December, 2006
Dear Cubbies,
Issue number 6 features:

The McCubbins of Ayrshire (Part One)
A McCubbin Reunion in San Francisco
Bermuda – The Mystery of the Sundial
The McCubbin Family of Penpont, Dumfriesshire
The Five Remarkable McCubbing Sisters of Fayette County, Kentucky
Australia – New Acquisitions
Reynolds McCubbin – A Canadian Pioneer
CUB BITS
Queries

The McCubbins of Ayrshire

by Lynne McCubbin
File #06 Ayrshire

Five other shires – Wigtown, Kirkcudbright, Dumfries, Lanark and Renfrew – bound the former county of Ayrshire. Ayrshire now consists of three districts South,East and North. Even at that the three districts are still pretty large. This has not made it easy for the genealogist, as the main libraries tend to only hold information relating to their own areas.

Ayrshire’s main town is naturally enough, Ayr, which has a long and often bloody history. In 1197 William the Lyon ordered that a castle be built between the Rivers Ayr and Doon and before long the town of Ayr was born. The occupation by the English in the late 13th century led to William Wallace setting fire to the barns in the town, which surrounded the English soldiers. It is said that Wallace stood and watched the fires from the nearby hamlet of Craigie and stated that ‘the barns o’ Ayr burn weil‘ (well). A monument now stands there called appropriately Barnweil. Not long after Robert the Bruce razed the fort to keep it from further English occupation.

I grew up in the village of Alloway, outside Ayr, birthplace of our national bard, Rabbie Burns. Many happy days in my childhood were spent roaming and romping through the beautiful parks of Bellisle and Rozelle. I was terrified to venture into the Auld Alloway Kirk, where Tam O’Shanter encountered the witch Cutty Sark. I marvelled at the ‘hoof’ print left by his poor horse Meg on the Brig O’ Doon after she lost her grey tail! Many summer holidays were spent in the lovely seaside town of Girvan – birth place of my great grandfather William McCubbin and his forebears. —– Below: Brig O’Doon, Alloway

The Ayrshire coast is beautiful and the run down from Ayr to Ballantrae is breathtaking. You can pass through the idyllic little fishing village of Dunure or take the inland road through the ancient historical town of Maybole. The great expanse of beach at Croy with Culzean Castle on its southern end is lovely. On through Girvan to Lendalfoot with its spattering of old holiday huts, many of them now renovated and pretty. We often stop at a car park on the cliff’s edge and take an exhilarating hike down to a little cove. Within this secluded spot exists the legendary Sawney Bean’s cave – legend has it that he and his large family lived there and lived off passing travellers – literally, as they were apparently cannibals! My Dad frightened the life out of me as a kid taking me into the cave…and I loved every minute of it! Even now I still get chill in there. Sadly these days you’re more likely to find the remnants of a party with beer cans and fire ashes! Just outside the cave my great grandmother had a vegetable garden – she was raised in Lendalfoot and must have walked a fair old bit to tend to the family plot. You can still see the stones that marked this little garden. Below: Lendalfoot

Employment in 17th and 18th century Ayrshire was mainly made up of weaving and farming but this was to give way later to mining. The inland towns such as Dalmellington, Muirkirk, and Cumnock thrived on mining – or rather I should say the mining companies did – for the workers it was a hard, hard existence. Weaving was the mainstay of places like Girvan and Newmilns, where I now live. Weaving is still a major industry here. ————Below: McCubbin’s Corner, Townhead St, Cumnock

As for the McCubbins – they were weavers, farmers, innkeepers, miners, tailors, masons, etc. Some became prosperous others weren’t so fortunate. Many moved to Glasgow, with many more emigrating to America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. But before we take a look at some of them we need to go a bit further back in history.

Perhaps the most famous McCubbin of Ayrshire was Lord Fergus of Knockdolian. Legend has it that he was born (about 1602) in the McCubbinstone area, near Glencairn, Dumfriesshire, and became the Laird of Knockdolian Castle, Colmonell, Ayrshire, former ‘old pile’ of the Grahams. He married Sarah MacGregor Black in 1628 and had various children.

