John McGhee, Cumnock to Antarctica

By Kay McMeekin with Linda McGhee

John McGhee was born in Cumnock in 1935 and lives in Australia.

A mechanic driver and electrical fitter, John was stationed at Wilkes Station, Antarctica in the winter of 1961. Mount McGhee may have been named after him. The station was run by Australians so he had maybe emigrated to Australia first.

He worked as a lumberjack in Canada; trained young mechanics in Laos; worked at a gold mine in Papua. New Guinea as transportation captain; he has climbed to Everest base camp with his daughter and used to climb in Scotland with the late Dougal Haston.

His second daughter Jen has followed in his footsteps and also works in Antarctica, as does her partner.  She drives the huge snowploughs that keep the runways clear at the airport on Antarctica.  Most people have no idea that you can actually fly an Airbus onto Antarctica!! 

Trotters from Closeburn to New Cumnock and beyond

By Kay McMeekin

Sir Charles Stuart-Menteth (1769-1847), of Closeburn, Dumfriesshire, purchased the Mansfield Estate, and lived at Mansfield House.  This elegant Victorian mansion was situated midway bewteen between the town of New Cumnock and Corsencon Hill on the Mansfield Road.  Sir Charles could oversee his many mineral developments within this parish including coal reserves at Grieve Hill, less than 2 miles to the North, close to the Parish boundary of Old Cumnock.

Sir Charles Granville Stuart Menteth  became the 1st Baronet of Closeburn and Mansfield  in 1838. He worked the coal, lime and clay reserves on his Mansfield estate and was recognised as a major land improver in the county.  He passed away in December 1847, aged 78 years. (R Guthrie https://newcumnockhistory.com/key-historical-events/robert-burns/robert-burns-trail/mansfield-and-sir-james-stuart-menteth/)

Robert Trotter 1818 - 1891 of Closeburn moved to Grieve Hill, Mansfield by the 1841 census.

Further down the line:-

His daughter Mary Trotter who was married to Angus Bennet, emigrated to Manitoba in 1882. They sailed on the Grecian from Glasgow to Quebec arriving 22 May 1882. They travelled with his parents  Samuel Bennet and  Elizabeth McCormick and their first 4 children. They were joiners in Scotland but became farmers in Russell, NW of Winnipeg and 2,800 km from Quebec.

Their son Robert Trotter Bennet married his cousin from Scotland, Mary Trotter, in 1905. She had emigrated about 1903. In 1911 they were in Marchwell Saskatchewan by 1916 they were farming  in Saltcoats, Saskatchewan. All these places are nearby.

Shale miners

By Scott Daily

James "Paraffin" Young

After receiving a patent for producing paraffin oil (often referred to as kerosene in many parts of the world) James Young established a refining factory in Addieswell, West Lothian around 1865. To quote from West Lothian Shale Trail "At the start Young’s refinery produced oil for lighting, and also developed new types of light which gave better light. This was much better and cheaper than whale oil, and burnt cleaner. But the increasing popularity of cars meant that the West Lothian refineries produced petrol and diesel fuel. Paraffin wax was used to make candles, and a by-product of the retort process was ammonium sulphate fertiliser." At the same time many areas of Scotland and Ireland were suffering financially and so many were looking for work. As more and more shale mines opened in West Lothian, people began to move from Ayrshire to West Lothian to work. 

As shown in the Cumnock Connections tree, some who came to West Lothian from other parts either married people originally from Cumnock or moved to the area after working for a time in the slate industry. 

One example of someone who married into a Cumnock family, and whose offspring seemed to have settled for a time in the Cumnock area, is James Baird who was born in West Lothian (to a family who had previously been in Lugar) and is listed in a 1891 census as living in Uphall, West Lothian employed as a shale miner. He had married Catherine Hutchison who was born in Cumnock. Their three children listed in the census were stated to be born in Lugar, East Ayrshire. In the baptism records for their daughter Marion Marshall Baird (who later emigrated to Manhattan, New York) it states that James' occupation was "char filler". James is recorded as passing away at the age of 40 (from heart disease) back in West Lothian. 

A second example of a Cumnock woman who married a West Lothian shale miner was Jane Murdoch Price who was born in Cumnock. Jane married William Wardrop who is listed in a 1911 census as a shale miner living in West Lothian.  The Wardrops had also lived in Cumnock in 1875-8 at Glengyron Row.

