Alexandrina Elder - Donald McLeod’s widow and their children Christina and John Elder

Alexandrina Elder McLeod

I have located very little information about Alexandrina after her husband’s death. She may have left Scotland for some years to look for work. She left her young son John behind with her parents but does not appear to have done the same with Christina her daughter.

Census 1881

I finally located Alexandrina in the 1881 census in Glasgow. She was living in an apartment or tenement building at 66 Houston Street. I think that building has probably been demolished as the area now looks industrial with a motorway very near.

In the 1881 census Catherine Elder, Alexandrina’s older sister is living with her and is shown as a Domestic. In the two Reay census records below we see that Catherine has lived with her nephew John Elder for years and probably had a hand in his upbringing

There is one puzzling entry in this 1881 Glasgow census record. Alexandrina is put as a Widow but then for occupation she is said to be a Clark’s Wife. I have no explanation for this entry – it is either an error or possibly Alexandrina is working as an assistant to a Clark. 

Alexandrina's death

Alexandrina died in 1911 of heart failure. She is shown on her death record as Widow to Donald McLeod so I can’t see that the entry in the 1881 census stating she is a Clark’s wife is correct.  She is still in Glasgow.

Christina was there

One good thing in the death record is that Alexandrina’s daughter Christina Macleod was present when her mother died and she signed the death record as the informant.

That’s the first information I have found of Christina since the 1851 census. So she was with her mother at the start of her life and at the end of her mother’s life but I can’t fill in the gaps for what happened in between. As I cannot find her in the Scotland census records I suspect Christina went with her mother where ever that was.  I don’t know if Christina married or had children.

 Dixon Ave, Glasgow – with a splash of new paint!

Alexandrina died in this apartment block.

John Elder McLeod

I know a bit more about John. The 1861 census shows that little John aged 5 was living with his Elder grandparents. He is shown as a scholar so must have started school already. Ten years later in the 1871 census John now 15 was still living in Reay with the Elder family and at school. Note the present Reay primary school was built in 1876. 

Reay Census 1861 

Piece: SCT1861/40 Place: Reay -Caithness Enumeration District: 1 Civil Parish: Reay Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: Reay Folio: 0 Page: 2 Schedule: 13 Address: -

Surname

First name(s)

Rel

Status

Sex

Age

Occupation

Where Born

ELDER

John

Head

M

M

74

Lotter

Caithness - Reay

ELDER

Margt

Wife

M

F

72

-

Caithness - Reay

ELDER

Cath

Dau

U

F

34

House Servant

Caithness - Reay

MCLEOD

John

Grnson

-

M

5

Scholar

Caithness - Reay

MILL

Janet

Grndau

-

F

14

Scholar

Caithness - Thurso

MCDONALD

Rob

Lodger

M

M

74

Mason

Sutherland - -

Reay Census 1871

Piece: SCT1871/40 Place: Reay -Caithness Enumeration District: 1 Civil Parish: Reay Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: Reay Folio: 0 Page: 5 Schedule: 21 Address: -

Surname

First name(s)

Rel

Status

Sex

Age

Occupation

Where Born

ELDER

John

Head

W

M

86

Crofter Of 3 1/2 Acres

Caithness - Reay

ELDER

Catharine

Dau

U

F

42

Housekeeper

Caithness - Reay

ELDER

Maggie M

Grndau

U

F

22

Housekeeper

Ireland - Dublin

MACLEOD

John

Grnson

-

M

15

Scholar

Caithness - Reay

In two census records, the Elder family have taken in three different grandchildren and John Elder the grandfather is having to provide for his family on 3 ½ acres. 

New Zealand -  Alcoholic

Next I know of John he was living in New Zealand. I don’t know what year he went to New Zealand but the reason is not so good. Apparently John had become an alcoholic and was sent to his McLeod relatives in New Zealand with the hope of him ‘drying out’. In New Zealand there was a large contingent of McLeod and Sutherland Uncles, Aunts and cousins to take him in. 

There is a photo of John in an old McLeod family album – he is looking well groomed and quite dashing. I take it from this that there was a reasonable relationship between John and his New Zealand family. He stayed in the Martinborough/Wairarapa district where many of his relatives lived. 

Death of John Elder McLeod

Sadly the story gets worse. John died in 1903. The newspaper report says he was found dead in his bunk. 

McLeod, John Elder: Feilding Star 7 Dec 1903 

The family story is not so kind:

 ‘He was found dead in a gutter drowned in his own vomit.’

John was buried in the Martinborough cemetery, Block 3, Row 13 and has a fine headstone which would have been erected by his New Zealand relatives. John’s mother Alexandrina ,his sister Christina, and other relatives back in Scotland would have been informed of John’s death. 

This is the last blog on Donald McLeod and his family.

Edited post - Additional information about Alexandrina and Christina

Thanks to Julie I have located additional information about Alexandrina and her daughter Christina that fills in lots of gaps. I will add it as an edit rather than a new post.