Fergus lived at a time of great religious and political turmoil and he became involved with the Covenanters. In 1666 Fergus died for his beliefs. It is said that a curse was placed upon the McCubbin Family at Knockdolian stating that no heirs would ever hold court at Knockdolian again. It should be noted that a curse existed long before this. Apparently the Lady of Knockdolian (perhaps a Graham?) was upset that the resident Mermaid’s singing kept her baby awake at night. The rock on which the Mermaid sang her nightly arias was ordered destroyed by the Lady. The Mermaid was rather miffed by this turn of events and she arose from the sea singing:

“Ye may think on your cradle – I’ll think on my stane;
And there’ll ne’er be an heir to Knockdolian again.”

A few nights later the Lady of Knockdolian found the cradle overturned and her poor child dead on the floor. She was never blessed with any more children. Ah, the stuff of legends indeed!

Well, the curse may have been true inasmuch as a McCubbin was never Laird of Knockdolian again, but the line certainly didn’t die out. Fergus’ son, John, was apparently disowned by his father as he held differing religious views. He took off for pastures new in the shape of Maryland, which of course is a whole other story.

The McCubbins didn’t vanish from Colmonell completely, however. In 1692 a Fergus McCubbine of Parks, Colmonell is listed. I would imagine the bloodline was therefore still alive and kicking.

And so we jump a half-century to where documentation of my own line of McCubbins began. Whether we are connected to Fergus or not I do not know but there must have been a severe downturn of fortunes if we were!

Daniel McCubbin, my 5th great grandfather, was born about 1742 in Kirkoswald. He was a Master Mason who had four known children by Margaret McGhie – Helen, James, John and Thomas, who were born in Girvan. Following the birth of Thomas in 1777 it would appear that Daniel remarried Mary Eaglesome and had a further eight children. This has never been confirmed and there were two Daniels born in Kirkoswald about 1742 so it may be two completely separate families.

Daniel and Margaret’s son John married Margaret McKissock and it is from their children that my McCubbin Tree really takes off. Their youngest son Peter (my 3rd great grandfather) married a young girl by the name of Janet Hannah from Ballantrae. I guess Peter is the first ‘great’ that I have an affinity with. Like his father he was a Weaver and resided in Wilson Street in Girvan for at least 30 years. This little row of cottages still exist and I’ve had the pleasure of wandering down it and imagining what life was like for Peter and his family.

Peter and Janet were married for 24 years before she died in 1859. Her youngest son Thomas was only 6 years old. I have always felt sorry for Thomas as he never married and died in the Poorhouse in Glasgow in 1909. John, the eldest ended up in Paisley and I’m sure there must be descendants up that way somewhere. Next was James, who headed for a new life in New Zealand. He arrived in Otago about 1862 and married Isabella Campbell from Islay, whom he’d met on the ship. From what I understand there are no male descendants left from that line. Brother Peter died at the young age of 22 in Ardrossan.

The three remaining children had families and I have traced a great many branches and twiglets – not much contact with living descendants but they must be out there somewhere! Margaret had two children before marrying Thomas Quail – Janet Hannah and Hugh both went on to have families. Brother Matthew moved to Ayr and married Ann Pettigrew in 1874 – two years later both she and his baby daughter had died within weeks of each other. Six months later he remarried to Margaret White – they had five children together. One son Matthew died in France during the last months of WW1.

William, my great great grandfather married Sarah Peacock – their marriage was short-lived too, Sarah died in 1881 leaving three young children, David Peacock (7), Peter (4) and William (3). David became the sailor who jumped ship and was the reason for my starting genealogy in the first place (it’s all his fault!). Peter died young aged only 19 from TB. So the direct line dwindled away and was left to my great grandfather to continue. William Jr. married Jemima McCracken (it’s her veggie garden at Sawney Bean’s cave). He was a Master Mason, who built (along with others naturally) a famous department store in Glasgow in the 1930’s – it’s still there today. William and Jemima had three children – Peter, William, my grandfather and Jean. I never met my grandfather of Peter but I knew Jean and she only passed away in 2000. A second cousin 4 times removed of mine was Hugh McCubbin. In 1895 he was appointed an Alderman of Liverpool.  The year of his death he donated a fountain to his hometown of Girvan. Below: McCubbin Fountain, Girvan

There was another line of McCubbins in Girvan, who originated in Ireland, which was featured in last year’s Cub Report – I traced the line for sometime before realising they weren’t mine. Fortunately for me both lines married into each other so all was not in vain. Yet another line appears in Girvan, which I have so far been unable to connect to. McCubbin is such a common name in the surrounding villages and towns like Colmonell, Ballantrae and Maybole that I have no doubt they are related somewhere along the line – unfortunately probably before the records were properly documented. There are four Fergus children in my tree – the name was still being given as late as 1910, so maybe, just maybe, Sir Fergus was my umpteenth great grandfather….

