Brick Wall - James Robertson

Several weeks ago I wrote about Alice Robertson Crawford. More recently I wrote about her maternal grandfather, James Crockart and his twelve children. It’s amazing how much less information I have about Alice’s paternal grandfather, James Robertson Sr.

In 1841 a young woman names Jane Simpson was sixteen years old and was living with her parents William and Helen Simpson in the Parish of Caputh, Perthshire, Scotland in a house known as “Lake Side Clunie”. Also in the household was Jane’s much older brother and sister, William and Margaret, as well as a young relative also named Jane Simpson. No record of Jane’s marriage can be found but in 1844 her son, James Robertson Jr, was baptized in Caputh. The church record reads “James Robertson, Loch side of Clunie, and his wife Jane Simpson had a son born 12^th August 1844, named James”.

By the time of the next census in 1851 both James Sr and Jane seem to have disappeared. James Jr was six years old living with his grandparents, William and Helen still in Caputh. By 1861 William and Helen had died and James an apprentice carpenter was under the care of his aunt Margaret, who was working as a dress maker.

In 1868 James Jr married Ann Crockart and listed his mother as the deceased Jane Robertson, maiden name Simpson, and his father as the living James Robertson, a spirit dealer. In 1893 a widowed James Jr married again to Susan Ramsey. This time he listed both his parents as deceased and he gave his mother as Jane Simpson, deceased domestic servant without a married name. He also gave his father as James Robertson, Hotel Keeper. James Jr’s final civil registration was his death certificate in 1906. His son William was the informant and the information was the same as on the second marriage cert, however this time below James’ name there was the word “Illegitimate”, implying that James’s parents were never married.

James Robertson Jr

This is all I know about the elusive James Robertson Sr. It seems likely that Jane Simpson died soon after her son’s birth and that James Sr moved away from the area, leaving James Jr with his grandparents, however, there is so much I don’t know. I’m not sure if he and Jane Simpson were ever married, while they are listed as married on the birth record it’s possible that Jane lied about being married so that her son would be baptized as legitimate and the later records are correct. Or it’s also possible that they really were married, but James Jr’s children came to believe that he was illegitimate because of the absence of his father. I’ve sifted through many James Robertsons on the Scottish censuses, but so far haven’t found one likely to be my ancestor. All of the Scottish relatives my father remembers are on other sides of the family and no one seems to know anything about him. It’s possible that when the kirk session minutes are released more light might be shed on the mystery, but I’m not sure that many records from the Caputh parish survive. I’m also hopeful that DNA could give some help and I have tracked down two matches, most likely on that side of the family who are both descended from a couple from the area named David Harley and Elizabeth Sommerville, however I have yet to connect them to any likely James Robertsons or discover anything else that might link them to the family. For now James and his ancestors remain a mystery.