1833-People in Thurso & other parts of Caithness mentioned in will of Donald MILLER

[kristy_mac8]

My g-g-g-g-grandfather was Donald MILLER, a Shipmaster of Thurso, who died in 1833. I downloaded his will, and there is some information in it which might interest people researching ancestors in Thurso, and some other parts of Caithness.

At the time of his death, he owned the Sloop Alexander of Thurso, valued at 145 pounds, and three-fourth parts of the sloop "Good Intent" of Thurso, valued at 195 pounds. He also owned two shares in the Thurso Shipping Company.

Most importantly, he mentions an extensive list of people who owe him money, their occupations, and the amount owed.

Note: The amounts are obviously all in pounds, but I don't have a pound key (and couldn't be bothered fiddling around with the special characters function). Also, anyone with the surname NICOL or SWANSON in this list are likely related to him through his wife, Esther NICOL, as I believe her parents were Donald NICOL and Elspet SWANSON. And some of the words I couldn't decipher, so there are a few question marks throughout. Please tell me if you know what the correct word could be.

"Debts due to the deceased considered receivable viz:
William SWANSON, Fisherman, Thurso -/13/-
James ANDERSON Esquire, ?Respond? -/4/-
James MacKAY, Messenger, Thurso -/18/-
James RITCHIE, Shipmaster, Thurso 206/2/8
(NOTE: James RITCHIE was Donald's son-in-law though his daughter, Elizabeth MILLER. They married in 1825 in Thurso, and James was from Pitsligo in Aberdeen).
John MacDONALD, Carpenter, Thurso -/3/8
Robert ?ROVE/ROSE?, Writer, Wick 2/10/-
George SUTHERLAND, Labourer -/12/6
William WISHART, Bulk Master, Thurso -/8/6
John SKINNER, Fisherman, ?Forve? -/4/-
Andrew NICOL, Sailor, Thurso -/14/-
Arthur DAVIDSON -/1/-
William WATERS, Scrabster Roads -/14/7-and-a-half
Donald DUNNEL/DUNNET, Sarvier, Thurso -/18/-
Alexander GUNN, Merchant, Thurso 5/19/-
John NORSEBROUGH Esquire, Tongue 13/10/-
Donald SINCLAIR, ?_? Sailor, Thurso -/5/-
William ?CALDER?, Vintner -/9/-
Donald NICOL, Shoemaker 4/7/-
James SMITH Esquire of Olrig 7/17/2
Doctor John BAIN, Thurso -/10/-
William MORISON, Scrabster Roads -/19/6
Captain David HENDERSON, Oldfield -/2/3
William PRINGLE, Clerk of ?Excise/Excase? -/4/6
Alexander SWANSON, Vintner, Thurso 2/3/3
John Stephen SMITH, for Capt. HENDERSON 1/7/2
Robert GUNN, Writer, Thurso 4/12/-
James SINCLAIR, Fisher, Thurso -/3/8
John MacKENZIE, Currier 1/1/-
Marcus GUNN, Fisherman, Thurso -/11/-
John SWANSON, Pensioner, Thurso -/17/-
Baillie WILSON, Thurso -/19/-
John MacKENZIE, Shipmaster -/2/2
Donald MALCOLM, Fish___?, Pully____? 2/10/-
Alexander LEED, Cooper, Thurso -/6/-
Alexander ALEXANDER, ?Jourier?, Thurso 1/7/-
William ROSS, Shipmaster -/16/10
Lieutenant MILLER 2/3/-
William GEAR, Carter, Thurso -/9/-
Peter JOHNSTON, Sailor -/2/-
Hugh TULLOCH, mason -/18/-
Donald SUTHERLAND, Pensioner -/9/-
David ALLAN, Shoemaker, Thurso -/18/-
John BUDGE, Shoemaker, Thurso -/10/-
Murdoch MacKINTOSH, Salmon Fisher -/2/-
John HOSACK, Currier, Thurso -/9/-
William TODD, Saddler, Thurso -/18/-
Collector MacIVER 3 or 5/8/-
James WARD, Shipmaster -/18/-
David WATERS, Shipmaster -/18/-
John BAIN, Sailor, Thurso 6/-/-
John MILLER of the Alexander 59/5/5-and-a-half
John GUNN, Clerk -/10/-


Book Debts on open account considered irrecoverible (Note: Due to death or insolvency):