So that is my brief and very general summary of Ayrshire and my McCubbins. I’m pleased to say, that even though it is over a hundred years since my ancestors left Girvan, my children, like myself have come to know Girvan and that makes me very, very proud of my ancestry, regardless of whether there is nobility or not!

A McCubbin Reunion in San Francisco

File #62 Ayrshire
Organized by Nancy Altman

John McCubbin (born about 1775) and Agnes Hodgeon raised their children in Maybole, Ayr. Their descendants moved on to Glasgow, then to various parts of the world. Answering a query letter to Lorna McCubbin, one of their great great grandsons, Alexander McCubbin told of his early life. “My father was John McCubbin and he married Agnes McLaughlin in Greenock, Scotland in 1904. He was 18 and his bride 17. Shortly after, they boarded ship for Hong Kong where my father was to be employed in the Taikoo Sugar Refinery. In those days you had a contract for five years then were granted a one year vacation. During those five years my sister, Elizabeth Lee, and brother, John, were born. At the end of the contract the family sailed for Greenock for their vacation. My father returned to Hong Kong alone because of the war situation, and my mother was with child and advised not to travel. I was born Alexander, on December 17, 1914. We stayed with my great grandma, grandma, and mother. Mother was a seamstress and Grandma a Midwife. It was said that she delivered half the babies in Greenock, no doubt an exaggeration. My father did not see me until I was about five years old, when the family reunited after the war. In 1923 we sailed for San Francisco where a family reunion was in the offing. My grandmother, her four sons, one daughter, twenty grandsons and two granddaughters all attended.”

The next reunion of John and Agnes’ descendants was held this year, February 2006. Organized by Nancy Altman, their (many times great) granddaughter, says the event was a huge success. Nancy writes to Lorna and Lynne McCubbin; “It was amazing. A good time was had by all, and I believe we sparked some interest from the 30 something age group, all third cousins, who are very keen to continue with reunions. William (Bill) McCubbin, (one of the many Bills!), was the guest of honour. He is 94 years old and was at the first McCubbin reunion in San Francisco back in 1923. He was very dear, as he said to me at the start of dinner – “Please don’t ask me to stand and say anything, I’m very shy.” Well…my cousin Campbell, (Alex’s son) from B.C. who is a radio personality in Vancouver offered to be the host for the evening, and as he was speaking, Bill grabs the mike and begins telling all the details of the 1923 McCubbin reunion in San Francisco. He was wonderful! Not shy after all.

Alex McCubbin who is also in his 90’s, who answered your query letter, and now lives in Surrey, B.C. Canada, was unable to attend. Believe it or not, I met three cousins for the first time who grew up about three miles from my home! We had 100 people attend, and mostly they are all residing in the SF Bay area. Best wishes to both of you and thank you again for making our journey back to our roots complete.” (Lorna and Lynne provided the research for the ancestral charts)

Bermuda , The Mystery of the Sundial

File #46 Wigtownshire
by Lorna McCubbin

I received the following query from Mark R. Herauf, CA, of Southlands Resort, Bermuda:

“I am hoping you can help me out. I work for a company in Bermuda that purchased a large plot of land to develop. Currently it has 7 houses on it. A couple of the houses were converted from horse stables and carriage storage buildings. We think it may have been used to teach students from Warwick Academy when the school had problems with the building. The property used to be owned by a James Morgan (from Canada), who passed away in 1932. It has not been maintained for about 30 years so there is much plant/vegetation growth that needs to be cleared. While doing some clearing of the property, we found this sundial (picture attached) laying face down in some weeds. From what I can see, the name shows Rev. A. McCubbin, Leswalt. Do you know of this person that could have lived in Bermuda? We would like to get some background information for our project as we plan to have a history room of who worked/lived on the property.”