To give an example of someone orginally from Ireland who came to Scotland to work as shale miner, and married and settled in Ayrshire, we have William Gorman who was born in Londonderry. He married Catherine Shirkie (in some records spelled "Shirky") from Kilwinning, they were married in Old Cumnock in 1864 and in 1881 census, where William is listed as working as a coal miner, they are shown to have four children, Edward (listed as a coal miner, age 13); William, age 7; Stewart, age 4; and Janet, age 1. The family would later move to Irvine. It would seem the William had various legal problems as there is record of him spending time in prison in Ayr in 1899, he is also stated (see Cumnock Connections) to have passed away at  Cunningham Combination Poorhouse in Irvine a few years after. 

James Muir's journey to Brisbane

By Kay McMeekin

In the past, newspapers published much information about the sailings and progress of shipping. This allowed anxious families at home to track the progress of their loved ones on their long and hazardous journey. 

21 year old miner James Muir and Janet Barrowman who left with their infant daughter for Brisbane in 1887 on the Wooranga  a journey of 7/8 weeks. Here is an advert for the journey.

British Australasian - Thursday 17 March 1887
accessed on British Newspaper Archive 28 Jan 2025

closer view

Batavia is the old name for Jakarta.

Here is the progress of  James and Janet Muir  on their journey to Brisbane, Queensland in 1887 on the Wooranga,  a journey of 8 weeks. Compiled from various newspapers.

Waroonga, London to Brisbane (Queensland) 1887

Sailed on 5 April according to the advert but 7 days London to Gibraltar seems a bit excessive.

5 April Gravesend, Kent (on the Thames, 21 miles from London)

12 April Gibraltar

19 April Suez 

(The Suez canal opened in 1869 considerably shortening the journey from Europe to Asia and beyond. Before this ships had to round the southern tip of Africa.)

24 Apr Aden

14 May Batavia

26 May Cooktown

31 May Brisbane

James was one of 20 miners on board

They travelled in steerage, the cheaper option and down in the bowels of the ship. Saloon was the other class.

 https://www.archivessearch.qld.gov.au/api/download_file/DR39554

Five babies were born on the voyage and 3 were given the name Waroonga! 

Emily Waroonga Finlay born 6 May

Waroonga Emilie Griffiths born 9 April

David Waroonga Griffiths (a cousin ? of the above)  born 26 May

Passengers were disembarked at Thursday Island, Tormsville, Rockhampton, McKay, Cooktown and Brisbane.

It looks like the Muirs had paid for their passage, but I may be misunderstanding what "remittance" means.

Others were "free", particularly domestic servants.

Remittance’ or ‘nominated’ passages were usually initiated by individuals within the colony in order to sponsor relatives or friends. Under the remittance system, those recommending a prospective migrant applied to the colonial authority and provided a deposit. 

 from The political economy of assisted immigration: Australia 1860–1913 by Timothy J. Hatton 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0014498323000591#sec0002

So who in Australia sponsored them?

Once in Australia they settled in Newcastle, New South Wales and had another 6 children. Janet died in 1904 aged only 36. James died in 1944.

Robb descendants to Australia

By Kay McMeekin

Link to  Jane Wylie Robb on the Cumnock Connections tree.

Jane Wylie Robb and Thomas William Gray c 1912
Photo from Alan Skelton

Farmer's daughter Jane Wylie Robb married Thomas Gray on the 21st September 1881 at her home Mossback farm in Cumnock. She was 24 and single. He was 35 a widower and a draper from Irvine. He was previously married to Jane Hay in 1874 at which point he was an iron miner in Tanyard, Kilwinning. Jane died in 1880. They had 4 children 2 of whom had already died. I can't find him at all in the 1881 census but his 2 daughters were staying with different members of Jane's family. His parents were Thomas Gray and Annie Porter on both marriage certificates. I can't find them in Scotland. I suspect he came from Ireland between 1871 and 1874.

Thomas and his new wife and his 2 daughters Janet and Bella sailed on the "Scotland" from Glasgow arriving Cooktown, Queensland on 4th September 1882. Cooktown was the port for Brisbane.  

Their son Daniel was one of three children born on the voyage, on the 5th June 1882. (according to the second article below the Scotland departed on the 5th July 1882, so one of these dates is wrong if he was indeed born at sea.  Update : he was born 1 8 August 1882 and registered in Queensland.) 

