Alexandrina Ferrier

[kiterunner]

Alexander Ferrier (brother of my 3xg-grandfather) and Mary Dods had a daughter Alexandrina Ferrier, baptised 5 May 1828 at St Cuthbert's, Edinburgh. Her father had died 29 Jul 1827. Mary married William McCulloch 17 Nov 1833 in Edinburgh. On the 1841 census William and Mary are at 142 High St, New North, Edinburgh, with several of William's children and with Mary (20) , Jessie (17) and Margaret (14) Ferrier but no Alexandrina.

I always thought Alexandrina must have died young, but now I've found a likely entry on the 1851 Scotland census - in Newton on Ayr, Ayrshire, Alexandrina Ferrier, visitor, 22, unmarried, Milliner Assistant, born Edinburgh. She's with a household headed by a widow Janet Cuthbert. No other Ferriers or Dods there. She was transcribed as Alexanderina on Scotland's People and Ferries on ancestry but FMP and FamilySearch have her name right.

Can anyone find her in 1841 or after 1851, please? She isn't the Alexandrina Ferrier who married William P Davidson in 1867 as that one is age 25, born Aberdeen, on the 1871 census.

[kiterunner]

I've found her in London in 1861! Never thought of looking for her there! Still unmarried, still a milliner. But what happened to her after that?

[merleyone]

There is an Alexandra Verrier whose death was registered at Mile End in June 1863, 1c 388, which may be of interest.

merleyone

[kiterunner]

That looks interesting, merleyone, thanks. I think that one must be connected with an Alexander Verrier whose birth was registered Jan-Mar 1863, also Mile End. If only Tower Hamlets BMD was still working!

[Mary from Italy]

There's an Alexandra Ferrier at 17 Ewing St. Tower Hamlets, on the 1903 electoral roll.

[kiterunner]

Thanks, Mary. She isn't there in 1901:
1901 census Ewing Street (http://search.ancestry.co.uk/Browse/view.aspx?dbid=7814&path=London.Mile+End+Old+Town.Mile+End%2c+Old+Town %2c+Eastern.22.23)
nor in 1911.

[kiterunner]

Ooh, I've just found a burial in New Zealand! (on ancestry)

Otago, Southern Burial Register General Portion vol 3
5289 FERRIER Alexandrina (class 3) Lot 48 block 7
Died Nov 18 1891, aged 63 years.
Dressmaker, resident of Dunedin. Born England.
Buried Nov 21. Informant Hugh Gourley.

Dressmaker isn't too different from milliner, and born England not too inaccurate, so I'm looking for something to prove whether it is my Alexandrina or not without forking out for the death certificate.

[kiterunner]

Ooer, Papers Past has a story from the Otago Daily Times from 1874 about an "incorrigible" vagrant named Henrietta McEwen, alias Alexandrina Ferrier, who claimed to earn her living by sewing. I hope that isn't her! There are quite a few other matches that come up on Papers Past from around then so I will look through those.
In 1876 the Otago Witness has a similar story about Alexandrina Ferrier, alias Janet Ferrier, "a dissipated woman".

By 1888 Alexandrina Ferrier had "a record of 33 previous convictions"! In 1879 she is described as "an old woman" but I suppose that could well apply to a 51 year old in those days, especially a drunkard and vagrant.

Still not figured out whether she is my Alexandrina though.

[kiterunner]

It seems that the informant on the burial record, Hugh Gourley, was an undertaker (as well as being mayor of Dunedin twice), so not personally connected with Alexandrina.

[Olde Crone]

Not teaching you to suck eggs, Kate, but Janet and Jessie are interchangeable names in Scotland, so maybe she was pretending to be her sister - or maybe she WAS her sister, if that makes sense! Is her sister the Janet Cuthbert she is with in 1851?

OC

[kiterunner]

Not teaching you to suck eggs, Kate, but Janet and Jessie are interchangeable names in Scotland, so maybe she was pretending to be her sister - or maybe she WAS her sister, if that makes sense! Is her sister the Janet Cuthbert she is with in 1851?


No, my Alexandrina's sister Jessie is in Edinburgh on all the censuses and married a James Archibald in 1856. She died in Edinburgh in 1891.

I wish that just one of the pieces in Papers Past said whether the NZ vagrant Alexandrina Ferrier was married or not! I was trying to search on there earlier for the other alias name, Henrietta McEwen, but nothing would come up because of that reversed apostrophe the printers used for the "c" of Mc names. I must have another try.
Edit - still no luck! Anyone know how to do this, please?

I don't know whether the death cert would be likely to have any information to help work out whether she is my Alexandrina or not; anyone have any advice on that, please? NZ certs cost about 10 GB pounds by the look of it.

[Uncle John]

A wildcard asterisk in a Mc / Mac name sometimes produces results.

[marquette]

As she is not buried with anyone of the same name, its possible it was "common grave"

I sometimes find that just typing "mewen" no apostrophes, works, or using and ordinary apostrophe. I didn't find any other reference to Henrietta either.

Could Alexandrina's relatives have sent her out to NZ as a "black sheep", to keep her out of sight ?


