Andrew Baxter (1839 - 1911)

Born 9 Jun 1839 in Burntisland, Fife, Scotland [uncertain]

Ancestors

Husband of Sophia (Morrison) Baxter — married 3 Mar 1871 in Newington, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland

Descendants

Died 20 Apr 1911 at age 71 in Burntisland, Fife, Scotland

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Louise Baxter [send private message]

Biography

Andrew was born on the 9th of June 1839 in the parish of Burntisland- the old Parish Register gives no more specific location than this.^[1] He was the second child born to his parents, Robert and Elizabeth. (Unusually, the birth records for the first 6 children in his family are all recorded together on a single page, though their births span 1835-1848. Was this a mass baptism, or were the records being reorganised for some reason?)

At the time of the March 1851 census Andrew was 11 years old and is recorded as a 'scholar'. He is living with his parents and 5 siblings at 60 Kirkton, Burntisland^[2]. His father was employed as a distillery labourer, presumably in the nearby Grange distillery^[3]. Unlike many villages in Fife, which sprang up to serve coal mines during the nineteenth century, Kirkton has been settled for centuries, with references to a church there from 1130CE^[4]. This photo^[5] shows Kirkton rather later than 1851, around the turn of the century, but the distillery chimney can still be seen, in the centre background. (click photo to enlarge; image source and more information here.)

Andrew has not yet been found in the 1861 census record- his is a very common name in the area, and at the age of 21 he could quite likely have travelled away from home to work and be lodging.

In 1871, at the age of 31, Andrew married Sophia Morrison^[6]. Their wedding took place in Viewforth Place, Edinburgh, and was conducted by James Robertson, Minister of the United Presbyterian Church, Bread Street, Edinburgh. (All the mentions I can find of this church online refer to it as some variant of "UP Church, Bread Street, later Viewforth" so perhaps the address at Viewforth was part of the property of the Bread Street congregation.) Both Andrew and Sophia give their normal place of residence at this time as Burntisland, and there were UP churches closer to them in Fife, so why would they travel all the way to Edinburgh? My research suggests that this was a time of far more division and heated debate in the Protestant church than exists today, and perhaps the couple found this particular congregation most in line with their own beliefs. Sophia was aged 24 when she married Andrew, and gives her occupation as domestic servant. Andrew's occupation is listed as boilermaker. (Boilermakers worked metal plate and tubes, often to make and repair steam boilers, but also in other areas using vats or metal plating^[7].) The names of the witnesses to their marriage are very hard to make out; if you squint they might be John Heresford and Euphemia Grieg.

The taking of the 1871 Census on the 2nd of April fell just a month after Andrew and Sophia's wedding. It finds the newly-weds living in Thistle Street, Burntisland, in a house having one room with windows. Andrew now gives his occupation as coal trimmer (this switching of jobs is a theme throughout his documented life). In a coal mine, a trimmer spreads the coal out evenly in the wagons used to transport it^[8]; in the context of docks, a coal trimmer might spread the coal in a steam ship's bunkers to keep the ship on an even keel^[9]; more generally it is sometimes used for anyone who helps move coal around, usually to feed a steam engine.

Andrew's first child was born in August 1872. As a daughter she was named after her maternal grandmother, with her grandmother's maiden name for her middle name, hence Helen Munro Baxter ^[10]. Her birth is recorded as occurring on South Street, Burntisland. Andrew gives his occupation as boilermaker.

Andrew's second child, a son he named Robert after his own father, was born in 1875^[11]. Robert's birth is recorded as occurring in Leslie's Close, Burntisland, which no longer exists but is described here as being on the north side of the High Street towards the western end. Andrew was still employed as a boilermaker.

In 1877 Sophia gave birth to a boy they named Alexander. Alexander lived for only 11 days^[12]. His cause of death is given as "premature birth." The record of interrments in Kirkton Churchyard in Burntisland shows that Andrew buried Alexander there^[13].

The third child to be born to Andrew and Sophia was a girl, born in 1878^[14]. According to prevailing tradition, she was named after Andrew's mother: Elizabeth Marshall Baxter. Elizabeth's birth is recorded as occurring in Harbour Place, Burntisland. Andrew this time gives his occupation as coal trimmer.

(To be continued when time allows.)

Sources

1. ↑ Old Parish Register of Births for Burntisland. Record ID number 411/00 0040 0163 Burntisland. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk
2. ↑ 1851 Census Return for the Parish of Burntisland. Document ID number 411/00 005/00 014. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk
3. ↑ http://www.burntisland.net/distillery.htm
4. ↑ http://www.burntisland.net/churches-article1.htm
5. ↑ http://www.burntisland.net/photos/photos-old.htm#Beach . Used by permission of Iain Sommerville, website owner.
6. ↑ Statutory Register of Marriages in 1871 in the District of Newington in the City of Edinburgh, page number 47, entry number 93. Document ID number 685/05 093. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk .
7. ↑ http://www.wcml.org.uk/our-collections/working-lives/boilermakers/ . Accessed 22/01/2016.
8. ↑ http://www.cmhrc.co.uk/site/literature/glossary/#t
9. ↑ http://rmhh.co.uk/occup/t.html
10. ↑ Statutory Register of Births 1872 in the Parish of Burntisland in the County of Fife, page number 27, entry number 81. Record ID number 411/00 0081. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk .
11. ↑ Statutory Record of Births 1875 in the Parish of Burntisland in the County of Fife, page 4, number 12. Record number 411/00 0012. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk .
12. ↑ Statutory Register of Deaths in 1877 in the District of Burntisland in the County of Fife, page number 7, entry number 19. Document ID 1877 BAXTER, ALEXANDER (Statutory Registers Deaths 411/19) . Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk .
13. ↑ Record of interments in Kirkton Graveyard at http://www.kirktonoldchurch.org.uk/webs/454/documents/Interments%20Kirkton%2006012016COMPLETE%20(2).ods%20latest.pdf . Accessed 19/08/19.
14. ↑ Statutory Register of Births in 1878 in the Parish of Burntisland in the County of Fife, page number 35, entry number 104. Document ID number 411/00 0104. Accessed via scotlandspeople.gov.uk .