* Where am I?

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Peter Collier
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Where am I?

Post by Peter Collier »

The following is the birthplace of someone who was baptised in the Parish of Castleton, Roxburghshire, in 1815:
Capture.JPG
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I can read that about half a dozen different ways. Can anyone familiar with the geography of that area tell me what it actually says?
Peter Collier

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arthurk
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Re: Where am I?

Post by arthurk »

Purely on the basis of the handwriting I'd read that as Sheilding, but as I don't know the area I'd defer to those who do.

If there isn't anyone here who knows the area, you might find it useful to look at the maps on the National Library of Scotland site - http://maps.nls.uk/index.html There's a wide variety of scales and dates to choose from. I scanned quickly through four 1:25,000 ones from the 1950s without spotting a likely place, but the larger the scale, the more individual farm names etc you're likely to find.

You may also have found this page on the parish - http://www.bordersfhs.org.uk/castleton.asp - which includes the localities named in census returns and lots of other information.
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LornaCraig
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Re: Where am I?

Post by LornaCraig »

Similarly, I have looked this old map http://www.scottish-places.info/scotgaz ... html#TMaps
but without success. I have found this site very useful in the past as it has helped identify the names of small farmsteads which no longer exist.

It has a lot of information about the parish here http://www.scottish-places.info/parishe ... ry996.html but again, no help in this case.
Lorna
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tatewise
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Re: Where am I?

Post by tatewise »

Is there anything else around that place name that might give a clue?
Maybe post a larger area of the document to include surrounding words.
Mike Tate ~ researching the Tate and Scott family history ~ tatewise ancestry
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victor
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Re: Where am I?

Post by victor »

Have a look at http://www.bordersfhs.org.uk/castleton.asp

There is a map on there. There is a place called Skelfhill on the map

Have a closer look and you may find what you are looking for

Victor
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Peter Collier
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Re: Where am I?

Post by Peter Collier »

Not much, Mike, beyond what I already gave. Here is a wider shot of the page anyway, the entry in question being the one dated 2 October 1815.
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Unfortunately, Castleton seems to be a very large parish full of many very small settlements. I may just have to go with the Parish name rather than the specific place.

Someone mentioned they read it as "Shielding", which is what I go to too, but that does seem a little too Saxon! But it might perhaps be ...aig or ...erig at the end. Looking at it, the other letters could be just about any combination of h, d, a, i, e, a, u, l, c, or r you can imagine. I've been staring at it for so long it doesn't even look like a word any more!
Peter Collier

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SunnyLady
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Re: Where am I?

Post by SunnyLady »

I agree ... to me the letters do read "shielding". But I thought it might be a corrupted version of "sheiling" which is a summer hut in Scotland and northern England... used by farmers. But it's also been used as a house name...
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gwilym'smum
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Re: Where am I?

Post by gwilym'smum »

Only a thought and is totally different, but could the first what looks like S l instead be a fancy H then udding?
Ann
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Gowermick
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Re: Where am I?

Post by Gowermick »

Hopefully, you can see the couple in the censuses. Try seeing what they say, it may give a clue to where they were born, although this may not be where they lived when they married, but you never know....
Mike Loney

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LornaCraig
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Re: Where am I?

Post by LornaCraig »

gwilym'smum wrote:could the first what looks like S l instead be a fancy H then udding?
No I am pretty sure the first letter is an S. It is similar to the first letter of the final placename in the list, Sandholm. (And for what it is worth, I can find Sandholm on a 19th century OS map.)

'Shiel' features as part of some place names in the area, e.g. Bellshiels, Shiel Sikes (sike = stream) and Foulshiels (near Greenholm, another place in the list) and Shawshiel.
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mjashby
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Re: Where am I?

Post by mjashby »

Peter,

You might want to investigate the farmstead of Shielingmoss near to Canonbie as a possibility - see http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/digit ... 4&layers=B

Mervyn
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AdrianBruce
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Re: Where am I?

Post by AdrianBruce »

To be quite honest, you'd be better off trying the Rootsweb mailing list or Rootschat message board for the county in question, simply because with any luck someone on there will recognise it. Whereas we're trying to be logical about it!

I've had, and seen others have, serious problems with Scots "place-names", many of which seem to be nothing more than a couple of houses round a farm and which appear in one source and disappear over the years, either because it got renamed, or because it quite literally disappeared. Unless you find the right 6 inch or 25 inch OS map, you're stuck. And if the place came and went before the OS, well, even more issues. And that's before we add problems with spelling....

I don't want to sound pessimistic but... "We're dooomed, Cap'n Mainwaring, dooomed, I say!" ;)
Adrian
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themoudie
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Re: Where am I?

Post by themoudie »

Aye Peter,

Did quite a few surveys around Castleton and Newcastleton and didn't hear the "Shielding" place name being used. However, as already suggested I have referred to the NLS website and trawled through all of the 25 inch to the mile, 1st edition, 1855-1882 sheets, http://maps.nls.uk/os/25inch/index.html but to no avail. There are a few groups of what appear to be dwellings outwith the named farms that have not been named and it may be one of these.

I would also advise that you speak directly with the Borders Family History Society, and may be join, they have excellent reference facilities in Galashiels; here is there website reference to Castleton: http://www.bordersfhs.org.uk/castleton.asp

I also went on the ScotlandsPeople site and made a 'Search' for William Grieg and Mary Elliot's children between 1810 and 1815 inclusive, there were three. The birth place of Adam Grieve in 1813, is again written as "Shielding", but in what appears to be a different hand. The 'd' and 'g' being noticably different from those in the 1815 record. I haven't obtained the image for the birth of Isable Grieve in 1810, as I have run out of credits! :roll: So unable to compare that hand as well. I will try and send you a copy of the Adam Grieve record for your research if you wish, directly, so as not to infringe copyright etc.

I haven't worked out how to paste images in here! So will send them via email direct to you and if you care to share them and tell me how to paste on here without a Flikr account that would be good.

My regards, Bill
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Peter Collier
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Re: Where am I?

Post by Peter Collier »

Bill - many thanks for going above and beyond!

You can email to me on petecollier [at-sign] btinternet [dot] com – Thanks again for your trouble!
Peter Collier

Collier, Savory, Buckerfield, Edmonds, Low, Dungey, Lester, Chambers, Walshe, Moylan, Bradley, Connors, Udale, Wilson, Benfield, Downey
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themoudie
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Re: Where am I?

Post by themoudie »

Morning Peter,

Email despatched , with attachments. ;)

Instructions of how to post clipped images directly into messages on this forum would be appreciated.

Thank you.

My regards, Bill
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LornaCraig
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Re: Where am I?

Post by LornaCraig »

Bill,
To add images to your post click the Attachments tab below the box where you type the message. Then click Add files and browse to the file location. Alternatively, as it says there, you can simply drag and drop files into the message box.
Lorna
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themoudie
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Re: Where am I?

Post by themoudie »

Good evening Lorna,

Thank you for your straight forward instructions, at 02:30am I don't always see the obvious! ;)

I don't cope with written 'Help' very well either, but that was really good. :D

My regards, Bill
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