeep of her sons. Mary had William Welsh in Kilmarnock in 1892 and by this time it was clear James Welsh wasn't going to marry her and she sued him for breach of promise and paternity as reported in the earlier post.

John centre back with his mother, stepfather and siblings

John in centre with his half brothers

John Bruce Hadden and William Welsh Hadden went with Mary to the USA and married and had children.

DNA testing has provided a clue to the father of John Bruce Hadden. The common ancestors are Andrew Hutchison born in 1840 in Barr a shepherd and his wife Mary Muir. The father is one of his sons of which he had three: John born 1869, William born 1872 and Gilbert born 1874.  All of them are younger than Mary who was born in 1866. As more Hutchison descendants test, we should be able to work out which man was John's father. My money's on John! He could have been named after his father. But Mary's father was a John also!