SIB FOLK NEWS - Orkney Family History Society

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Issue No. 47 September 2008 NEWSLETTER OF THE ORKNEY FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY 19 Fstepped down into the common room, his mind already forming some words of comfort for his stricken charge. Fubbister was sprawled on the hearth. A keening sound escaped his lips. He cursed, and grimaced with pain, and tears coursed down his cheeks. Upon the sight of Henry he reached out his hands, and begged for mercy. Henry stopped in his tracks, exchanging glances with his stern-faced clerks, standing over the stricken man. What was to be made of this? ‘He’s done for, I reckon’ said one. ‘Never seen such a display’, exclaimed the second. Fubbister clutched at Henry’s trouser leg, his grip like steel. ‘Hear me sir,’ he begged through tears and clenched teeth. ‘Take pity upon a poor, helpless, abandoned wretch! Treated cruel have I been sir! Oh God!’ He shuddered as his body was wracked with another seizure. ‘I’m having a baby sir!’ The men stood thunderstruck, staring at the figure on the floor. Impossible! An Orkney girl? Here? ‘He’s mad,’ said one of the clerks, slowly shaking his head. ‘The fever’s gone to his head, sir.’ ‘‘I’m not mad, damn you!’ screamed the figure on the hearth. I’m a girl!’ And so saying, he reached up, and tearing open his jacket, revealed a pair of round white breasts. One can imagine the confusion of the next moments as these rough and bush-hardy veterans faced a situation that none of them had ever prepared for. Bears, hostile natives, drownings and freezings were all a matter of course, but Orkney girls whelping on one’s hearth were quite beyond the pale. Damning his eyes for him, Henry sent one of his men to fetch a midwife, while the other rushed to fetch a blanket and boil water, or whatever it is that one does in such moments of crisis. Meanwhile, Henry knelt next to a person he had just recently known as John Fubbister, and heard the amazing tale of Isabel Gunn. She was born in the Orkneys, and as a young woman, she had been debauched by one John Scarth, who had subsequently decamped for Hudson’s Bay. This resourceful and amazing woman, learning that her lover was bound for the wilds of Canada, had signed on with the HBC as a man, and obtained passage to the Northwest. She had successfully maintained her cover for nearly two years before her condition revealed her true nature. Within the hour, Isabel was delivered of a fine, healthy baby boy, whom she named James. Both mother and son were in excellent health and soon recovered enough to travel, so they were packed off in Henry’s cariole that very afternoon to Grandes Fourches, where she was reunited with her lover. And so ended the career of John Fubbister, and likewise, the amazing true story of Isabel Gunn, the first European woman to give birth in the Northwest. Isabel Gunn was born in Tankerness, Orkney in 1781. Her lover was John Scarth from the parish of Firth. To avoid being separated, Isabel disguised herself as one John Fubbister, and signed on with the HBC in June, 1806 at Stromness, Orkney. The pair sailed to Albany on Hudson’s Bay aboard The Prince of Wales that summer. In 1807 she was assigned to a brigade under the command of Hugh Heney and traveled to the Red River area, where she gave birth to her son, James. After the birth, she returned to Albany, took the name of Mary, and worked as a nurse and washerwoman until being sent home in 1809. She died a pauper at Stromness, on November 7, 1861. Bibliography Henry, Alexander (the Younger). The Journal of Alexander Henry The Younger 1799-1814. The Champlain Society, University of Toronto Press, 1988. ISBN 0-9693425- 0-0. Volume 1, pp. 299-300. Henry, Alexander (the Younger). New Light on the Early History of the Northwest : The Manuscript Journals of Alexander Henry... Elliot Coues (ed.) Reprint-Ross & Haines : Minneapolis, 1965. Originally published 1897. p. 426. Van Kirk, Sylvia. Many Tender Ties : Women in Fur- Trade Society, 1670-1870. Watson & Dwyer : Winnipeg, 1980. ISBN 0-920486-06-1, pp. 175-177. Copyright 1994-2002 Northwest Journal ISSN 1206-4203 L Robert trawled up this gem from WWII The “Isles” class trawlers were a class of trawler used by the Royal Navy and Canadian Navy during the Second World War. Length 164 feet , Beam 27.7 feet and Draught 8.6 feet with a speed of 12 Knots and a complement of 40. A total of 168 ships of this class were built and were mainly used on harbour defence duties and minesweeping. Twelve Isles class trawlers were lost during the war. As one might expect many of these ships had Orcadian names including:- HMS Eday, Egilsay, Fara, Flotta, Hoy and my main interest HMS Graemsay (T291) built at Ardrossan Dockyard, launched 3 rd August 1942. Robert Whitton, Member No 218 Edinburgh, Scotland
