Trostan Westfield Cemetery - MCLEOD, HENDESON, MORGAN

[Peterd500]

Does anyone have access to burial data or headstone data or photos for Trostan Westfield cemetery after 1855? There doesn't seem to be anything online and the pre 1855 books are no good to me.

I am confident that my ancestor Catharine MCLEOD 1795 Halkirk-1886 Reay married twice, first to Peter SINCLAIR in 1820 and then Alexander HENDERSON in 1825. Catharine & Alexander and some of their children lived in the Shebster area and it is likely that some are buried at Trostan Westfield. Catharine's sister Elizabeth MCLEOD and her husband Alexander MORGAN are buried there (married 1821). Catharine & Elizabeth MCLEOD's parents were William MCLEOD & Janet HENDERSON who had their family in Halkirk parish either side of 1800 but moved to Achnavast in Thurso parish. Achnavast in Thurso parish and Shebster in Reay parish are near each other with Trostan Westfield in the middle. Catharine resided at Achnavast when she married Peter SINCLAIR and also when she married Alexander HENDERSON as did her sister Elizabeth at Achnavast when she married Alexander MORGAN. Alexander MORGAN was a witness at Catherine's marriage. Peter SINCLAIR is buried at Crosskirk cemetery by the northern coast near Forss. He was a blacksmith at Forss when daughter Catharine SINCLAIR was baptised in 1822 and that's what it says on his headstone. Unfortunately the details of age and death on the stone are illegible partly because of idiots trying to render them readable by scratching them. But his death soon after his daughter Catharine's baptism will explain why we can find no further issue to him and Catharine MCLEOD and also the latter marrying again, to Alexander HENDERSON.

Catharine & Peter's daughter Catharine SINCLAIR 1822-1908 married David SINCLAIR 1812-1891 in 1846 and they went to Victoria AUstralia where their son Peter SINCLAIR married Annie MCDONALD in 1876 and went to New Zealand. Peter & Annie are my great grandparents.

Here's the family of Catharine MCLEOD & Alexander HENDERSON in 1841.

06 Jun 1841 Census of Scotland
@ Bardna-oich [Bardna'vich?], Reay, Caithness
HENDERSON Alexr. 45 Farmer Y
HENDERSON Catharine 40 Y
HENDERSON Alexr. 14 Y
HENDERSON Peter 9 Y
HENDERSON William 6 Y
HENDERSON Donald 6 Y
HENDERSON Jannet 12 Y
SINCLAIR Catharine 19 F.S. Y
MCDONALD Alexr. 18 M.S. Y


Catharine SINCLAIR above (baptised 1822 + 19 yrs = 1841) will be Catharine HENDERSON's daughter from her first marriage to Peter SINCLAIR. I am wondering if Catharine senior's son Peter to Alexander HENDEZRSON was named for her first husband. I know it was not uncommon for husbands to have children from a marriage named after a previous wife.

Janet HENDERSON in the 1841 census above married Alexander MACKAY in 1860 and had children Alexander 1862 and Donald 1866. Alexander MACKAY was previously married to Sinclairina POLSON.

Peter HENDERSON in the 1841 census above married Margaret Donaldina BRUCE in 1858 and they had children Johan (Joan( 1858, Catharine 1860, Donaldina 1867, Ann (Annie) 1869, Margaret 1872, Alexanderina 1874 and Peter abt 1876. Ann married John HENDERSON.

In later census data the family and subsequent families were at Achybeg, Achalone (Auchalone), Yellow Moss, Bardanihigh, et.al, all in the Shebster area.

Alexander HENDERSON died 1863 at Achebeg in the Shebster area.
His wife Catharine MCLEOD died 1886 at Shebster.
Peter HENDERSON was a farmer at Achybeg but he and his wife Margaret who also died in the Shebster area and children Peter and Margaret are buried at Reay New Cemetery.
Janet HENDERSON and her husband Alexander MACKAY were still living at Shebster in the 1891 census.
Peter's brother William lived in Peter's household and he was in Peter's widow Margaret's household in 1901 at Achibeg.