I answered Mr. Herauf that I do have information about Rev. Andrew McCubbin of Leswalt, Wigtownshire, Scotland. However, I then needed to establish a time line of Andrew’s life and establish when he may have been and/or served in Bermuda. Andrew McCubbin was born in Kirkinner, Wigtownshire about 1765. He married (1) Isabella MacLean, of Tiree, who died 1832 (2) Alexa McDougall, 1837 in Leswalt. Her father was a landed proprietor in Argyll. Andrew was 30 years senior to Alexa, who was 35, according to the census of 1841. However, Alexa may have had a sense of humour or conveniently had memory loss because she once again gave her age as mid-thirties at the 1851 census. She died at age 70 in 1885. No matter, Andrew had a very young wife. Both censuses find Andrew at the Manse/Glebe, in Leswalt with his wife Alexa, in Leswalt.

I found more documented records that Andrew resided in Leswalt. In the Statistical Accounts of Scotland 1791 – 1845, Rev Andrew McCubbin, Minister, was the author of a detailed description of the Parish of Leswalt, Presbytery of Stranraer, Synod of Galloway, which he wrote in 1839. He opens his account with: “Leswalt signifies the meadow along the burn. The rivulet, on the bank of which stands the old church, takes its rise out of a large moss of nearly 1000 acres, and forms a beautiful cascade where it enters the romantic glen of Altdowran, which signifies the Otter’s Burn.” He describes his parish church “built in 1828, stands in a very convenient situation for the parishioners, and is about eight miles from the farthest extremities of the parish, and affords accommodation for 800 sitters. No free sittings. The manse was built in 1811. The glebe contains nearly 20 acres.”

There is no record of Andrew having children with either of his wives. And, because BMD records in the mid 1700’s were so sparse I had difficulty finding a link to parents, siblings or their descendants. Fortunately Andrew wrote a Will in 1846. Written on his tombstone (with a family crest on top), in the Leswalt Old Kirkyard his death and his first wife Isabella are recorded: “To the Memory of His dear wife Mrs. Isabella MacLean of Tiree, who died 19th Oct 1832. The Revd. Andrew MacCubbin, Minister of this Parish, died 4th February 1852 in the 54th year of his ministry.”

Andrew left an estate “of £300 and under £450” After amounts owed to the Earl of Stair, A.Vans Agnew, and other persons, his wife Alexa was to get half of the estate as long as she was widowed to Andrew – a house and ‘yeard‘ in the Burgh of Stranraer, cattle, silver plate in the manse of Leswalt. The other half divided in four equal shares to his three deceased brothers lawful descendants, John, Brown and Alexander and his (then living) sister Jean, nee McCulloch. Also to John and Ann, grand nephew and niece, £25 each.

An extensive search through Wigtownshire records (and the McCubbin database) helped me link up Andrew to two of his brothers – Brown and Alexander. John and Jean were nowhere to be found (maybe they emigrated). Brown McAdam McCubbin, a Farmer, married Isobel Connin and has several descendants. They did not stray far from the old home area of Kirkinner – where I found many in Whithorn and Penninghame. I have had no contact with living descendants so far. Alexander, also a Farmer, married Mary Stewart in Kirkinner and had twelve children. They too did not stray too far from the fold, although through making links in this search I’ve found a living descendant of Alexander, now residing in Liverpool. I asked if there was any folklore about a Bermuda connection. None is known.

It appears that Andrew began his ministry at the Leswalt church when he was 35 years old. His earlier years, before 1800, may have been in Bermuda. One of the trustees on his Will was John McDougall, Esq, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy. A seafaring person such as John McDougall could have heightened Andrew’s curiosity about fields further than Wigtownshire, or for that matter, a seafaring friend may have placed a sundial in memory of Rev A McCubbin of Leswalt.

The search for more about Reverend Andrew McCubbin to be continued……..(Please do tell us of any McCubbin family connections you may have with Bermuda)

The McCubbin Family of Penpont, Dumfriesshire

File #03 Dumfriesshire
by Kathy McCubbin Hopkins

This family were Builders, Stonemasons, Farmers and Drapers. Some moved away from Penpont to Edinburgh or further afield to Carlisle (Anglo-Scot borders) and Uxbridge in Middlesex (just north of London). Some emigrated and settled in the new world; Victoria, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Virginia and Washington, DC in the USA. Some must have remained in Dumfriesshire, but they are more elusive and have evaded detection…so far.

