DOWNLOAD GRIERSON FAMILY TREE (pdf)
Grierson ~ Second
Generation
| Issue of John Grier and Janet McMonnies | |||
| 1. | Margaret
GRIER Bapt 27 Dec 1758 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland, no mother given (ref IGI record). "Dec 27th 1758 Margaret daughter to John Grier baptized at Shaw" (ref Parton Register). Married Robert McCARTNEY, bc1746, d. 11 May 1812 at Duchrae (ref McCartney note). However, no such marriage can be found in Scotlands People. Margaret was listed in 1841 census as "Margaret McCartney 80 years King St Castle Douglas Independent". Margaret died 28 May 1842 at Castle Douglas, Scotland named as Grierson. The
following note comes from a Memorial at Parton Kirk: |
IGI record Parton Register |
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| Child: | |||
| 1. | George
McCartney bap 1800 at Kells, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland |
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| 2. | John
GRIER Bapt 6 Apr 1762 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. "Apr 6th 1762 John son to John Grier in Shaw" (ref Parton Register). Died 20 Feb 1763 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. "Feb 20th 1763 John an infant son to John Grier in Shaw Measles" (an epidemic, ref Parton Register). |
Parton Register | |
| 3. | William
GRIER Bapt 17 Feb 1764 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. "Feb 17th 1764 William son to John Grier in Shaw" (ref Parton Register). Family story: according to John (2nd) Grierson in 1900, William was an architect who had a work accident and was crippled and could not work. William outlived his brother Robert, and was given by John (1st) the use of the property in Castle Douglas for his own benefit. It may have been William's death which led to nephew George going to Scotland in 1862. William should be able to be located in several Scottish census records. However, these records not found in Ancestry or Scotlands People. Neither is William's death or burial found. |
Parton Register | |
| 4. | George
GRIER Bapt 5 Apr 1766 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. "Apr 5th 1766 George son to John Grier in Cairn" (ref Parton Register). No burial found in parish records. |
Parton Register | |
| 5. | Robert
GRIERSON Bapt 24 Aug 1768 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland (ref register). "Aug 24th 1768 Robert son to John Grier in Shaw (crossed out) Cairn" (ref Parton Register). A very significant question is, under what circumstance did Robert inherit the money to purchase the properties that he held. If it came from his father, why did his brother William not inherit instead or as well, particularly as William outlived Robert? And what became of elder brother George? It is possible that his inheritance came from someone else. Robert held two properties on the south side of King Street or the Military Road, Castledouglas. The first was held from 1805 and was 40 feet wide by 150 feet length with a slate house. The second was acquired at an unknown date and was 40 feet wide by 160 feet length. Occupation Currier (ref property doc). Pigot's Directory lists under 'Miscellaneous' in the Castle Douglas region: "Grierson Robert, currier and leather cutter, King St." In the 1841 census for Castle Douglas, civil parish of Kelton, King Street, at position 81: GRIERSON Robert (60), skinner, Catherine (45). Even though Robert's age is given as 60 and would have been closer to 73, he is probably this one (as it is unlikely that there would be two Robert Griersons in King Street of similar ages who were curriers/skinners). Margaret McCartney (see above) is listed in the same street. Robert died in 1850 leaving no lawful issue according to family story, though no official record has been found of this. His nephew George returned to Scotland to claim his inheritance from his deceased uncle Robert and in 1862 inherited the two properties in Castledouglas as the nearest and lawful heir (ref Castledouglas property doc). Family story: according to John (2) Grierson in 1900, Robert married an Irish girl and had no children. He said the property consisted of 5 acres in Castle Douglas covered with mansions, buildings and factories. This should have gone to John (1) but he died before claiming it. |
Parton Register | |
| 6. | Jannet
GRIERSON Bapt 6 Sep 1770 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland, father listed as John Grierson, no mother given (ref IGI record). "Sep 6th 1770 Jannet daughter to John Grierson in Cairn" (ref Parton Register). No further information found. |
IGI record | |
| 7. | Mary