Angus CHRISTIAN, Cooper, Thurso 2/19/-
Robert TAIN, Cartwright, Thurso -/3/-
George BROTCHIC, Shoemaker, Thurso 1/14/2-and-a-half
William STEVEN, Blacksmith, Thurso 1/3/-
William REED, Bucher -/4/6
James THOMPSON, Sailor, Thurso 1/3/-
Francis SINCLAIR, Writer, Thurso -/4/7
John LEED, Shoemaker, Thurso -/6/9
Andrew BRIMS, Taylor, Thurso 1/17/6
Mr George DOUGLAS, Thurso 7/16/6
George DURRAN, Vintner 1/3/-
Donald CAMPBELL, Blacksmith, Thurso -/19/-
James CORRIGILL, Carpenter, Thurso -/11/6
William MILLER, Shoemaker, Thurso -/9/-
Alexander BEGG, Shoemaker, Thurso -/6/6
Rev. James TAYLOR, Independent Chapel, Thurso 2/1/-
William MANSON, Messenger, Thurso 1/13/-
Hugh BREMNER, Writer, Thurso 1/4/-
William MOWAT, Shoemaker, Thurso -/10/6
John SWANSON, Taylor, Thurso 1/1/-
Robert REID, Shoemaker, Thurso -/8/9
John STEWART, Merchant, Thurso 1/1/-
John DANCER & William SWANSON, Fishers, Thurso -/6/6
James NICOL, Shoemaker, Thurso 2/3/-
David MacKENZIE, Shoemaker, Thurso -/2/-
John MURRAY, Merchant, Thurso 2/2/-
Donald FINLAYSON, Shoemaker, Thurso 1/9/6
Robert MacKID, Writer, Thurso -/10/-
Owners of the sloop Sophia, Thurso -/6/-
James GUNN, Clerk, Thurso -/9/-
William SUTHERLAND, Taylor, Thurso -/3/-
Frank BAIN, Brewer, Thurso -/18/-
Robert FORSYTH 1/8/-
John MacKINTOSH, Fisher, Thurso -/1/-
George MacLEAN, Merchant, Thurso 4/15/10
Sutherland Ryrie Gardiner, Thurso -/9/-
(I'm not sure if his last name is Ryrie, with his occupation being mis-spelled, or Gardiner)
James BUDGE, Cooper, Thurso -/9/-
John MacREAY, Tidewaiter, Thurso 1/16/-
John ?MacREE?, Sawer, Thurso -/17/-
Macmillan Tanyard 2/14/-
Alex SINCLAIR, Fisher, Thurso -/9/-
Isobell SINCLAIR -/1/-
George MacKAY, Sawer, Tongue -/9/-
Alexander SMITH, Plasterer, Thurso -/14/-
Alexander TORRANCE, Thurso -/15/-
George FORBES, Excise Officer, Thurso -/9/-
Alexander SUTHERLAND, Carpenter, Thurso -/10/-
William SWANSON, Merchant, Thurso -/18/-

If anyone would like a copy of the whole will, feel free to contact me and I can e-mail it to you.

Kristy

[Kathb]

Kristy, this is wonderful, William Mowat Shoemaker is in my husbands tree.
I would very much appreciate a copy and will PM you my email contact.
I am sure you are going to get a lot of replies, it is very good of you to spend the time to input this will and the contacts are so wide there will be many who use this site who will recognise persons from their tree.
Would you please post which site you got the download of the Will from please, I could do with looking up a couple myself.
Regards and Happy New Year
Kathb

[kristy_mac8]

Hi Kathb,

I downloaded the will from scotlandspeople.gov.uk You need to be registered (free) to search, and will results are free to view (unlike birth, death, and marriage results). To download a will is five pounds, which is quite reasonable really, considering that some of them, like Donald's, are nine pages long.

I will e-mail you the will now.

Regards,
Kristy

[Pompeygirl]

Hello Kristy,

Thank you so much for posting the list of all these people! I would be very grateful for a copy of the will - Dr John Bain was my Grt Grt grandfather. His parents were William Bain and Betty Miller, who married c 1783. Is there any chance Betty is related to your Donald Miller?

Many thanks

[thirsaloon]

Details for boats owned by Donald Miller mentioned above.


Alexander was a sloop built in Kirkcaldy in 1799. She weighed 60 tons and the captain was John Miller, her trade is listed as a coaster.

Good Intent was also a sloop, built in Leith in 1814. She weighed 64 tons and the captain was Donald Miller. Her trade is listed as a coaster. This vessel is mentioned as being owned by Don Miller and Co. where as the Alexander is just Donald.

