April 8th

On this day in 1823 Adam Christie was born in Ord, Banff, Banffshire, Scotland.  We have a few - five actually - Adam Christies on our tree.  This one is your 3x great uncle.  His parents, John Christie and Helen Gordon, are your 3x great grandparents.  This one is a bit of a mystery - as our main Adam Christie (2xgreat grandfather) is born 12 years later.  One presumes that Uncle Adam died and the parents wanted to keep the traditional name of Adam in the family.  But I can't find any information about this Adam dying.

And also on this day - in 1898 - Peter Matthew died.  He is your 4x great uncle being the brother of your 3x great grandmother, Ann.

Peter was a farmer and lived his whole life in the Turriff area of Aberdeenshire.  Where love was concerned, he was a late bloomer.  He married for the first time in 1883 when he was 66 years old.  His wife was Jane Gill who was aged 30 at the time.  Jane was the housekeeper for the farm (Quarryhill) where Peter lived.  She was pregnant at the time of the marriage.  Mary Ann was born 5 months later.  And interestingly enough, it was on this day too - 9 years after the wedding - in 1892 - that Jane gave birth to another daughter Elsie Ann Mathew Gill who was registered as illegitimate - but was given a middle of Matthew.  Hmm.

But anyways, back to Peter and his death on April 8th in 1898.  Cause of death was cystitis blights disease of kidneys.  He was 80 years old.


And finally, on this day in 1943 Catherine McNicoll died.  Now, under normal circumstances, Catherine would not have made it into this blog as she is not blood because she is the second wife for your 3rd great uncle, Alexander Fisken.  But I make exceptions for folks like Granny Fisken! She lived until she was 102 in a lovely cottage in Luss on Loch Lomond.  Her advice for a long life?

"Tak a wee drap o' guid whisky when you can get it"