GRIER Bapt 9 Jan 1775 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland, no mother given (ref IGI record). "Jan 9th 1775 Mary daughter to John Grier Cairn" (ref Parton Register). No further information found. |
IGI record | |
| 8. | John
GRIERSON Bapt 13 May 1778 at Parton, Kircudbrightshire, Scotland. "May 13th 1778 John son to John Grier Cairn at Dullarg by N. McK" (ref Parton Register). Known as John (1) Grierson in family records. According to notice in newpaper 'The Age', "Died aged 77 years and 4 months" on 20 Sep 1855 so the birth was close to the baptism date. ["The Revd Nathaniel McKie, a younger son of Balmaghie, was an eccentric and witty minister of Crossmichael who wrote the humorous self-parodying song "Nae dominies for me, laddier," about a young minister spurned by a young lady for a man with finer livery" (ref Wikipedia, McGhee_family reference, and James Boswell]. According to the family story from John (2) Grierson in 1900, when his father died, John was not properly provided for. His brother Robert, however, said that he would look after John, but after some time, John became tired of waiting and enlisted. Robert again promised to look after his brother, and bought him out. But the promises weren't kept, and John asked for a cash settlement. Robert refused, so John went to Perth where he married Mary Burgess, a provost's daughter, and also enlisted in the 73rd Regiment which brought him to Australia. Note the use of the term 'bought him out' which may indicate a cash penalty to have an enlistment cancelled; the original enlistment may have been to a different regiment. John married 28 Jan 1808 at Perth, Scotland, Mary BURGESS (ref Family Bible; no record of marriage has been found in Parochial registers of Perth 1805-1810 or coterminous parishes). She was born 27 Jul 1789, bapt 2 Aug 1789, Perth, Perthshire, Scotland (ref IGI record), (daughter of George BURGESS and Jean MacGRIGOR, see BURGESS tree). In connection with the ancestry of Mary Burgess, it is possible that John (2) in old age might have been confused about whether his father or mother was connected with Rob Roy McGregor, and it may actually have been on his mother's side. John joined the 73rd Highland Regiment on 23rd September 1807, which became the 73rd Regiment of Foot in 1809. At this time the colony of New South Wales had seen the rebellion the previous year of the New South Wales Corps against Governer William Bligh, who remained defiantly in Tasmanian waters. In 1809 in London the colonial authorities began moves to remove the New South Wales Corps and its officers. Brigadier-General Miles Nightingall was appointed Governor-elect and was given the 73rd Regiment under the command of Colonel Lachlan Macquarie, who had joined the regiment in 1807. Before the team departed England, Nightingall resigned because of ill health, prompting the government to place Macquarie in total control. Two ships, HMS Dromedary and HMS Hindostan, sailed for Sydney Cove, arriving on 28 December 1809. The 1st Battalion of the 73rd Regiment landed in Sydney on 1 Jan 1810 and took over duties from the New South Wales Corps (102nd Regiment). Family members accompanied the soldiers on their journeys and Mary was heavily pregnant during this one. (A family story that John & Mary Grierson came to Australia on the troopship Merrie Monarch does not appear credible. However it is possible that one of their other sea journeys was in a ship of that name. The Merrie Monarch was a ship that is documented in Trove as sailing between England and Australia many times in the period 1861-1870; some of the passenger records are available online in Victorian records but there is no mention of a Grierson.) On 1 Jan 1810 the new Governor of New South Wales, Colonel Lachlan Macquarie, backed by the authority of the British Government and supported by the 73rd Regiment, was sworn in with a great deal of ceremony, which is documented in Memoranda & Related Papers of Lachlan Macquarie, Mitchell Library, Sydney. John was a Private in Capt. John Murray's Company in the Regiment. The regiment immediately proceeded to their station at Parramatta, where John and Mary's baby (John) was born within 6 weeks. In June 1810 Captain John Murray was appointed to be Commandant of the settlement at Hobart Town in Van Dieman's Land (Tasmania). On 19th June the ship King George with Capt Murray and his company sailed from Sydney for Hobart, the passenger list also including two prisoners under sentence of death. John and Mary and their son John thus arrived in Tasmania where baby John died in 1911 and Jane / Jean was born later that year. The previous