The family can be traced back to James McCubbin and Isabel Lorimer who had 10 children in Penpont between 1783 and 1800. Daughter Mary (b.1786) married James Dalgliesh and they must have spent some time In Uxbridge Middlesex where their second son Thomas, who was to become a Draper was probably born (he is recorded to have been born in Middlesex c.1818). Thomas returned to Penpont where he married his first cousin, Jane McCubbin (daughter of Mary’s brother George McCubbin and his wife Agnes Lorimer) in 1860. It is not known where Thomas died., but Jane died in Uxbridge in 1861. No records for offspring have so far been found.

Son George (b.1790), a Builder, later to become a Mason, married Agnes Lorimer in 1815 and they had ten children. Their son John (who died, when a young man) was a Draper. Perhaps this was how their daughter Jane met cousin Thomas Dalgliesh, a Draper from Uxbridge, who she married. George and Agnes’ daughter Isabella died when only 14 years old, and another daughter, also named Isabella died when 79 years old, in 1915, of shock after extensive burning. Two of the sons, James and Robert emigrated to Australia where they settled in Victoria:

Son Robert married Jane Young and they went to Australia, settling Woodend, Victoria where he died in 1884. It is through this line that Rob McCubbin in Victoria, Australia is linked. He loosely based his novel, Son of the Storm”, and others, on his ancestors from Penpont. Son James, a journeyman Stonemason in 1841 when he married Margaret Corrie in Edinburgh, and later a Farmer of 14 acres in 1851 when he married Agnes McNish. Some time after 1851 they went to Australia where he died ten years later. Agnes was back in Penpont by 1881. James and his wives had a total of nine children.

The eldest (with Margaret) was James who married Leah Hurlestone from Wales and went to settle in Australia where he worked as a Storekeeper, also in Woodend, Victoria. Ten of their eleven children were born in Woodend, with the youngest being born in Footscray, Victoria in 1897. Many appear to have remained in the area.

Their son, James (b.1879) married Nellie McPhaill in Fitzroy, Victoria and some of their children’s marriages have been tracked into the 1930s in Victoria.

The youngest (William Charles, with Agnes) was born in North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia around 1859. William must have returned to Dumfries and spent his boyhood years there as Bill Dyke supplied a postcard of Drumlanrig Castle, Thornhill which has a note on the back which say that William spent his boyhood days there. Also he is listed in the 1881 census at Penpont, and had moved to Glasgow by 1885 where records show that he joined the Lanarkshire Rifle volunteers. Bill also supplied a photo of William Charles and his wife Mary A Mitchell which was taken in 1921, below (in Glasgow).

His descendants can be tracked through to Bill Dyke whose grandmother was Euphemia McCubbin (Effie) daughter of William Charles. Effie, ‘in service’, emigrated to Winnipeg where she later met Alfred Webb Dyke and married. Effie and son, William, briefly returned to Glasgow during WW1 while Alfred served in France and Belgium for the Canadian Army. After WW1 they re-settled in Ontario where descendants live today.

During the late 19th century one of James’ sons was a Grocer’s Shopman and another a Draper’s Assistant – both remaining in the area. One of the daughter’s second marriages was to a cattle dealer, Thomas Beattie Mitchell, from Newton, Ayr.

Son William (b. about 1824), also a Mason, married Isabella McNeish in 1848, a local girl from Dunscore and they had seven children. As their children grew up they moved away to local places like Morton and Moffat. Two sons continued family trades with William (b1865) becoming a Joiner, and George (b.1851) becoming a Builder and Sculptor. One of their daughters, Isabella, married a Dr Edgar Taylor in Carlisle and their only son, Clement Edwin, was a casualty in WW1 when his merchant ship was torpedoed. Two of the other girls went further afield to New York, USA where they died in the 2nd decade of the 20th century.

Son Andrew (b.1792) was a Gardener and then Landowner and married Janet Dalrymple. They had seven children, who may have been born in Edinburgh. One daughter, Isabella Lorimer McCubbin, emigrated to New Zealand in 1870. She was married to James Kinvig who was born on the Isle of Man. Their daughter, Ellanor Elizabeth Kinvig, was born in Ballarat Australia in about 1862. Their son, William, emigrated to Virginia, USA in 1872 and was living in Washington DC later on.

Of their twin sons Edward and John (b.1795), it is thought that Edward may have moved to Stratford in England where he worked as a Servant to a Tea-dealer, and later became a Tea Dealer himself. The descendants of Edward McCubbin (also spelt McCubbin and Mcaben) and his wife Sophia have been extensively tracked forward. They resided in Warwickshire, Northamptonshire, Bedforshire and Buckinghamshire and a descendant, John (b.1835 Stratford-on-Avon), a Draper, emigrated to Geelong, Victoria, Australia in 1895. Many of these descendants seem to have been in the draper trade which is one of the reasons that it is thought that the family originally hail from Penpont, as well as the links the family developed with Victoria, Australia.