Daughter Annie Porter Gray was born in Melbourne, Victoria in 1884 and daughter Elizabeth Vallance Gray was born in Newcastle, New South Wales in 1884 and the family seem to have settled there.

ARRIVAL OF THE SCOTLAND. (1882, September 23). The Week (Brisbane, Qld. : 1876 - 1934), p. 4. Retrieved January 27, 2025

from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article181781293

In Australia, Thomas adopted the middle name William. He didn't use the middle name in Scotland other than to name his son with Jane Hay, Thomas William Gray 1876-7.

He lived in Brunker Road, Adamstown a Newcastle suburb,  where he died in 1915, since about 1895. He was a miner but unable to work for the previous 10 years due to "miner's ailments".

ADAMSTOWN (1915, October 28). Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate (NSW : 1876 - 1954), p. 6. Retrieved January 26, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article137977698

"Arrival of the Steamer Scotland." The Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939)23 September 1882: 404. Web. 27 Jan 2025 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19786866>.

His wife Jane Wylie Robb died in Kurri Kurri Hospital on 18th January 1925

Footnote about the journey

In the 1880s, a steamship called "Scotland" was operating on the route to Australia, often associated with the British India Steam Navigation Company (B.I.S.N) and primarily carrying passengers from Glasgow, Scotland to various Australian ports; historical records mention its arrival in Brisbane, Australia during this period. 

The following linked article describes likely conditions on board and that they had medical attention and food supplied which ties in with the newspaper report.

https://www.lightstation.com/tales-of-the-cape/the-voyage-migration/#:~:text=In%20the%201840's%20the%20journey,hundreds%20of%20people%20on%20board.

Recruitment of Scots miners to be farmers in Canada

1927 advert in Cumnock Chronicle

1928-1930

Government scheme

SCOTS MINERS FOR CANADA 

The White Star liner Regina sails this evening from the Clyde for Canada with a good complement of emigrants drawn from all parts of Scotland. There is an increasing number of miners emigrating to the Canadian mines in Nova Scotia, and judging from the number of families now proceeding to join miners already in Canada, it would appear that conditions have been found favourable. The usual number of domestics and ironworkers also figure in the passenger list.  Miners also figure in the passenger list of the Canadian Pacific liner Montclare which sails from the Tail of the Bank to-day for Canada. The party numbers six, of whom two hail from Portobello and one from Dunfermline. Also on board will be a party of domestic servants for Canada. Altogether 150 passengers embark at the Tail of the Bank .

The Scotsman - Saturday 16 October 1926 accessed through British Newspaper Archive

SCOTS MINERS' SONS FOR CANADA. 

The first party of miners' sons from Scotland, numbering about forty, to proceed to Canada under a new free passage scheme, sailed yesterday from Princes Dock, Glasgow, by the Canadian Pacific liner "Melite." The boys, whose ages range from 14 to 17 years, are drawn from the West Fife and Lanarkshire coalfields. Recruited by the Y.M.C.A., the lads will travel to the farm hostel of the United Church of Canada, at Norval, Ontario. The youthful settlers are journeying free of charge to themselves, and each has received assistance towards the purchase of his outfit, while all incidental expenses are defrayed. Mr A. Smith, Secretary of the Cowdenbeath Y.M.C.A., is conducting the party right through to its destination. After some days spent at the hostel, the boys will be allocated to the farmers who have been specially selected by the United Church, and they will be treated as members of the family. They will each receive a week in wages, together with full board and lodging, and wages will be increased according to experience and ability. At the age of 21, the boys will be eligible to acquire land on their own behalf from the Canadian Government. Supervision during their period of apprentineship will be exercised by the - sited Church of Canada through the manager of their farm hostel, Mr A. McLaren. who is himself a Scot. The hostel at Norval will be regarded as a central home to which the buys can always go if difficulties or sickness arise. The next party of Scots boys will sail on August 3, and lads interested in the scheme should apply without delay to the Secretary. Y. M. C.A. Migration Department, 2 Drumsheugh Gardens. Edinburgh, or 122 Wellington Street, Glasgow. 

Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser - Saturday 14 July 1928

1927 3000 families resettlement scheme 

This article examines the 3,000 Family Scheme, a joint British-Canadian settlement project in which British families, comprised of over 18,000 individuals, were relocated to homesteads as colonisers of Canada's remote areas. There, many endured isolation and hardship, and were largely blamed for their own plight.

