The Mowats A Royal (Mile) Family History

The Mowats A Royal (Mile) Family History

MOWAT Spellings include Mouat, Mowatt, and Mowett, but originally Montealto. It is an Anglo-Scottish surname of French origins, introduced into Britain by followers of William the Conqueror in 1066. It is locational, from several French villages called 'Mont Haut', meaning hill top. Alexander Mowat (1812-1847) Alexander was born in Edinburgh to parents Thomas Mouat (c1785 - c1840) and Agnes Gowrie (1790-1855). Shoemaker Thomas had married Agnes on 16 November 1812 in Edinburgh s Canongate on the Royal Mile. Alexander, like his father, was a shoemaker and married Grace Waldie (1811-1848) at St Cuthbert s parish church in Edinburgh in 1833. They have at least 4 children: The above marriage record for Alexander and Grace reads: Alexander Mowat, Shoemaker, Residing in Kay s Court No. 76 East Crosscauseway and Grace Waldie Residing in Newington Place, both in this Parish, Daughter of Archibald Waldie, Victual Dealer, residing in No. 22 Cumberland Street, have been three times proclaimed in order to Marriage, in the Parish Church of St Cuthberts, and no objections have been offered. Married on the Tenth day of December current by the Reverend Doctor Andrew Grant, one of the Ministers of the Parish of St Andrews Edinburgh. Alexander and Grace have four children: Alexander (born 1835), married to Alice; Thomas (1838-1917), a printer, married to Margaret Ainslie; Archibald (born 1841), married Susan Nimmo in 1861; Gabriel (1844-1918), see details later. Page 1 of 9

Alexander died, cause unknown, in around 1847, closely followed by Grace, who died in South Richmond Street in the Newington area of Edinburgh from cholera on 13 November 1848 aged only 37. Gabriel Mowat (1844-1918) Gabriel was born in the Newington area in around 1844 and lived there with his grandmother Agnes after the death of his parents. Gabriel became a printer and married Ann Curtis (1848-1900) in Edinburgh on 10 August 1866. Ann is the daughter of tailor John Curtis (c1825 c1848) and Barbara Ainslie (1828 1895) who were married in Edinburgh in 1848. Gabriel and Ann lived in Anchor Close in the Royal Mile, near the City Chambers, and have a total of 13 children: Alexander (1866-1942), printer, single, died in Easter Road, Edinburgh; Barbara (born 1868) no details; Grace (1870-1946), married to printer William Gair (1864 1913), died in Craigmillar; Gabriel (1872-1915), a tailor, married to Catherine Dolan (born 1879), died in Newington from tuberculosis; Thomas (1874-1926), a coach painter, single, died in Newington. Archibald (1876-1917): Printer s labourer, married Margaret (259 Canongate). Served as Private 27867 in the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) 9 th Battalion. He died on 20 Aug 1917, likely during the third battle of Ypres, in Belgium near its western border with France. George (1878-1916), details later; Margaret (1880-1930), married to house painter Thomas Brown, died in Newington. John (1882 1915) Born in Edinburgh. A house painter, he married Catherine (Kate) McGhee (1883 1965) in 1905. John enlisted on 16 January 1915 with the Highland Light Infantry as private 18362 and died on 25 September 1915 at the Battle of Loos, France. Page 2 of 9

Jessie (1884-1932), married to joiner George Mooney, died in the Upper Bow; Fanny (1886-1958), no details; William (1889-1950), married to Catherine McNaughton or McGheechan; Agnes (1890-1981), married to publican Elliot Edgar Johnstone. Ann died at 243 High Street, Edinburgh in 1900 and Gabriel died in the Upper Bow on 20 July 1918 not long after the death of three of his sons during the Great War. George Mowat (1878-1916) George was born at 243 High Street, Royal Mile, on 27 October 1878. A printing industry worker, like his father Gabriel, he married money box maker Jessie Whitehead Bennett (1879-1948) in Blackfriars Street, off the Royal Mile, in Edinburgh on 29 December 1899. Jessie was born to single mum Jessie Whitehead (born 1853) on 27 March 1879 at the Royal Maternity Hospital, Edinburgh. She was adopted by Thomas Bennett (1847-1907) and Mary Baxter (1850-1903). Jessie Whitehead Bennett lived at 489 Lawnmarket with adoptive parents Thomas and Mary. Thomas was a boot maker and you can just see his name on and above the first floor window in 1904 in the photograph on the left. Is that Thomas walking down the steps? Page 3 of 9