1861 Census

Alexanderina and Christina are in Fife at the Kirkcaldy Combination Poor house as visitors. William Elder, Alexanderina’s brother is Governor. He is a widower with two young daughters. His niece Margaret Mill is a Housekeeper.

The Kirkcadly Combination Poorhouse was erected in 1849 on a cliffside north of Kinghorn. Able-bodied beggars were sent to work there and were branded on the ear for identification.

http://www.workhouses.org.uk/Kirkcaldy/ has an article on the Kirkcaldy Poorhouse including data from the 1881 census showing William Elder was still the Governor at that time.

1871 Census

Alexanderina and Christina are living 38 Pollock Street, Glasgow with Alexanderina's younger brother John Elder and his daughter Helen. John is a Wine Merchant.

1871 Marriage Christina and Hugh

Christina McLeod’s life takes a different turn at this time as on 13 July 1871 she married Hugh Maclean a Colliery Agent. The wedding took place at John Elder’s residence in Pollock Street. 

1881 Census Christina and Hugh

The 1881 census shows Hugh and Christina living in Rothesay on the island of Bute with Hugh’s mother and sister. No children are showing as living here. I do not know if Christina and Hugh had any children. Hugh died in 1888 in Rothesay.

1881 Census

See above in the blog – at 66 Houston Street, Glasgow.

1891 Census

Alexanderina and Catherine are still at 66 Houston Street and have two lodgers living with them – a travelling salesman and a joiner.

1901 Census

Alexanderina and Christina (now a widow and shown as Christina Maclean) are living at 107 Pollock Street, Glasgow (close to where they had lived with John Elder). They put their occupation as Keeping Boarders and have two male boarders.

1911 

Alexanderina died and her daughter Christina was present with her.

Death from Consumption - Donald McLeod -1824 -1859

To recap on last blog, 1855 - Donald had married Alexandrina Elder. They were living in the New Reay village.  They had daughter Christina and son John Elder McLeod. Donald was running his shoemaking business and was employing one apprentice. 

Shoemaker’s bench and tools at Laidhay museum

Consumption

Donald got sick. On October fourth 1859 Donald died of Consumption (aka Tuberculosis or Phthisis.)  Apparently Donald had been sick for only a few months. He had no medical attendant when he died.

Tuberculosis is an ancient contagious scourge that has killed millions of people.

It was called Consumption because the disease seemed to consume the individual, with their weight drastically dropping as the disease progressed. 

Brackside - Reay

The death certificate shows that Donald and Alexandrina were at the time living at Brackside  - a Reay settlement close to Sandside.

Source: Peter Strathearn from his mother's collection. Caithness.org

There is an interesting late 18^th century range of cottages in Reay, originally on the Brackside farm and now restored. The single-storey range of cottages, had a smithy cottage, a joiner's workshop at the east end and a communal cheese press set into a wall at the west end. I wonder if the McLeod family ever gathered here and used the cheese press.

Father John is the Informant 

There are several things about Donald’s death certificate that tell a story. The one that intrigues me most is the role his father John played. He was not present when Donald died so I can imagine the news of Donald’s death being hurried on foot to Rumsdale and John hurrying back to Reay maybe with his wife Christina. 

The death certificate tells us that John McLeod was the informant – in other words he identified his son’s body and signed his death certificate.

John’s signature here is the only example of John’s own handwriting I have got so I really value it.

Father John is also the Undertaker

More than being the informant, John was also the undertaker. 

The second death recorded on the page above shows there was a grave digger at nearby Isauld, but the third death on the page was for a woman who also died of consumption and her son-in-law was the undertaker. 

I wonder if there was such a public fear of consumption that family members had to step in and be the undertaker for such funerals. John’s other sons William, James and Farquhar had all gone to New Zealand. Alexander was 17 and still living in the district so he may have gone with his father to bury his eldest brother. 

History Repeats Itself 

As an aside, over sixty year later history would repeat itself in New Zealand with Alexander McLeod carrying the coffin of his son Matthew (my grandfather) who died of Consumption at 39 years of age, leaving a widow with six young children, one of them being my mother Joy. Alexander and Matthew were both boot and shoe makers. 

John McLeod had been born in Farr not too far away from Reay and had at least some relatives living in the area who may have been supportive. 

Women's Role

While there were all sorts of superstitions and rites for funerals in Scotland at the time they were generally family affairs. Women frequently prepared the body for burial and wrapped it in a winding cloth but did not usually attend the burial at the cemetery.

Kirk session’s usually hired out a mortcloth – a large cloth, usually black, to throw over a coffin (if a coffin could be afforded) or a corpse (if a coffin could not be afforded) at a funeral.

Donald is Buried

So father John and whoever else was there dug a grave for Donald McLeod and laid him to rest at the centuries old Reay churchyard burial ground. He was 34 years old. There does not seem to be a tombstone here for Donald. 

What happened to Alexandrina and the two young children? See next blog. 

