Albin farmed west of Edmonton most of his life. He also owned and operated a farm transport business that made daily trips to and from Edmonton. (Cattle to market one way and farm implements, seed, fertilizer, etc., on return trips). It was on one of his "calls" that first he met Belle. After their marriage, they established their own farm and operated both the business and the farm before later selling and retiring to Vancouver Island in 1983. After Albin's death, Belle returned to Alberta to reside in Drayton Valley near her son Tony.
She was the youngest in her family and preferred the nickname "Belle". She had extensive records for her part of the family and contributed much of the data and biographical notes for that section of this family history. Belle's comments and her large photo collection vividly depict the culture shock of her family leaving an established farm and comfortable stone house in Scotland to come to Canada as pioneers and endure the rigors of Alberta winters in a log shack without any amenities. In her words, "as a teenager in Scotland, coming to Canada at first sounded adventurous and had me thinking of cowboys and riding horses". She went on to say that she got more horseback riding than she ever counted on. It was all free range in those days and it became her job to ride out and round up the cattle - rain or shine. Belle summed it up by saying she never quite forgave her oldest brother for talking her father into immigrating with the family to Canada.
Belle and her husband Albin farmed for many years west of Edmonton, Alberta before retiring to Vancouver Island in the early 1980's. After Albin's death, she returned to Alberta and made her home in Drayton Valley where she maintained a very active lifestyle. She traveled extensively, frequently with senior's groups on cruises, bus trips, etc. It seems they usually managed to find a casino somewhere where they enjoyed listening to the sound of coins hitting the tray as they counted their winnings. Belle was active with senior's bowling until recently and was very proud of the Gold Medal she won at the senior's games in 1999 as well as winning the championship in B.C., in 1993. She kept herself fit for her bowling by maintaining two gardens and assorted fruit trees. She then preserved much of what she grew since as she put it, "I like to eat my own food -- no chemicals". Unfortunately, age finally caught up to her forcing Belle to give up her home and to move to a senior's residence in 2007. She was in a nursing home when she died 11 Jan 2010.
Tony is a certified welder who operates his own high-pressure arc welding business in the Drayton Valley area. Business is booming for him, as he presently has a fleet of eight trucks. He has worked on major pipelines in several Provinces and his projects often include international contracts. In one instance, he had a two-year contract fabricating and supplying huge oil tanks that were later shipped to Saudi Arabia. While he works hard, he plays hard too. He travels extensively on winter snowmobile expeditions to places like Wyoming, Colorado and B.C. This spring, (2002), he is intending to join 39 others who are chartering planes to fly them and their machines to Alaska for a week's snowmobiling.
Bruce works in computer programming in the Winnipeg area.
Carol and her family now live in Winnipeg.
Archibald's birth year was calculated from information supplied by his son Robert (who was the Informant), on the death extract registered in 1878, which gave his age at death as "76 years" and establishing a birth year of approximately 1802. (However, the 1841 census for Wheatacre (Wetacre or Westacre) farm at Torphichen, where he is shown with other family members, gives his birth year as "Abt 1806"). It is believed he was born in Bathgate, Linlithgow, (W. Lothian), as this is the birth location given on the 1851, 1861 and 1871 census listings at the same farm location where his 'estimated' birth year is shown as 1802. The 1861 census reports him as a farmer of 55 acres and lists his wife Jean (Jane) and the 9 children born to them at the time of the census. In the 1871 census, the family is listed at "Boxton Rigghead farm", with 8 children then at home, his wife Jane, and her mother Mary Graham.
It is known Archie married Jane at Muiravonside, Stirling, 8 Aug 1843. Given his age of approximately 41 in 1843, this may have been a second marriage for him, although there is no information to support this. It is also noted his death registration, lists his mother's given name ONLY as Mary, (although it was later determined his mother's surname was "Wardrop" and this shows as a second 'given' name for some of his descendents). Another anomaly in the records is that Archibald's death registration also INCORRECTLY listed his father as "Archibald" instead of the correct "Alexander". (Archibald's son Robert was the Informant for his fathers' death and either he never checked the accuracy of the death certificate, or if he did, why he never had it corrected is not now known).
Archibald died before his wife, as the 1881 census at Foggermount, Muiravonside lists Jane as his widow. The cause of death was reported as "Intussusception of the bowels, 7 days", a medical term describing a severe constriction in the intestines, an incurable condition at that time. Marriage record LDS: M114864. Marriage record GROS: 671/0030 0464. Death Record GROS: 486/00 0016. Death215.
Archibald died without leaving a written will (according to GROS records), so his affairs were wound up by taking an Inventory of his effects, which amounted to some £290 in 1878. (In 2012 values this equates to a purchasing power of about £22,000. Using the Retail Price Index as an inflator, this would now be around £116,000 using Average Earnings according to http://www.measuringworth.com/).