administrator, David Collins, had died in March 1810 and was buried adjacent to the first church. This church, St David's, was a timber structure, built near the sea in the area now known as St David's Park. The church is said to have blown down in a gale. St David's Cathedral in Hobart now bears this name, but it is in a different location from that used for the burial and baptism respectively of babies John and Jane. A memorial to David Collins was later raised over his grave; this was said to have been erected immediately behind where the altar once stood, i.e. he was buried behind the altar. See the photos of the site of the old graveyard on the photo page and further information under baby John in the next generation. Duties performed by the 73rd included supervising convict work parties, policing duties, hunting down bushrangers and providing for the colony's defence. They also formed the nucleus of the first mounted police force. This force consisted of: 1 Sergeant, 1 Corporal and 6 Privates. Officers of the 73rd also organised the first horse races in Australia. After 4 years of garrison life with no real chances for military glory, unfortunately boredom and isolation caused a number of incidents that soured the relationship between the 73rd and Governor Macquarie. Macquarie was forced to remove Captain Murray from his position as Commandant of Hobart Town when it was discovered that Murray had been using labour gangs to build his mansion instead of road building. Andrew Geils, a career military officer was appointed by Macquarie to administer the settlement. However an order arrived in 1814 for the Regiment to embark for Ceylon, under the leadership of Geils. Ships that took part in this move were the Earl Spencer, General Hewitt and Windham. John, Mary and the surviving child took this journey. With thanks to Carol Brill for her contributions to this part of the story (2011). Baby George was born at sea in July 1814 near Yorkshire but it is not known whether Mary took this part of the voyage on her own. John's army papers show that he served in the East Indies from 6th Nov 1814 to 24th Dec 1814; he was invalided at Colombo on 24th Dec 1814. He was discharged on 5th Oct 1815. John was described as 'about thirty two years of age, is five feet six inches in height, fair hair, grey eyes, fair complexion, and by trade a labourer' (ref Discharge Papers). (There is an oral tradition in the family that he served at Waterloo; the battle occurred in Belgium on June 18th, 1815, the allies losing 23,000 casualties but winning the battle against the French. Whilst the 2nd Battalion 73rd served at Waterloo, there is no evidence that he transferred from the 1st/73rd to the 2nd Battalion during his Army time in England between Jan and Oct 1815. Further, there is no mention in his "Statement of Service", which is where such overseas service would be recorded.) For more information about the Regiment, see the link http://73rdregiment.tripod.com/id10.html. John and Mary and family farmed at Troqueer, near Dumfries, Scotland from (before) 1817 to (after) 1834, presumably tenanting the farm called Stonyhaugh or Starryheugh. See reference to Stonyhaugh(?) in Troqueer Register from 1820 to 1834; this is believed to be Starryheugh Farm, near Cargenbridge, close to both Maxwelltown and Troqueer. The map shows the area of Kircudbrightshire which includes Curriestanes (said to be the birthplace of Margaret Grierson p3, Starryheugh Farm (birthplace of several other children of John Grierson and Mary nee Burgess), Cargenbridge (birthplace of Sarah Broadfoot) and Troqueer, on the righ margin (birthplace of other children of John and Mary); the nearest large town is Maxwelltown. There is an actual reference in 1827 to John Grierson at 'Starryheugh on the Castle-Douglas road near Curriestanes', in the attached newspaper article from the Dumfries Courier; this describes John Grierson 'who, though a poor man, has as kind a heart, as ever warmed a breast' who discovered a man lying at a hay stack at Starryheugh, and 'Grierson, who has experienced much of the hardships of life himself, was so much affected, that he went to his master, and with tears in his eyes borrowed a shilling for the man's behoof.' His master was Mr. Pagan of Curriestanes. See the full article attached. John and Mary arrived in Victoria in 1839 on the first migrant ship to Melbourne, the David Clark (ref David Clark page and shipping record). They appear to have dropped their ages by over 10 years in order to qualify for the passage. According to Nancy Symons, her grandmother Catherine told her that John Grierson's first house