The photograph on the left was taken in 2010 in James Court. The sign (circled) above the door of 477B Lawnmarket says; T BENNETT BOOTMAKER ENTRANCE 489 LAWNMARKET Photograph reproduced with kind permission from Peter Stubbs, Edinphoto website www.edinphoto.org.uk. George and Jessie have 7 children, their middle names are also shown: Thomas Paterson Bennett (1900-1977): Thomas, a publican, was married to Isabella Gerrard (1897-1941) in 1924 then to Jane Harvey (1901-1962) in 1946. Thomas died in the Upper Bow near to the Lawnmarket. Mary Baxter Bennett (1901-1963): More details on Mary later. Gabriel (1903-1983): Married to Annie Devlin (1905-1977) in 1924. George (1905-1961): Known as Guvvy, short for the Guv nor, due to the fact that he married dairy owner s daughter Margaret Ramage in 1926. You can see Ramage s Dairy shop in the photograph on the cover page. Jessie (1908-1993): Married to John Mowbray Muir (1898-1975) in 1945. Jessie died whilst resident at 457 Lawnmarket and was the last of the family to leave the Lawnie. Jessie s and John s son David was a Royal Marine who was killed in action in Aden in the Middle East in 1965 aged only 18. Susie (1911-1984): Married George Gray (1909 1996) in 1933. The photograph on the left shows Jessie and John, standing, at Susie s and George s wedding. Page 4 of 9

Grace (1915-1934): Bunty was single and died at 312 Lawnmarket from tuberculosis. George Mowat died on 1 July 1916, the first day of the Battle of the Somme. George was a member of the 16 th Battalion Royal Scots, also known as McCrae s Own. Edinburgh businessman and politician Colonel George McCrae (1861 1928) formed this Battalion (consisting of A, B, C and D companies) which included many of the city s sportsmen, including a number of Hearts footballers, in C company. Most of the Battalion s original 1,392 men did not survive the war. Private 25090 George Mowat lived at 501 Lawnmarket (11 James Court) and joined B Company of the 16 th Battalion of the Royal Scots on 17 May 1915 in Edinburgh aged 36. Included in B Company were a large number of George s fellow Edinburgh printing industry workers. He was 5 feet 4 inches tall, 8 stones and 7 pounds, and had a tattoo of his date of birth on his left arm and an anchor on his right. He wore glasses; his eyesight was poor due to his work, but not poor enough to prevent enlistment. On 18 June 1915 around 1100 soldiers of the 16 th Battalion left on a train from Waverley Station for a camp in Ripon in North Yorkshire. On the 23 August 1915 George s daughter Grace was born. In September 1915 the Battalion moved to another camp in Sutton Veny in Wiltshire for final training. They left nearby Southampton for Le Harve in France on the paddle steamer Empress Queen on 8 January 1916. The Battalion was involved in a number of contacts with the German army up to the 1 June 1916, when, shortly after 7:30 in the morning, 814 men of the 16 th Battalion went over the top at the Somme. George was killed during this initial advance. By the 4 July, the Battalion had lost 636 men. The British army had some 20,000 men killed on the 1 July alone. Page 5 of 9

It is likely George s body was never identified as his final resting place is not known. He is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial in France, along with over 72,000 other British and South African soldiers from the Somme battles whose burial locations are also unknown. Sadly, wife Jessie s letter to the army, left, enquiring about George, was posted 11 days after his death. Two of George s brothers, Archibald and John, were also killed during the Great War. In 1917 Jessie was awarded a war widow s pension of 29 shillings per week. In August 1918, after many other battles in World War 1, the 16 th Battalion was disbanded. Jessie died on 21 November 1948 at 447 Lawnmarket aged 69. Most of the information about the 16 th Battalion Royal Scots came from the book McCrae s Battalion: The Story of the 16 th Royal Scots, by Jack Alexander. Mary Baxter Bennett Mowat (1901-1963) Mary Baxter Bennett Mowat was born on 3 May 1901 at St James Place, Greenside, Edinburgh and is the daughter of George Mowat (1878-1916) and Jessie Whitehead Bennett (1879-1948). Page 6 of 9

On 24 September 1918, at 493 Lawnmarket, rubber worker Mary married soldier James Duffie (1900-1977). William Lightheart (1898 1956) was a witness, presumably the best man, at the wedding (circled below). James and Mary divorced in 1922, and Mary then married her former best man on 18 August 1924 at Greyfriars Place, Edinburgh. Mary, now a picture house attendant, and William, a labourer, lived at 493 Lawnmarket after the wedding. They were joined by Mary s daughter, Catherine, who was born in 1921. Above, the marriage record of Mary Baxter Bennett Mowat and William Mathieson Lightheart from 1924. Mary Baxter Bennett Mowat. Pictured left before her marriage, aged 17, to James Duffie who was only a year older. Right, Mary at around the time of her marriage to William Lightheart, centre. Page 7 of 9

