Genealogy Chat

I have a bit of a dilema.

I've been searching for the birth of my Thomas Sommerville since I can't find a marriage.

The thing is mine was from Wishaw but on Scotlands people the only ones I can find born around the same time c1827 are...
1. Born 1824 in Carnwath and
2. born 1826 in Shotts.

How do I work out which is the one I'm after?

Thomas's wife was Elizabeth Douglas whom was also apparently born in Wishaw.

I've obtained the approx year of birth from census working on an average and the location of birth from the same source.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated - it's starting to give me a headache. :-(

Please can anyone help :-D

Gypsyjoe

Is this your Thomas in 1901 - the Hamiltons are his daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter:

1901 Scotland Census
about Thomas Sommerville
Name: Thomas Sommerville
Age: 72
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1829
Relationship: Head
Gender: Male
Where born: Wishaw, Lanarkshire
Registration Number: 628
Registration district: Cambusnethan
Civil parish: Cambusnethan
County: Lanarkshire
Address: Coltness Mains Farm
Occupation: Gasman
ED: 3
Household schedule number: 9
Line: 7
Roll: CSSCT1901_253
Household Members: Name Age
Thomas Sommerville 72
Lizzie Hamilton 46
Thomas Hamilton 46
Lizzie D Hamilton 14

Here he is in 1851

SOMERVILLE Thomas Head M M 24 Labourer Carter Lanarkshire - Wishaw Town
SOMERVILLE Elizabeth Wife M F 22 Lanarkshire - Wishaw Town

1841?

SOMERVILLE James M 40 Labourer Lanarkshire
SOMERVILLE Christian F 40 Lanarkshire
SOMERVILLE Mary F 17 Lanarkshire
SOMERVILLE Thomas M 15 Lanarkshire
SOMERVILLE Jane F 7 Lanarkshire
SOMERVILLE Margt F 4 Lanarkshire

Piece: SCT1841/628 Place: Cambusnethan -Lanarkshire Enumeration District: 5
Civil Parish: Cambusnethan Ecclesiastical Parish, Village or Island: -
Folio: 628 Page: 28
Address: Marshalls Row, Wishawtown

Did he die in Scotland? His death cert should name his parents.

Father: Thomas Sommerville
Mother: Elizabeth Douglas

CHRISTINA SOMMERVILLE - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Birth: 13 MAR 1867 Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland

JAMES SOMMERVILE - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Birth: 16 MAR 1856 Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland

ROBERT DOUGLAS SOMMERVILLE - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Birth: 16 MAR 1862 Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland

JOHN DOUGLAS SOMMERVILE - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Birth: 08 SEP 1858 Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland


If you recognise these children's births as belonging to your Thomas and Elizabeth, downloading any one of them from Scotlandspeople will also register the date and place of the parents marriage.

Potty I have wondered if that 1901 census was the right family, He did have a daughter Elizabeth born about 1854 though I've not found her birth yet. I've also not found his death yet either.

Beverly I too came up with the same one's for 1851 and1841 but now I'm thinking that the 1841 lot are the wrong ones. Mainly because of trying to find marriages that match.

Helen thanks for that I've come up with those ones myself, it's jsut getting back past Thomas I'm having the issue with, especially since I can't find a marriage for him and Elizabeth.

Gypsyjoe

Helen - not any of them. Parents marr details were dropped off b.regos 1856-1860. See:
http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/Content/Help/index.aspx?r=554&628#Births

As mgnv correctly points out, the parents marriage details will not be able to be found on the birth certificates for James Sommerville and John Sommerville.

However, the birth certificates for Christina and Robert Sommerville should record the date and place of their parents marriage.

If you are able to find this marriage, it will be in the form of an Old Parish Record which may hold varying amounts of information .. some parishes recording more information than others.

Scotlandspeople: Free search

Based on the 1901 census Potty listed.

Possible death:

Thomas Sommerville
1910
County: Lanark
District: Cambusnethan

Age 82yrs (birth year 1828)


Edit: Death certificate should record the parents names ... if known by the informant.

Also the name of the wife of the deceased.

There was another Thomas Sommerville-Elizabeth Douglas birth in the IGI, namely

THOMAS SOMMERVILLE - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Male Birth: 21 JUN 1864 Cambusnethan, Lanark, Scotland

Gypsy Joe -
I would have thought that the 1841 census is your family, especially since Helen has found the children of Thomas and Elizabeth - oldest son James, oldest daughter Christina (Christian), plainly named after Thomas's parents.

Oooh I'm feeling so confused now.

I'll look out the birth certificate for Christina and Robert Sommerville as suggested Helen I can't remember if I've searched for them or not.

I really wish I had unusual names it would make things so much easier.

I'll keep everyone one posted with what I find.

Thanks again for all your help everyone. :-D :-D

Gypsyjoe

Okay so I found Christina's birth record and have thus found her parents Thomas Sommerville and Elizabeth Douglas's marriage date, but when I search on scotlands people they don't appear. :-( Can anyone suggest a reason why. :-S

They were married supposedly on May 7th 1846 in Wishaw.

Gypsy Joe

I just looked on ScotlandsPeople and a search for surname Somerville, wife's name Douglas in Lanark between 1844 and 1848 shows two results.

Are you sure you looked under Pre-1855 Banns and Marriages?

Hi Berverly

I did, I think I had two M in Sommerville though but I didn't do an exact seach though. :-(

I'll try again just using the one M, and get back to you.

Okay I did a search for Somerville and Douglas between 1841 and 1851 in Lark and came up with one, and it's the wrong one.

I then tried putting in two M's and nothing comes up.

No idea what is going on. :-(

I'm now starting to think maybe her names wasn't Elizabeth.

Marriage records cannot be found for several reasons ..

One being the parish record book did not survive.

Or perhaps they were married in one of the churches that broke away from the established church (Church of Scotland) after the disruption in 1843.

In which case they may have been married in the Free church .. etc.

Some of these records are kept in the General Register in Edinburgh but I don't know how you would track down your particular record.

It might be worth downloading the death record for the Thomas Sommerville mentioned above. Might not be yours, but at least it would eliminate it from your search. If it turns out to be the correct death, it should mention his parents names .. if known. Also if he was a widower of Elizabeth Douglas.

Just for interest, a tree on Ancestry has Thomas (1827-1910) as son of James Somerville (1800-1868) and Christian Baird (1801-1870).
Sisters Mary, Jane and Margaret (as per 1841 census).
Wife Elizabeth Douglas (1829-1898 - died in West Lothian) daughter of John Douglas and Elizabeth Young.

If what you are really interested in is the ancestry of Thomas, I think that the 1841 census is definitely the right family.
As Helen has said, the death certificate would give you some confirmation.