in Melbourne was built near Merri Creek. It was called Willow Tree Cottage. After they moved from there to Islington Street, Collingwood (from where John used to walk to attend services in Scots Church, Collins Street), Catherine as a girl was sent each week to collect the rent from the tenants at Willow Tree Cottage. Another family story was some sort of connection with the title of the Earle of Carew but this may have been a confusion from the name Phoebe Crew. On 4 March 1841 John and Mary Grierson were admitted as Communion Members of Scots Church Melbourne, having a Commonplace Certificate in name of Rev Thorburn from Troqueer of 1st April 1839; members of one congregation who wished to transfer their congregation to another would be issued with a certificate testifying to their good standing in the church. (Available in Scots Church records.) Family story: according to John (2) Grierson in 1900, when his brother Robert died in 1850, brother William wrote out to John (1) in Australia to come and claim the property. But he did not see his way clear to go back, and died within 5 years. John died 20 Sep 1855 at Simpson's Rd, Collingwood, Victoria. No death certificate or will/probate was found. "DIED. On the 20th inst., at his residence, Simpson's-road, Collingwood, John Grierson, formerly of the 73rd Regiment, aged 77 years and 4 months. His end was peace. Deeply regretted by a numerous circle of friends." (The Argus 21st Sep 1855) Buried 22 Sep 1855 at Melbourne General Cemetery. "FUNERAL.- Friends of the late Mr John Grierson are most respectfully invited to meet at his late residence, Simpson's-road, this day, 22nd inst., for the purpose of following his remains to the place of interment, the New Cemetery. The procession to move at twelve o'clock precisely." (The Argus 22 Sep 1855) The gravestone at Melbourne General Cemetery, Presbyterian Section, Compartment G, Graves 8 and 10, contains the following inscription. The exact layout of the words is on the attached file. Those buried in the grave were family members John Grierson (1778-1855), Mary Grierson nee Burgess (1789-1870), Janet Thomas nee Grierson (1824-1861) [daughter], Janet Thomas (1849-1881) [granddaughter], James Burgess (1794-1872) [Mary's brother], Robert Jones (1856-1856) [great-grandchild], and their friend John Buchanan Davie. "Sacred to the memory of JOHN GRIERSON formerly of the 73rd Regiment who departed this life September 20th, 1855, aged 77 years & 4 months. He was regretted by all who knew him and his end was peace and his wife MARY died March 18th, 1870, aged 83 years. Also her brother JAMES BURGESS died 1872." On the same grave - "Sacred to the memory of JANET the beloved wife of MOSES THOMAS who died on the 24th day of July 1861 aged 37 years and her daughter JANET died July 9th 1881 aged 31 years. Also their friend JOHN BUCHANAN DAVIE died 1884 aged 88 years." Mary died 18 Mar 1870 at Collingwood, Victoria, Australia (Vic reg 876), buried 21 Mar 1870 at Melbourne General Cemetery (see Mary Burgess death cert and Will). When Mary died in 1870, she disinherited son George, stating in her will that he had already received considerable pecuniary assistance (see the Will), due to his return to Scotland in about 1862 to claim an inheritance and following his loss of the money and the family assistance given to return him to Australia, and also stipulated that the family bible (now in the possession of John David Grierson) was to go to her grandson John the 3rd, and not to her son, John the 2nd. The estate was mainly her home "Rose Cottage" in Simpson's Rd, Collingwood (Victoria Parade) and her household effects. At the time of her death, her brother James Burgess was living with her, and her Will allowed him to occupy the cottage and take a pension until his death, when the property was to be sold and the proceeds divided as set out in her Will. James moved to the Benevolent Asylum and died there in 1872 (see Burgess tree). |
 John Parton Register See BURGESS tree |
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| Children: | |||
| 1. | John GRIERSON born 1810 at Parramatta, NSW | ||
| 2. | Jane GRIERSON born 1811 at Hobart, Tasmania | ||
| 3. | George GRIERSON born 1814 at sea near Hull, Yorkshire | ||
| 4. | Margaret GRIERSON born 1817 at Troqueer, Scotland | ||
| 5. | John GRIERSON born 1820 at Troqueer, Scotland | ||
| 6. | Janet GRIERSON born 1824 at Troqueer, Scotland | ||
| 7. | Mary GRIERSON born 1827 at Troqueer, Scotland | ||
| 8. | Catherine GRIERSON born 1831 at Troqueer, Scotland | ||
| 9. | Elizabeth GRIERSON born 1834 at Troqueer, Scotland |
Last modified 25
Mar 2021
