McWilliam of Glencorrie 1893

Relevant old photos are going to be very scarce, but let me show the oldest I have so far - of the Glencorrie McWilliam family.

Glencorrie farmhouse is the backdrop to this posed group photograph. The family moved from Smithston to Glencorrie in  1887. By the way this was seen as a positive move, Smithston being a “fairm toon” with various families living there and working the land – and Glencorrie being a small farm where the McWilliams were the only family. As well as the farmhouse there were two cottages on the farm.

This first photograph was (likely) taken in 1893 and shows the entire family of Robert McWilliam (1844 - 1915) and his wife Elizabeth Green (1849 - 1934). Rob, my own grandfather is the approx. 20 year old at the right hand side in the group of four men at the back. And he was grandfather to about 25 others, many of whom (my first cousins) I hope will have a chance to browse this blog.

We know it was taken in 1893 because the baby is Auntie Mary (1893 - 1979) - and I have gone through the photo with Helen Bennett (nee Fraser), daughter of Margaret McW and her husband Willie Fraser!

The others in the photo, to the best of our understanding (from Helen's comments as well as my father's notes on the back of the original) are in the back row: Willie (1880 - 1958), Alex (1871 - 1939), Jimmy (1869 - 1939), Rob (1873 - 1931), Jean - known as Jane (1878 - 1939), and in the front row: Baby Mary (1893 – 1979) with Granny Elizabeth (1849 – 1934), Helen- known as Nellie (1882 - 1937), Margaret (1888 - 1972), Elizabeth- known as Bessie-Ann (1876 - 1959), John - known as Jack (1884 - 1921), Peter (1891 - 1958), Grandad Robert (1844 - 1915) and Janet (1886 - 1962).

Not to neglect the maternal side of the family completely, Helen B. Tells me that Granny McWilliam (Elizabeth Green) was raised at Glack of Pitglassie – a neighbouring farm nearer Dufftown on the Cabrach road.

What became of this fine crew? Well Jimmy, as the eldest son, took over as farmer at Glencorrie on his own father’s death in 1915, and he remained there till he died in 1939. Alex and Rob worked on the farm until Alex got married and took on his own farm (Clunymore in Auchindoun), leaving Rob as 2^nd in command at Glencorrie – until his death in 1931. Of course Rob is a grandfather I never knew. He married Janet (Jessie) Pirrie in 1905 and they had a family of 10, including my own father George. I understand that Jimmy was a hard man and treated his brothers more as farm labourers. Alex also died in 1939, and his farm went to his son Robert – who lived only another 7 years and dying without children. After the death of both Jimmy and Jean in late 1939 Glencorrie left McWilliam hands (for a Soutar family), and Clunymore similarly after Robert's death in 1946. Rob's widow Jessie (my McW Granny) left Glencorrie for Dufftown during the late 1930s (year?).

The next two brothers, Willie and John left for the USA when they were young men (somewhere between 1905 and 1910), and Peter followed them later, maybe about 1920. They all settled in the New York area. John died there very young in 1921 (of an infection). Willie and Peter each died in 1958. The only offspring was Robert (Bob) – son of Willie and his wife May Younie (originally from Elgin). Helen Bennett visited Bob in NY in 1956, and she tells me that he and his wife (?) had five children.

Elizabeth (Bessie-Ann) married Willie McDonald, and they lived their lives in Dufftown (Fyfe Street and then Conval Street) where they raised a family of 10 children. Jean never married, and stayed on as housekeeper at Glencorrie until she died in 1939 (already a bad year for the McWilliam family).

Janet married Alex Taylor, a farmer from Skene, and they raised a family of 9. 
Nellie worked as a milliner in Dufftown where she married Bob Mair (a Dufftown licenced grocer). They emigrated to Vancouver, Canada in 1912 with their first three children, and then Gladys was born in Canada in 1917.

Margaret married Willie Fraser of Dufftown (a distillery manager), and they raised a family of 4 – the eldest being Helen Bennett (who has helped considerably in building up this picture). She and her two sisters live in the Aberdeen area of Scotland, while brother Ronnie is a retired Doctor in Calgary, Canada.

Mary married Peter Ramsay, and the family moved to Glasgow where Peter initially worked on the trams – and they had a family of 3 boys. Robert and Peter were in the UK forces during the 2WW. After the war Robert married Audrey and emigrated to South Africa, and  Peter moved to British Columbia where he married Ruth.
And now, as an update to this post (with thanks to Kathleen), I can give you this portrait of Great Grandfather Robert and his wife Elizabeth which was clearly taken around the same date as the family photo.

Finally, here is a picture of Glencorrie, in the middle of the photo, today. 

I understand that the new incumbents are a family named Reid. Maybe I will pay them a visit one day for a nosey around! Postcode is AB55 4DX in case you want to look it up.