Irish miners who came to Cumnock

by Roberta McGee

This is a list of Irish miners who came to Old Cumnock to look for work in the 1800s. The link will take you to their family history on the Cumnock Connections page. Please add any you might find.

Armstrong, William, coalminer born 1806 Ireland d 1882 Cumnock In Scotland (Portpatrick) by 1827

Battles, John,  coalminer born 1835 Ireland

Bradford, George, iron miner then coalminer born 1830 Co. Down died 1887 Cumnock. In Cumnock by 1849

Brown, Thomas,  coalminer born 1839 Ireland (possibly Co. Down)

Burns, Owen,  coalminer born 1834 Cavan, Ireland died 1905 Cumnock. In Ayrshire (Ayr) by Nov 1838

Crawley, Patrick, ironstone miner born 1840 Ireland died 1898 Paisley

James Docherty,  ironstone miner born 1833 Ireland

Docherty, Patrick,  irons miner then coalminer born 1843 Derry, Ireland  died 1914 Old Cumnock

Donaghy, Bernard, iron miner born 1837 Ireland

Donaldson, James,  iron miner then coalminer born 1822 Co. Down, Ireland d 1885 Cumnock. In Lugar by 1850 though seem to have gone back and forth to Ireland

Dunlop, Samuel,  coalminer born 1848 Ireland

Ferguson, James, coalminer born 1845 Belfast died 1896 Cumnock

Finn, Thaddeus , ironstone miner born 1845 Co Sligo, Ireland died 1916 Cumnock. In Cumnock by 1868

Gaffney, Dominic,  ironstone miner b 1837 Ireland died 1884 Auchinleck. In Ayrshire by 1851 census

Gilchrist, James, coal miner then iron miner born 1842 Ireland died 1892 Cumnock 

Green, Patrick,  iron miner, born 1834 Co. Tyrone, Ireland

Hill, Samuel, iron miner then coal miner, b 1832 Ireland died 1914 Muirkirk

Hogg, William, iron miner then coalminer b 1842 Ireland died 1904 Cumnock

 Hughes, John, iron miner, born 1834 Ireland died 1881 Old Cumnock.

Jackson, David, coalminer born 1835 Co Down, Ireland died 1909 Cumnock

Jolly, Joseph, iron then coalminer born 1845 Aghaderg, Co. Down died 1903 Cumnock

Judge, Thomas, iron miner then coalminer, born 1832 Ireland died 1911 Muirkirk

Kelly, John, coalminer born 1836 Ireland died 1917 Cumnock

Lang, Andrew, iron miner then coalminer, born 1838 Ireland died 1901 Old Cumnock.

Lang, William , iron miner then coalminer, born 1832 Ireland died 1911 Muirkirk.

Lorimer, Henry,  coalminer born 1839 Co. Derry, Ireland died 1910 Lugar, Cumnock

Lorimer, Hugh,  iron miner born 1835 Co. Antrim, Ireland

Lorimer, John, coal miner born 1841 Co. Derry, Ireland

Lucas, Martin, iron miner born 1829 Ireland died 1910 Ayr

Marrs, Robert,  iron miner born 1849 Castle Dawson, Londonderry, Ireland

Marrs, Samuel,  iron miner born 1851 Castle Dawson, Londonderry, Ireland died 1924 Ayr

Marrs, Thomas,  iron miner then coalminer born 1855 Castle Dawson d 1889 Fife

McCallum, Hugh, coal miner born 1837 Co. Tyrone, Ireland died 1911 Bannockburn Stirling

McCormick, Michael,  iron miner born 1846 Ireland

McDowall, William , iron miner then coalminer born 1853 Ireland 

McGuire, Michael,  pit sinker born 1851 Ireland died 1888 Old Cumnock

McKendrick, David, iron miner then coal miner born 1840 Ireland

McLurg, Thomas, coalminer born 1847 Ireland died 1885 Dalziel, Motherwell

Plunkett, David, iron miner born 1843 Ireland

Potter, Samuel,  coalminer b 1859 Ireland died 1928 Cowdenbeath

Quinn, John,  coalminer/mine cutter born 1851 Creggan Lower, Armagh d 1928 Auchinleck

Ward, Clelland,  iron miner then coalminer born 1855 Ireland died 1918 Auchinleck

Wightman, James, iron miner then coalminer born 1849 Co, Down, Ireland d 1936 Cumnock