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.