View of Laurencekirk at the bottom of High Street
2nd Great-grandparents – Paternal father’s line of Williamson Family
Andrew Ritchie was born in 1823 at Carmyllie, Forfarshire, Scotland. His father, John, was 27 and his mother, Ann, was 27. Carmyllie [Càrn Mhoillidh] is a rural parish in Angus, Scotland. The main settlements in the parish are Redford, Greystone, Guynd and Milton of Carmyllie. There is a Church of Scotland church and a primary school. Angus was historically a county, known officially as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1928, bordering Kincardineshire to the north east, Aberdeenshire to the north and Perthshire to the west; southwards it faced Fife across the Firth of Tay.
Siblings of Andrew Ritchie
- Ann Ritchie b.1829
Ann Christie was born in 1831 at Marykirk, Kincardineshire. Her father, David, was 42 and her mother, Ann, was 18. Marykirk [Obar Luathnait] is a village in the Kincardine and Mearns area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, next to the border with Angus at the River. Kincardineshire, also known as the Mearns, is a historic county, on the coast of northeast Scotland. It is bounded by Aberdeenshire on the north and west, and by Angus on the south.
Ann’s Siblings
- James Christie b.1832
- Mary Christie b.1834
- David Christie b.1836
- George Christie b.1838
- Isobel Christie b.1840
- Elisabeth Christie b.1842
- David Christie b.1845
- Charles Christie b.1847
Andrew Ritchie, son of John Ritchie and Ann Ritchie née Burns married Ann Christie, daughter of David Christie and Isobel Christie née Barclay in Marykirk, Kincardine, Scotland on 29 January 1851 in accordance to the rites of the Church of Scotland.
Marykirk Old Kirk and Kirkyard photographed by Russ Hamer. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license . Click image to see original photograph.
Children of Andrew Ritchie and Ann Christie
- Daughter Isabella was born in 1852 in Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Ann was born in 1854 in Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Elizabeth was born in 5 April 1855 in Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Helen was born in 22 October 1856 in Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Jemima was born on 25 October 1858 in Kincardineshire, Scotland. Jemima was our direct ancestor.
- Son David Christie was born in 24 December 1860 in Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Son Andrew Burns was born on 25 December 1862 in Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Jessie Leslie was born in 1866 in Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Son John was born on 25 May 1867 in Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Son Charles was born in 22 April 1869 in Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, Scotland.
- Daughter Maggie was born in 25 March 1872 in Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, Scotland.
Death of Andrew’s Parents
His mother Ann passed away in 1861 at the age of 65. Twenty years later, his father John passed away in 1881, at the age of 87.
Residence and Life of Andrew and Ann 1841 – 1907
Andrew’s father John Ritchie was a blacksmith living at Cotton Back Baath, Forfarshire, Scotland. John had trained his young son Andrew Ritchie in the trade of blacksmithing. Andrew followed this trade in Forfarshire and Kincardineshire; the Census of 1861 describes his occupation as Detenor Lingcon V Blacksmith.
In 1862 Andrew and his young wife Ann Ritchie moved their family to Laurencekirk in Kincardineshire, Scotland, where they became involved in farming. Nine years later, in 1871, they had secured 75 acres of arable land at Borrowmuirhills and were employing three labourers. Andrew’s occupation, in the 1871 Census, was described as Vet Seweion & Farmer.
Their farm at Borrowmuirhills had increased to 100 acres of arable land in 1881 and they employed two agricultural labourers. Andrew’s occupation was now Veterinary Surgeon & Farmer.
Andrew and Ann Ritchie photographed in the late 1800’s
Census records also show that Ann Christie’s relationship to Andrew (Head of the house) was first, wife and second, her occupation was “Farmers Wife”. Obviously, she had an active role in the farming activities at Borrowmuirhills Farm. Ann probably died between 1891 – 1901.
Andrew Ritchie, Farmer and Veterinary Surgeon, together with his 42-year-old daughter Helen Ritchie, remained at Borrowmuirhills Farm until his death in 1907.
Ann Ritchie née Christie, born 1 January 1831 was last officially recorded in the 1891 Scotland Census where she was listed as wife and farmers wife. The next Census undertaken on 31 March 1901 does not record any details about Ann Ritchie née Christie. Details about her death are unknown, it is assumed that Ann probably died during the period between 6 April 1891 and 31 March 1901.
Andrew Ritchie, Farmer and Veterinary Surgeon, of Borrowmuirhills, Laurencekirk, died on 28 February 1907. His estate was valued at £1,524. 4s. 8d. on 15 April 1907.