Ronald Drysdale's Comments

That’s looking really good Ron,awesome if we are on the right track,there is a couple of things ,one is you said above John Mitchell is brother in law of John Mitchell Douglass,you meant James.now secondly I believe Henry was born in 1850.what is needed is the birth record of Henry and the mother of James .that will help tie it all together.

many regards ian

Hi,you know how to confuse an old bloke,so where did the Douglass name come into the equation?if as you speculate James father was John Mitchell and mother Catherine Mitchell

ian

I think that you have ruled James Mitchell Douglas out?  But here is what I have:

Liverpool Mercury; 22nd February 1853
"Dec 5th, at the residence of Capt James GARDNER, San Francisco, of tetanus aged 32, Capt James Mitchell DOUGLAS, of the British barque Isle-of-Wight of Glasgow."

The Isle‑of‑Wight, as recorded in the Lloyd’s Register Foundation archive, was a British barque launched in 1843 from the yards of T & J White, one of the Clyde’s respected shipbuilding firms. The register notes that the vessel “belonged to” the port of Glasgow, confirming that it was officially registered there and operated under Glasgow’s maritime authority.
Although the surviving entry does not name the ship’s owner, the context offers strong clues. Built on the Clyde and registered in Glasgow, the Isle‑of‑Wight was almost certainly owned by a Glasgow‑based merchant or shipping company—typical of the city’s thriving mid‑nineteenth‑century maritime trade.

Hi ron

i don’t think captain James Mitchell douglas is one in the same as our captain James Douglass.

Hi Ron,I see that James was the master in 47 to Ceylon madras,then in 48 to port Adelaide and on to Melbourne,as captain and the “captain fits “with his change in accreditation from master.but then in Melbourne the John Mitchell was under a new captain(John bickers) back to port Adelaide.On your information the John Mitchell was in 1851 enroute to Calcutta but not mastered by James Douglas.so we are back to where he went from Melbourne after June 1849…?

Thanks Ronald - will do.

Hello ron

i dont believe that is our

James,I think our James captained the barque John Mitchell to australia from london in 1848/9 and my trail has gone cold in Melbourne.

ragards ian

The Gympie Miner 17 May 1893

Hello Ron,I have a copy of birth certificate listing James as father I will post up,also the info you sent on James has been very helpfull so far,it all seems to fit.i have tracked him from Glasgow to Australia as a ships captain but the trail has gone cold as the ship he was on changed captains in Melbourne .regards ian

Hey there I meant the link for Henry in Alton in 1871

regards ian

Wow,I think this one is spot on just before he married Jane and moved to Australia where he was shot and killed in port Pirie South Australia in 1893 I think it was.

now to find his father James in the New York area,he was involved in shipping either chandlery or on ships so the stories are told

thank you so much 

Regards Ian h douglas

Wow and thank you for your research Ronald some of which is very promising.i will get into it asap and let you know 

ian h douglas.

Thanks so much, Ron! I have seen a couple of the census docs and land grants but happy to look at whatever else you can send--as long as it's no trouble for you. The marriage info is particularly interesting. And I will check out Familysearch. As you mention, the path back to Ireland and/or beyond is pretty obscure.

Any thoughts on research via Artificial Intelligence programs?

Hello Ron - I'm going to send you a message (if I can find that function again) as my comment exceeds the character count.

Nancy

Hello Ron - I am uncertain between these three options for my great x5 grandfather, I can tell you from my information that my great x4 grandfather William Drysdale (b.1748 who married Barbara Walker) had 2 brothers: John (b.1743) & Alexander (b.1742) and that their Drysdale father was from Dunbar & Innerwick (Berwickshire). Does that help at all?

Thanks, Ron. What little sleuthing I've done has been hampered by my lack of familiarity with the records in Ireland and Scotland. Plus, I've heard that many records were destroyed over the years.

Thank you, Ron. The earliest ancestor about whom I am certain is James Francis Drysdale, b. ca. 1835 in New Albany, Ind. (I have documented his and his family's subsequent lives fairly extensively.) James' parents almost certainly were Thomas (~1786-1850) & Martha (~1795-1849) Drysdale, landing in New Albany ca. 1825. Both are buried there. They apparently had several children, likely including dau. Nancy E. whose obit states she was b. ~1814 in Co. Down, Ire. There were numerous other Drysdales living along the Ohio R., in the 1820s and beyond, but their relationships are not clear at this point. So, my assumption is that Thomas & Martha, along with their earlier children, emigrated from Ireland. Where and when they may have been before that is an open question. I have always assumed they and/or their ancestors originated somewhere in Scotland, Dryfs R. area per the historical legends, but that path is totally obscure. Thanks for your interest, I'll appreciate any info or suggestions you may have!

Re: William Drysdale 1748-1815 - we have that he was born in Belville so that's helpful to know that was a name of a farm as we couldn't find a town of that name! But we have that he died in Great Tosson.

About our version of the 1503 incident, I've transcribed it from the hand-written text - I'll send you a message about it soon, as I'm concerned about possible errors and don't want to post until I've better verified it.

Well I'm the fortunate beneficiary of all your hard work Ronald!! Deeply grateful, thank you.

I'm trying to squeeze a few minutes in here and there to keep up with all the info... just fascinating!