William and Mary have six children, their middle names are also shown: Catherine Eagle (born 1921), left: Born in the Lawnmarket. Married Maurice Anderson (1913-1976) in 1941 in Edinburgh. Mary Mowat (1924-2007), right: Born in the Lawnmarket. Married Royal Navy sailor Andrew Browning Ford (1924 2003) in 1945 in Edinburgh. Edward James (1926-1997). Born in Milne s Court in the Lawnmarket. Married Jane McTernan (1934-1997) in 1957 in Edinburgh. George Mowat (born 1928): Born in James Court in the Lawnmarket. Married Evelyn Sweeney (1929-1976) in 1960 in Edinburgh. William Mathieson (1933-1948): Born at 312 Lawnmarket. William died at home in Craigmillar Castle Avenue, Edinburgh, from heart disease. The photograph above shows Mary with her boys, from left to right, George, William and Edward. Elizabeth Ross (1935-1937). Elizabeth was born at 312 Lawnmarket and died in the City Hospital, Edinburgh, from whooping cough and pneumonia aged only 14 months. Mary, pictured with Elizabeth, left, and her family lived in Hay Road in the Niddrie area of the city at the time baby Elizabeth died. Page 8 of 9

FAMILY ALBUM Andrew Browning Ford (1924 2003) and Mary Mowat Lightheart (1924 2007) were married at St. Giles on the Royal Mile in 1945. Above is Mary (Mowat) Lightheart on the right, with sister Jessie (Mowat) Muir, and brother Thomas Mowat. The best man was Harry Scott, Andrew s brother-in-law, and the bridesmaid was Mary s friend from the Lawnmarket, Bessie Rennie. Katie Doig Mary Mrs Black Jessie Mrs Doig This photograph from around 1937 includes Jessie Lizzie Brydon Susie Mowat, and daughters Mary and Susie, and Susie s daughter Grace. Also included are their friends Mrs Doig and her daughter Katie, Mrs Black and Lizzie Brydon. Grace The names of the rest are unknown at this time. The photograph on the right was taken in around 1962. At the back are (maiden names in brackets) Mary (Mowat) Lightheart, Mary (Lightheart) Ford, Jessie (Mowat) Muir, Jane (McTernan) Lightheart, Catherine (Lightheart) Anderson, holding young Jane Lightheart (daughter of Edward and Jane Lightheart), and John Muir. In front are Andrew Ford and Alex Anderson (son of Catherine Anderson). Page 9 of 9

Edward Lightheart 1808-1869 Married 1832 Mary O Neil 1811 1877 Robert Hay 1810 - c1850 Married 1837 Janet Aitchieson 1817-1861 Hector McCulloch c1782 c1840 Married c1815 Mary Munro c1795 c1870 Roderick Mathieson c1790 c1850 Married c1820 Elizabeth McKay 1800 c1860 John Lightheart 1833-1890 Born Athlone, Died Edinburgh Married 1862 High Street, Edinburgh Grace Hay 1840 1969 Born Edinburgh, Died Edinburgh William McCulloch c1821 1890 Born Lochcarron, Died Lawnmarket Married 1856 High Street, Edinburgh Eliza Mathieson 1822 1886 Edward Lightheart 1863 1938 Born Lawnmarket, Edinburgh Died Lawnmarket, Edinburgh William Lightheart Married 1887 1898 1956 Edinburgh Born Lawnmarket, Edinburgh Died Craigmillar, Edinburgh Alexandrina McCulloch 1867 1934 The LIGHTHEART - MOWAT Family Tree Born High Street, Edinburgh Died Lawnmarket, Edinburgh Mary 1924-2007 Born Lochcarron, Died Lawnmarket Edward 1926-1997 Married 1924 George b. 1928 Alexander Mowat Greyfriars, Edinburgh William 1933-1948 1811-1847 Married 1833 Grace Waldie 1811-1848 Gabriel Mowat 1844 1918 Born Edinburgh, Died Upper Bow George Mowat Elizabeth 1935-1937 Married 1866 1878 1916 John Curtis c1825 c1848 Married 1848 Barbara Ainslie 1828 1895 Edinburgh Ann Curtis or Ainslie 1848 1900 Born Edinburgh, Died Edinburgh Thomas Bennett 1847-1907 Mary Baxter 1850-1903 Born Lawnmarket, Edinburgh Died The Somme, France Married 1899 Edinburgh Mary Mowat 1901 1963 Born Greenside, Edinburgh Died Upper Bow, Edinburgh Catherine b. 1921 Nicholas Whitehead 1819-1876 Married 1849 Marion Lennie c1825-1873 Adoptive parents of Jessie Married 1918 Jessie Whitehead Born 1853 Born Edinburgh Jessie Whitehead 1879 1948 Born Edinburgh Died Lawnmarket, Edinburgh James Duffie 1900 1977 Lawnmarket, Edinburgh Born, died Edinburgh Single mother to Jessie Mary and James divorced in 1922.