(Australian research, File #A03 done by Penny McColm)  Rob McCubbin is working on his next historical novel. A gripping tale about his ancestors of Dumfriesshire (above). The title is ‘Blood on the Heather’.

The Five Remarkable McCubbing Sisters of Fayette, Kentucky

File #31 Dumfriesshire
by Lorna McCubbin

Kathy McCubbing Hopkins and I have spent three years researching the descendants of James McCubbin (b1710) and his wife Mary McMurdo of Edgartoun/Dunscore, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, (File #31). Their descendants span the globe from USA, Canada, New Zealand, not to mention the homeplace, Scotland. We’ve been fortunate to have been helped by Leslie McCubbin – Dumfries, Billy McCubbin – Ayrshire, Dennis Marshall – California, Margaret McColl – New Zealand, Jean Miskiman – Canada, Andrew Bowman – Australia, and co-ordinator – Penny McColm, Australia. If your family is ‘of this tree’ we will be happy to share the McCubbing charts with you.

Sometimes when doing genealogy and searching on the internet I occasionally ‘hit the jackpot’. While browsing through Ancestry.com I found a biography about the McCubbing sisters of Fayette, Kentucky and was able to link them into File #31.

Mary, Marion, Jessie, Isabelle and Margaret McCubbing were descendants of James McCubbin and Mary McMurdo and were the daughters of James McCubbing (b1818) and Isabella Waugh. James and Isabella emigrated to Fayette County, Kentucky USA in 1866, along with their children. The following account is excerpted from ‘A History of Kentucky, Vol 4, Biographies, 1922’. A much fuller version is available on Ancestry.com.

James had been raised in a very successful farming family in Scotland; his father being a Farmer of 464 acres in Crossmichael, Kirkcudbright. “However, James, instead of farming with his father, prepared himself for the legal profession by attending law school in Edinborough (sic), but in Scotland the family name had been closely and prominently associated with the livestock industry for four generations, his early experience having been in connection with this basic line of enterprise, and its lure having led him to abandon his plan for engaging in the practice of law and to identify himself the same important branch of industry in the United States. Choosing to farm near Lexington, KY, he and his family achieved marked success in the breeding and raising of Shorthorn Cattle.” His only surviving son William soon owned his own farm nearby, had a family, but died young in about 1905. James Sr. died in 1898, his wife Isabella Waugh, shortly after, leaving their five daughters on the farm. Daughter Jessie managed the farm.

The biography continues – “Mr. and Mrs. McCubbing are survived by five children, all daughters, namely: Mary Swan, Marion, Jessie, Isabelle and Margaret. This remarkable family of sisters remain at the old home place, and Miss Jessie McCubbing has shown great executive and practical ability in the active management of the farm since the death of her father. The Young Mary strain of Shorthorns is still maintained on the McCubbing farm. The place is well improved, and under the management of Jessie McCubbing, its prestige as a stock farm is being admirably maintained. Miss Isabelle McCubbing and Miss Margaret McCubbing have achieved distinctive popularity and success as teachers, Miss Margaret being principal of the Picadome High School. Misses Mary and Marion McCubbing preside as hostesses at the family home, which is a center of gracious and cultured hospitality. The McCubbing sisters, like their parents, have thus proved a most valued acquisition to the civic and social life of Fayette County.”

Australia – New Acquistions

Penny McColm
File #02A Australia

Penny McColm, co-ordinator for Australia continues to gain further information about the large family of Alexander McCubbin and Jean Gray #02A. Penny’s grandfather, Frederick McCubbin is ‘of this tree’. Penny received, from Marjory Woodward, several pages of her recollections of her early life, as well as newspaper clippings and copies of births, marriages and deaths from the family Bible. All this information will be recorded in the databank, and eventually available for future reference.

Penny has spent many hours searching for information about the estate of Bargany, where Alexander’s son (also Alexander) was a Steward/Factor for Lady Jane Dalrymple Hamilton, in the early 1800’s. More information has been gained, which will also go into the #02A file.