Regarding the John Miller mentioned and I presume to be a relation of Donald's I own his pocket watch which I bought sometime back. The case is not the original but added sometime later. The inside has his name engraved on it and "Merchant" with some sailing ships indicating his work as a shipping merchant. Made around 1790 in London it still works and I wind it up every so often to keep it going.

I would be very interested if anyone else has relations mentioned on the will and know anything about them just for my own interest.

[thirsaloon]

Hello Kristy,

Thank you so much for posting the list of all these people! I would be very grateful for a copy of the will - Dr John Bain was my Grt Grt grandfather. His parents were William Bain and Betty Miller, who married c 1783. Is there any chance Betty is related to your Donald Miller?

Many thanks

I seen your post about about Dr John Bain being your Grt Grt grandfather Pompeygirl.

John, apothecary and surgeon in Thurso had a brother Sinclair who was an ironmonger in Thurso, High Street if I recall. Sinclair was married to the sister of Lewis Dunbar if I remember rightly. She died aged 66 at their house in Wilson Street in Sept 1866 (on a Monday evening).

Sinclair had died around 4 months prior to that. She was a member of the Independent Church in Thurso and was laid to rest in the New Cemetery in Thurso.

Sinclair also ordered a pump for the Meadow Well through his business in 1850 and paid a subscription to the erection of the obelisk in memory of Robert Dick. Oh and he was involved with the Thurso Natural Science Association.

Think that will do for my rambling tonight.

[kristy_mac8]

Hi Pompeygirl,

Just PM me your e-mail address, and I will send you a copy of the will.

Donald may have been related to Betty in some way, but can't say for sure as I don't know who his parents were. I have several baptism possibilities for him. I would think that he would be more inclined to lend money to people with some kind of a family connection, though. I will let you know if find a connection with the families.

Thirsaloon, wow, thank you so much for the information. I will PM you.

Kristy

[kristy_mac8]

I just started another thread regarding the will of John Miller, died 1822. I thought he might be Donald's father, but it doesn't look like it. However, there is also a list of residents in Thurso and other places, and some of the names that appear on this list are on the other too. It's a great way of seeing where your ancestor was at pre-censues.

Pompeygirl and thirsaloon, I've already e-mailed you both John's will. Kathb, William Mowat isn't mentioned on the other will.

Kristy

[goffer]

Hello Kirsty,

I am new to this site and have just found your post on the Will of Donald Miller. I believe that he could also be my gggg grandfather although probably down a different ancestral line to yours, in my case his ggg grandaughter who was called Catherine Reid McPhail is my grandmother. So as we are almost certainly related in some way I would be interested in how we fit together in the tree.
I am also very interested in the Will made by Donald and if you still have a copy I would certainly appreciate receiving one at some time.

Hope to hear from you soon

Goffer

[thirsaloon]

Hello Kirsty,

... who was called Catherine Reid McPhail is my grandmother.

Goffer

Was Catherine married or related to Angus MacPhail Goffer?

[goffer]

Hello Thirsaloon,

There two Angus McPhails in Catherine's tree. The first is her Grandfather who was born in 1802 and died in 1876, he was married to a Catherine Reid. The second is her brother who was born in 1880 in Thurso, but I have no more details about him since I have been concentrating on Catherine's line.

You mentioned in an earlier post that you own a pocket watch the belonged to a John Miller. I believer that this could be Catherine's g-grandfather on her mother's side. Do you have more information about this side of the family?

goffer

[thirsaloon]

Hello Thirsaloon,

There two Angus McPhails in Catherine's tree. The first is her Grandfather who was born in 1802 and died in 1876, he was married to a Catherine Reid. The second is her brother who was born in 1880 in Thurso, but I have no more details about him since I have been concentrating on Catherine's line.

You mentioned in an earlier post that you own a pocket watch the belonged to a John Miller. I believer that this could be Catherine's g-grandfather on her mother's side. Do you have more information about this side of the family?

goffer

Have more information on the McPhails Goffer. Sent you a private message.

[kristy_mac8]

Hi Goffer,

Apologies for my delayed reply. I thought that I was automatically notified of responses on this board, but I didn't get one for this post.

Anyway, if you PM me with you e-mail details, I will be happy to e-mil you a copy of the will. Which Miller are you descended from? I have only been able to trace descendants of Donald's daughter Elizabeth (my ancestor), and her brother John (whose only surviving child married a Thompson). So more descendants would be great

I'll OM you too, just in case you aren't notified of my reply on here.