Donald McLeod -1824 -1859

Altnabreac

In 1824 Donald McLeod was born at Altnabreac (aka Altnibreck, Aultnabreck) a farmstead three miles north of Rumsdale.

Map - Thomson, John 1819

At the start of John’s work at Rumsdale as a shepherd, the family was living at Altnabreac where there was a dwelling house available probably needed while the sheep venture at Rumsdale was getting established. 

A farmstead, comprising an unroofed building and an enclosure at Altnabreac is depicted on the 1st edition of the OS 6-inch map (Caithness 1877, sheet xxvi). The 1877 map shows Altnabreac with small pockets of developed land by the stream but it doesn’t look like there were other hamlets near by. 

Google Earth image showing the location of the farmstead at Altnabreac with the railway line and station bottom left. Obviously a lot of forestry has been planted in the area in modern times. 

Altnabreac station looking south. Am Baile

Altnabreac is now on the Far North Railway Line some 10 miles from Halkirk. The station opened in1874 and apparently is still open for some services although it is said to be one of Britain’s least used stations. Hikers who get out at Altnabreac all seem to be struck by how isolated it is and how careful they must be not to miss the return train in the afternoon and have to spend the night in this lonely place. 

I cannot imagine how isolated, lonely and cold in the winter it must have been for Christina there at Altnabreac. John would have been away a lot managing the farm – probably having to travel by foot as there was a lot of peat bog, difficult for horse travel. Christina would have had to keep the peat fire burning, winter and summer, make meals and rear her children. She had no mother to come and support her. 

Birth of Donald 

Thankfully Christina is safely delivered of her second child, a boy, who, according to custom, is named after John’s father Donald. A baby brother for Kitty. 

I must say I am thankful for every baby safely delivered to Christina out there at Altnabreac and Rumsdale. On the death record for someone else, I found the death of a woman, Elizabeth Grant, in 1874 at Rumsdale – “Died in Childbed. No Medical Attendant’ and this was fifty years after the birth of Donald. This happened only too often. 

Achreny Mission Baptism

Donald’s baptism record is from the Halkirk Parish records but it was probably at the Achreny (aka Acharynie) Mission Church which was closer to Altnabreac than Halkirk. The church is now long demolished but was near the burial ground which is still there. 

Achreny cemetery with Strathmore Lodge in the background

Move to Rumsdale

Some time between 1828 and 1830 the McLeod family, now with four young children, moved to Rumsdale about three miles away. Rumsdale was on an old route between Thurso and the Strath Halladale road so would have had travellers passing by and would not have been nearly so isolated as Altnabreac.

John Thomson's Atlas of Scotland 1832 showing 

the travellers' route passing Rumsdale. 

In census records where Donald’s siblings are shown, the school aged ones are always listed as being scholars so it is likely that Donald also went to school or was educated somehow. Both John and Christina could read and we know the family were gathered round the hearth at night to read both the Bible and some classics like Pilgrims Progress.

Little more is known about Donald for the next few decades. We know the family lived at Rumsdale, continued to grow, and that John and Christina were strong and loving parents. Family lore also has it that John McLeod made the shoes for his own family. Donald probably first learned shoemaking by watching his father work. Two of John’s sons, his eldest and youngest both became successful shoemakers.

Donald is not located on the Caithness 1841 census. He had almost certainly left home to find work.

Marriage to Alexandrina Elder

The next we hear of Donald is 1850 and he is getting married. Donald is shown as living in Reay and his bride Alexandrina Elder is from Sandside. Donald was 26 and Alexandrina was 24.

Reay 

Reay is a village which has grown round Sandside Bay on the north coast of Scotland, 12 miles from Thurso.

Old church in Reay 

The McLeod family were known to leave the established church at the time of the disruption in 1843. The established church in Reay which is still in use, was built in 1739 and is now a listed historic building. However I think it is possible that Donald and Alexandrina married in the Reay Free Church at Shebster which was built in 1843. It is described as being a T-plan with double isles and having a bellcote and Gothic detailing. It became disused in 1985.

Reay Free Church at Shebster 

Elder Family

Alexandrina Elder was born in 1827 to John Elder and Margaret Macdonald of Sandside. John is shown in the 1841 census as an Agricultural Labourer. Alexandrina was living at home with her parents, elder sister and younger brother. The house must have been busy as there are also five middle aged men in residence. 

Elder, Alexandrina, Baptism 1827  Reay

1851 Census - Master Shoemaker - a Daughter

The 1851 census gives us some interesting information about Donald and Alexandrina. 

They have a 5 month old daughter named Christina, after Donald’s mother. 

Donald is shown as being a Shoemaker (Master – employing one apprentice) and they are living in the village of New Reay. So Donald must have worked as a shoemaker apprentice and become a 'Master' with his own business.

And a Son

In 1855 a son, John Elder McLeod, is born to Donald and Alexandrina.

The Reay Old Inn built in 1739 is used by locals and travellers.

Things are looking good for this family until tragedy strikes. 

See next blog.