Jane was listed as a widow in the 1881 census taken at Foggermount, Muiravonside, (LDS film #0203543). Also shown on this census were daughters Mary (age 36) and Barbara (age 24), both listed as unmarried. A "grandson" Archibald Waddell, age 10, was also listed. (He was the illegitimate son of Jane's daughter Janet). The handwriting on the Christening records for the first six of Jane's children may have been blurred or distorted in the registration file, as Jane's maiden surname was mistakenly interpreted and transcribed on the LDS Fiche #C116715 as "Rankin" instead of the correct surname of "Rennie". Jane's youngest son Robert was the 'Informant' for her death registration reporting her age at death as 83. Death655. Death record GROS: 479/00 0100.
Birth record LDS: C116715. Birth record GROS: 671/0030 0087. The mother's name is listed as "Rankin" instead of the correct "Rennie". Mary is recorded as a dressmaker, unmarried and living with her mother on the 1881 census taken at Foggermount.
Birth record LDS: C116715. The mother's name is listed as "Rankin" instead of the correct "Rennie". Birth record GROS: 671/0030 0095. Death record GROS: 671/00 0012.
Birth record LDS: C116715. The mother's name is listed as "Rankin" instead of the correct "Rennie". It is believed Archibald never married.
Barbara is shown living at home with her mother on the 1881 census at Foggermount and listed as an unemployed domestic servant. She was a witnes at her sister Janet's wedding. Birth record LDS: C116711. At the time of death, she was listed as a Farm Owner, Single, age 67 years. Death record GROS: 486/00 0015.
He appears to have died at an early age as another John was born to this family in 1886. Birth record LDS: C116711. Death record GROS: 671/00 0031.
Alan was the ring-bearer at our wedding when he was about 3 years old. Like his father before him, Alan also became a pilot. He obtained his commercial license and for a while worked as a "bush-pilot" flying supplies, people and freight in and out of remote northern Canadian communities. He later became a full Captain with Canadian Airlines where he stayed until 1999 when he was assigned for a while to Air Jamaica. After the merger of Air Canada and Canadian Airlines in 2000, Alan returned to the new Air Canada until retiring for health reasons in 2003. At the time of his parent's 50th wedding anniversary in 1998, we were able to connect with Alan and fly with him to Vancouver. He got our tickets up-graded to first class and I was able to sit in the flight deck with him for both the take-off and landing. Getting a panoramic view of the Rockies from the flight deck was an exciting experience I'll not soon forget.
The last few years of Alan's life involved a long battle with cancer. First it was lung cancer, from which he largely recovered although the treatment obviously weakened him. He then developed a brain tumour, which he couldn't beat. He died in his home in Vernon, B.C. just after New Years 2006.
1/2 brother to Miranda.
Alan was the ring-bearer at our wedding when he was about 3 years old. Like his father before him, Alan also became a pilot. He obtained his commercial license and for a while worked as a "bush-pilot" flying supplies, people and freight in and out of remote northern Canadian communities. He later became a full Captain with Canadian Airlines where he stayed until 1999 when he was assigned for a while to Air Jamaica. After the merger of Air Canada and Canadian Airlines in 2000, Alan returned to the new Air Canada until retiring for health reasons in 2003. At the time of his parent's 50th wedding anniversary in 1998, we were able to connect with Alan and fly with him to Vancouver. He got our tickets up-graded to first class and I was able to sit in the flight deck with him for both the take-off and landing. Getting a panoramic view of the Rockies from the flight deck was an exciting experience I'll not soon forget.
The last few years of Alan's life involved a long battle with cancer. First it was lung cancer, from which he largely recovered although the treatment obviously weakened him. He then developed a brain tumour, which he couldn't beat. He died in his home in Vernon, B.C. just after New Years 2006.
1/2 sister to Kristin.
The "brackets" around the surname is to note that James was born a "Watson". He later legally changed his surname by Deed Poll from "Watson" to "Glass-Watson" in the late 1940's. His objective was to perpetuate his mother's surname which was "Glass". James had two sons, Hector, who also adopted the new surname and Kenneth, who retained Watson as his surname. (This of course effectively created two different surnames in the same family).
Duncan was the head groundskeeper at a large estate in Gifford, Scotland. While employed there, he lived in one of the gate houses on the estate.
Kenneth Christian MacKenzie WATSON
Kenneth continued the MacKenzie family tradition and joined the navy as a "Boy Entrant" and was a naval gunner for many years.
Helen was a widow when she married Ken. (Her married name had been Campbell - her maiden name is not known). Helen reportedly had two married children from her first marriage. No other details available.
Hector was the last family member to be born in "Badaninal House", Gairloch, Rosshire which, had been a major part of the MacKenzie family heritage for several generations. The "brackets" around the name is to note Hector was born with the surname of "Watson". He had his surname legally changed to "Glass-Watson" at the same time as his father did in the late 1940's. (See notes for James Watson*). As Hector's children were born AFTER the surname change, their entries correctly list their surnames as "Glass-Watson".
According to an Oct. 26/92 letter from Chrissie MacKenzie, the family went to Africa (Lusaka, Zambia), when the children were very young. Unfortunately, after only three weeks, Kathleen was "murdered" there. Hector and the family returned to Scotland after Kathleen's funeral and cremation service in Lusaka Cathedral, Zambia. No other information available.