Can anyone tell me if any of the above are buried at Trostan Westfield and , if so, the details?

Elizabeth MCLEOD and her husband Alexander MORGAN are definitely buried at Trostan Westfield.

Peter
Christchurch, New Zealand

[Peterd500]

Have discovered a brand new branch!

Janet MCLEOD bap 1801 at Halkirk the daughter of William MCLEOD & Janet HENDERSON married William MCKAY in 1822 at Thurso parish, both resident at Achnavast, Thurso.

William MCKAY & Janet MCLEOD had quite a few issue when William was a tenant at Achnavast, then Bardnaclavan, then Oust, then away from the district to Forss, then Thurso where he was a labourer. The 1841 census finds them in Scrabster.

Issue to William MCKAY & Janet MCLEOD:

Janet MCKAY 1822 @ Achnavast married in 1847 at Olrig parish James MORE (MOIR) and died 1858.
Alexander 1824 @ Achnavast
Margaret 1827 @ Bardnaclavan
William 1832 @ Oust
Andrew 1834 @ Oust
Margaret 1836 @ Newlands of Oust
James 1839 @ Forss
Elizabeth (Betsey) @ Thurso

A witness to the baptism of Alexander was Catharine MCLEOD in Achnavast. SHe must be Catharine who married Alexander HENDERSON the following year.
Andrew and the younger Margaret'ss baptisms were witnessed by Catharine SINCLAIR who will be Catharine MCLEOD's daughter from her first marriage to Peter SINCLAIR.

Issue to James MORE & Janet MCKAY:

George 1848 Olrig
Jacobina 1850 Olrig married john AULD in 1867
Janet 1850 Olrig Latheron
William 1852 Latheron
Elizabeth 1854 Leurary, married David Ferguson MLEOD (jr) in 1877
Alexandrina 1856 Watten
Margaret 1858 Wick

Peter


Peter

[Peterd500]

am going ahead in leaps and bounds

two more branches!

William MCLEOD & Janet HENDERSON's daughter Margaret MCLEOD (bap 1791 Halkirk) was residing at Achnavast in Thurso parish when she married John OMAN in 1809. They appear to have had a number of issue at Watten parish.

William MCLEOD and Janet HENDERSON's son Andrew MCLEOD (bap 1805 Halkirk) married Ann GRANT, they residing at Achnavast. Their fathers were the witnesses by the looks of things. May have had no issue.

A "nephew" was the informant on Andrew's death cert who gave Andrew's mother as Christina HENDERSON but I am sure he got her wrong because she is sure to be Janet HENDERSON instead. The Achnavast location is the giveaway. Not only that, the "nephew" in fact was Ann GRANT's nephew, not Andrew's, and the "nephew lived in Orkney. The "nephew was David SMITH son of David SMITH (from Halkirk) & Catherine GRANT, Ann GRANT's sister, their fathr being Alexander GRANT. Naturally Achnavast features strongly for the marriage of Catherine GRANT & David SMITH as well.


The Achnavast location holds these MCLEODs together. The marriages were all Thurso parish with Achnavast as a residence as the common thread but census data correctly gives halkirk for the births of these MCLEODs.

To summarise so far:

William MCLEOD & Janet MCKAY had the following children baptised at Halkirk parish (they lived at Harpsdale):

Margaret MCLEOD 1791 = 1809 John OMAN
Elizabeth MCLEOD 1793 = 1821 Alexander MORGAN
Catharine MCLEOD 1795 = 1820 Peter SINCLAIR, 1825 = Alexander HENDERSON
David MCLEOD 1798
Ann MCLEOD 1800
Janet MCLEOD 1801 = 1822 William MCKAY
Andrew MCLEOD 1805 = 1832 Ann GRANT

Peter