Di

[kiterunner]

Could Alexandrina's relatives have sent her out to NZ as a "black sheep", to keep her out of sight ?

I don't think so if she is my Alexandrina, because she was in London on the 1861 census whereas her family lived in Scotland, so she would already have been quite far from them.

Thanks for the suggestions for the Papers Past search but Henrietta Mewen comes up with no matches, same with M'Ewen and I don't think there is a wildcard facility on there.

[kiterunner]

Aha, but leaving out the Henrietta part, Mewen and M'ewen do work! Thanks, Di! There must be some other reason why it doesn't find the Henrietta match that we already know about.

So now I know that the reverse apostrophe isn't a problem, I have found that in 1872 there is a report of two prisoners both well known to the police, Charles M'Ewen who got 2 months for assaulting a police officer, and Alexandrina M'Ewen alias Ferrier given 14 days hard labour for drunk and disorderly. So Charles could be her husband, perhaps?

[kiterunner]

And in 1873 Alexandrina Mary Ferrier alias Jane M'Ewen was fined for drunkenness.

[kiterunner]

Ah, finally found an entry (from 1872) which says "Alexandrina M'Ewen, the wife of the last prisoner" (the last prisoner being Charles.)

[marquette]

Aha, but leaving out the Henrietta part, Mewen and M'ewen do work! Thanks, Di! There must be some other reason why it doesn't find the Henrietta match that we already know about.

So now I know that the reverse apostrophe isn't a problem, I have found that in 1872 there is a report of two prisoners both well known to the police, Charles M'Ewen who got 2 months for assaulting a police officer, and Alexandrina M'Ewen alias Ferrier given 14 days hard labour for drunk and disorderly. So Charles could be her husband, perhaps?



Maybe just a common law wife ? Can't see an NZ marriage or one in freeBMD

She sounds a lot like our Frederick Read, an habitual drunk and constantly before the courts (various spelling variations), never married, died without any really useful details being recorded.

In Trove, I have found the same Mc Mac M' variations, sometimes the search will pick it up, but not always.

[kiterunner]

Maybe just a common law wife ? Can't see an NZ marriage or one in freeBMD



Yes, I'm thinking the same, especially since her death reg and burial are under her maiden name.

[KiwiChris]

Kate, an NZ death cert could/should have information such as parents names, age and sex of any children, and length of time in NZ, but only if the informant had that information.
I shelled out for the cert of my gg-grandfather only to find that none of the information was recorded, must have been a falling out has he had a living wife and a number of children.

[kiterunner]

Thanks, Chris. I may get it just to see what it says though most probably the informant won't have had the info.

[KiwiChris]

There are a number of passenger lists online, but they are not all searchable, if you get an approx. time in NZ then you can look through and see if she can be found. Living in Dunedin, it is probable that she entered through Port Chalmers.

Edit: There is a Janet Ferrier sailed Clyde to Port Chalmers on the Jura, departing 16 June 1862, she was listed as a domestic servant. There are Mary and Janet M'Ewan on the same sailing.
1869 Janet Ferrier is listed as a wine and spirit merchant at George Street Dunedin.

Dunedin is known as the Edinburgh of the South and was predominantly settled by Scots.

[kiterunner]

I was looking at the passenger lists on FamilySearch yesterday but they have only indexed a few so far and the rest have to be browsed. I'm going to search Papers Past some more to see what is the earliest date that she appears.

[KiwiChris]

See my post above which I was editing to add the arrival of Janet Ferrier, while you were also posting.

[kiterunner]

Ooooh, thanks very much Chris! Shame I have to go to bed now, but I will have a good look tomorrow.

[kiterunner]

Edit: There is a Janet Ferrier sailed Clyde to Port Chalmers on the Jura, departing 16 June 1862, she was listed as a domestic servant. There are Mary and Janet M'Ewan on the same sailing.
1869 Janet Ferrier is listed as a wine and spirit merchant at George Street Dunedin.

There is a Janet Ferrier burial at Northern Cemetery, Dunedin, date of death 30 May 1881 and a Jessie Ferrier death registered Apr-Jun 1881 Dunedin (according to ancestry) who could be that Janet Ferrier. Or not.

[kiterunner]

The Janet Ferrier who was a wine and spirit merchant doesn't seem to be Alexandrina because she is still listed as having a "bottle licence" and as a grocer in the 1870's when Alexandrina was a drunken vagrant and gaol bird.

[KiwiChris]

NZBMD does not have the death of either, but the transcriptions can be erratic and it won't let you search just on a Christian name or with wildcard. I was going to see if I could get the date of the death reg for Jessie.

At least we have burials for Janet and Alexandrina which means they are separate people!

[kiterunner]

I'm very glad I ordered the death cert! It does have her parents' names, and it is my Alexandrina. Also it says "not married", to confirm that she didn't actually marry Charles McEwen. There is nothing for "how long in New Zealand", though.

[Mary from Italy]

So your Alexandrina was the vagrant? I wonder how that happened, poor woman.

[kiterunner]

Yes, she must be.

[KiwiChris]

I wonder if she was a remittance woman? It is interesting that she ended up in the Scottish capital of NZ, a fluke, or sent there by her family??