Reynolds McCubbin – A Canadian Pioneer

File #02
by ‘Bill’ William Reynolds McCubbin of Canada

Also a descendant of Alexander McCubbin and Jean Gray, Bill McCubbin of Saskatchewan has been in contact with distant cousin, Penny McColm, and told of his father’s life:

“Dad, Reynolds McCubbin, was born 1884, in Liverpool, England, at 57 Merton Rd, (this home being a landmark today we understand). He was the youngest of 12 children born to James and Ann McCubbin. He went to a boarding school, at a fairly young age, which he was not fond of. He developed asthma and was told to move away from England if he wanted to live a longer life. As a consequence, he came to Canada in 1904 at age 20. He started a new life in Alberta, then worked his way eastward to the Lipton area of Saskatchewan, where he worked as a farm labourer for the Hays family. When WW1 broke out he joined the Canadian Army and went overseas to the battlefield. He was wounded once in the hand, also gassed with ‘Mustard Gas’. After the war he took up homestead rights on a quarter section of land four miles from Mr. Hays farm. He lived in a tent all summer and one winter, until he had some land cleared and a house built, all the while courting our mother, Ada Hays, whom he married in Dec. 1922. They proceeded to raise we five kids. They went through some good times and bad on the farm – the dirty 30’s being the worst. But somehow they managed and we never went hungry. Still suffering from asthma, at age 62, he gave up farming and moved to Fort Qu’Appelle, Sask, near Lipton where he worked at the local hotel. He passed away at age 86 and is buried at Lakeview Cemetery.”(Abridged copy)

CUB BITS

Can you guess what the names Mclarblidy, Matherbfind, McCulling and McCubbing have in common? While searching for McCubbing family of Fayette, Kentucky, in the 1920 US Federal Census on Ancestry.com, I was nearly ready to give up when I decided to try another tack and lo and behold I found the four McCubbing sisters, listed as Matherbfind. Other McCubbings were listed as Mclarblidy and Mcculling. The names had been transcribed wrongly and typed from the original record. A reminder that whenever you are searching for a person in historical records and having no success, you can often find what you’re looking for if you go to the orginal record. Parish records in Scotland are a good example. Sometimes you’ll discover more accurate information than you can find on transcribed sources.

Queries

A query from Kathy McCubbing Hopkins

Any McCubbins out there with ancestral links to Welland or Grimsby Counties, Ontario, Canada? From the time I first started researching my McCubbin(g)s I’ve had my eye out for my great-uncle Andrew McCubbin. My dad showed me a letter he received from his Uncle Andrew’s son, George, in the 1950s from Port Colborne and we wondered what had become of them all. He had very few hard facts to give me – only that he’d been named after his cousin and that Andrew was married to Peggy. He thought George and his wife had a daughter – possibly called Naomi.

Well, years and years later, after much fruitless research, I came across a reference to an Andrew McCubbin and a George McCubbin and their spouses in Oakwood Cemetery Welland, Wainfleet, Ontario. A kind soul on a message board tracked down the inscription for me which showed birth and death dates. The birth date of Andrew matched what I had found from Scottish records, so I was fairly confident that I had found them. A couple of years after that some Ontario marriage records were put on line and, at last I found Andrew’s marriage certificate. He married Margaret Linn Graham on 3 Mar 1913 at the Village of Grimsby in the County of Lincoln and I found that, at the time of his marriage Andrew was working as a Grocer and his wife Margaret (Peggy) was a Dressmaker. They lived in the village where they were married. I deduced from this and records I had from Scotland that Andrew must have emigrated sometime between 1911 and 1913. So I can now confirm the names on the tombstones in Oakwood Cemetery do indeed belong to my great-uncle Andrew (1887-1960) and his wife Margaret (1888-1946). Their son was called George Philip McCubbin (1913-1958) and his wife was called Yolanda (1919-1983). But I have no other information about this family and would very much like to find out more about their life in Canada and, if possible, trace their daughter, or any other descendants.

Can anyone help? Please contact me at mccubbin@one-name.org
Kathy

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Thanks to all who have contributed to our continuing research. Please feel free to contact us about any questions or queries about your McCubbin ancestors. We’re happy to help. Next year our 2007 CUB report will continue on with Ayrshire McCubbin families.

Have a good year!

Lorna McCubbin
Penny Mccolm
Kathy McCubbing Hopkins
Lynne McCubbin

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