20 Did you know Interest in genealogy is certainly growing but despite this you will find that most people can go no further back than their grandparents and very few beyond their great-grandparents about whom they know very little. In contrast many can give the detailed pedigree of their dogs for generations back. NEWSLETTER OF THE ORKNEY FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY Issue No. 47 September 2008 The General Register Office for Scotland made available the Modern Day Indexes up to 2006 for births and deaths both in their office and on the Scotlands People website on 23 January 2008. This now means that even though recent actual records are not available on line the indexes are and you can therfore identify potential records to examine if you should wish to visit, or have a researcher visit on your behalf. The National Archives of Scotland are undergoing a renovation of their premises and are working with the General Register Office of Scotland and the Court of the Lord Lyon to create a new family history centre. Full information of this exciting development can be found at http://www.scotlandspeoplehub. gov.uk/ As access to the building is likely to alter you should check in advance to ensure that the records you need are available. If you are new to researching material at these locations you may find the following information helpful. Don’t Go Un-Prepared (Fail to prepare – Prepare to Fail) Accessing the records at National Archives of Scotland can be a bit daunting and it is suggested that if you intend to visit you obtain one of the comprehensive guides available on their web page http://www.nas.gov.uk/default.asp and also check out the indexes to save time when you arrive. Note that different records can be held at 2 different locations so it is important that you identify what you wish to search and find out what is available together with the relative references before you travel. Note that the General Register House is at present separate from the General Registrar of Scotland Office where the Births deaths and marriage are located. General Register House General Register House can be found at the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh’s city centre. Two search rooms are housed there: the Historical Search Room and the Legal Search Room. The Historical Search Room is used for researching family, local, national and international history. The Legal Search Room is used for certain types of legal and Know your way around West Register House and Register House Edinburgh By Robert Whitton. Member 218 commercial research, primarily using the public registers and adoption records. West Register House West Register House is situated in Charlotte Square, off the west end of Princes Street. The search room here is known as the West Search Room, where you can consult court and government records and maps and plans. The main classes of records available at West Register House are, Modern government files: records of the Scottish Office and Scottish Government; Court records: Court of Session; High Court of Justiciary (after 1800); sheriff court records (excluding wills); divorces (to 1983), Records of the former nationalised industries and transport: rail and canal systems, coal, gas, electricity and steel industries; Business records and Maps and plans. Case Study I wished to research a Light House Keeper called James Ritch who was born on Graemsay. Orkney on the 5th October 1854 (Articles about his wife Mary Mowat have previously appeared in previous editions of SIB News). I had located James, a brother of my Great Grandfather, in the various census records and had already located his birth, christening, marriage and death records. These gave a hint as to where he lived but I wished to know which Light Houses he had worked on. The web page for the Bell Rock Lighthouse confirmed that he had been there, but I wanted exact dates. I went to the Northern Lighthouse Board Offices at 84 George Street, Edinburgh and was given an information sheet that told me that their archives had been placed with the National Archive of Scotland. Much information about the NLB can be accessed at www.nld.org.uk The main Northern Lighthouse Board records are held at West Register House where access can be given to the actual records but these are held in a depositary on the west side of Edinburgh so 2 days’ notice is required. The staff records are available on microfilm at the General Register House, Edinburgh. The building is being renovated but having A
Page 1 and 2: SIB FOLK NEWS NEWSLETTER OF THE ORK
Page 3 and 4: Issue No. 47 September 2008 Overloo
Page 5 and 6: Issue No. 47 September 2008 NEWSLET
Page 13 and 14: 14 NEWSLETTER OF THE ORKNEY FAMILY
Page 17: 18 NEWSLETTER OF THE ORKNEY FAMILY
Page 23: MEMBERSHIP subscriptions etc THE OR

SIB FOLK NEWS - Orkney Family History Society

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?