John married Janet ROBERTSON on 12 Jun 1713 in Carnbee, Fife, Scotland. Janet was born about 1692 in Carnbee, Fife, Scotland; died after 1729. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Magdalane married William BROWN on 25 Oct 1734 in Carnbee, Fife, Scotland. William was born between 1698 and 1716. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

AndrewSr married Mary (McKie) MACKIE in 1759 in Cameron, Fife, Scotland. Mary (daughter of John1 MACKIE and Mary PITCAIRNE) was born on 14 Feb 1731 in Baldinnie, Ceres, Fife, Scotland; was christened on 14 Feb 1731 in Baldinnie Ground, Ceres, Fifeshire, Scotland; died on 25 Apr 1815 in Dairsie Parish, Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Janet SCOTT on 04 Dec 1796 in Balmerino, Fife, Scotland. Janet was born in 1767 in Crail parish, Fife, Scotland; died on 22 Sep 1858 in Balmerino, Fife, Scotland; was buried in churchyard, Balmerino, Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mary married David DOTT on 22 Sep 1781 in Ceres, Fife, Scotland. David was born about 1756 in Dairse, , Fife, Scotland; died between 1801 and 1827. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Laurensnellgroveancestor married Mary BLACK on 27 Jun 1789 in Kennoway, Ceres, Fife, Scotland. Mary (daughter of John BLACK and Anna HUME) was born on 12 Aug 1762 in Kennoway parish, Fifeshire, Scotland; died on 01 Jul 1847 in Kettle parish, Fifeshire, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Janet married Robert KENNEDY on 19 Mar 1791 in Ceres Parish, Fife, Scotland. Robert was born about 1764. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Magdalene married Henry MILLIE about 1790 in Easthill of Bandirran, Ceres, Fife, Scotland. Henry (son of John MILLIE and Martha DONALDSON) was born on 09 Sep 1761 in Cameron, Fife, Scotland; was christened on 20 Sep 1761 in Backbraes, Ceres, Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Robert married Jenny MORTON on 19 Mar 1791 in Ceres, Fife, Scotland. Jenny was born about 1771 in Cameron, Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

NOTE 1./ Historical Reference: The Year Was 1829

The year was 1829, and in Scotland, there was a catastrophic flood. According to a paper online at the website of Fettes College, Edinburgh, Scotland, the Muckle Spate (large flood) of 1829, began on August 3, 1829 in northeast Scotland and was "the most severe catastrophic flood in modern UK history." It extended across a large area of Scotland, from Inverness to Montrose, and devastated homes and agriculture in the affected areas. The Edinburgh Advertiser from August 11, 1829 provides detailed coverage of some of the affected areas, including the excerpt below:

The Dee was first observed to increase about four o'clock on Monday afternoon, and it continued to rise until about eleven o'clock on Tuesday forenoon, when it remained stationary for a few hours; after which, it began to recede with considerable rapidity. In some places, it attained an elevation of eleven feet above its ordinary level. . . The low grounds in the vicinity of the river were completely inundated, and so great, in some parts of its course, was the space over which it extended, that it presented the appearance rather of a lake than a river. . . Vast quantities of hay, straw, timber, &c. have been swept away; and so great was the force of the torrent, that many fields were stript of their soil, and covered with sand and stones. A good many cattle and sheep may have been drowned; but as it is customary, in the upper parts of the country to leave numerous flocks scattered over the hills, it will be impossible, for some time to ascertain with accuracy the numbers that have perished. Fortunately, notwithstanding the imminent to which many people were exposed from the suddenness of the inundation, no loss of human life has arisen from the overflowing of the Dee. Several cottages have, at Ballaster and other places, been carried away; and so completely were others surrounded with water, that a stranger could scarce have told on which side of the river they stood. A good many people were rescued, by means of boats, from being drowned in their own houses, and were obliged to resign their furniture, &c. to destruction. With the exception of the bridge near Aberdeen, and that at Potarch, all the bridges over the Dee have either been swept away, or sustained more or less injury. . . .

Andrew married Henrietta GIBB on 29 Jan 1835 in Balmerino, Fife, Scotland. Henrietta was born in 1811; died in 1867 in Dundee, Angus, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Anna married William MAIN on 08 Jun 1817 in Kennoway parish, Fifeshire, Scotland. William was born about 1786 in Blackfaulds Ceres, Fife, Sctl; died after 1817. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Isabella DYRE on 21 Mar 1818 in Cambuslang Lanark Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mary married Peter MARCHALL on 21 May 1832 in Lesmahagow parish, Lanark, Scotland. Peter was born about 1790 in Carluke parish, Lanark, Scotland; died on 07 Jan 1862. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Robert married Charlotte ROBERTSON on 24 Dec 1819 in Collessie, Fifeshire, Scotland. Charlotte (daughter of Robert ROBERTSON and July KAIRNS) was born on 09 Jun 1782 in Monimail parish, Fifeshire, Scotland; died on 15 Feb 1868 in Arngask parish, Fifeshire, Scotland; was buried in churchyard, Monimail, Fifeshire, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Andrew2 married Jean CAMPBELL in 1818 in Ceres, Fife, Scotland. Jean was born about 1801 in Ceres, Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Jean married Robert MCROBBIE on 26 Nov 1826 in Monimail parish, Fife, Scotland. Robert was born about 1795 in Monimail, Fife, Scotland; died after 1881. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Janet married James WATSON on 23 Dec 1831 in Collessie parish, Fife, Scotland. James (son of Andrew WATSON and Jean RAMSAY) was born on 03 Oct 1804 in Burnturk, Kettle parish, Fife; died on 21 Apr 1850 in Fife, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married Margaret (Dixon) DICKSON on 25 Sep 1828 in Auchtermuchty, Fife, Scotland. Margaret was born in 1812 in Kettle, Fife, Scotland; died between 1847 and 1851. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married Mary BROWN on 12 Jan 1859 in Auchtermuchty, Fife, Scotland. Mary (daughter of John BROWN and Elizabeth DARLING) was born in 1822 in Markinch, Fife, Scotland; died after 1861. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Never MARRIED. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Unknown. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Andrew married Esther STORY in 1838 in Kildare Diocese, Kildare, Ireland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

NOTE 1./ 1861 Cupar, Fifeshire census

Name Estimated birth year Birthplace Relation Civil parish County
Henry Millie abt 1795 Ceres, Fifeshire Head Cupar Fife
Henry Millie abt 1855 Cupar, Fifeshire Son Cupar Fife
Mary Donaldson abt 1808 Ceres, Fifeshire Sister Cupar Fife

Family/Spouse: UNKNOWN. died before 1861 in Cupar, Fifeshire, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

David J. Thompson
78 Shavian Blvd., London, ON, N6G 2P3
Tel: 1-519-858-0239; Fax: 1-519-858-8223

May 18, 2002

Mr. R. Millie
8700 North Shore Drive
Jonesboro, GA, 30236.

Ms. Melanie Maasdam
2205 195th Street
Clarion, Iowa 50525

Dear Bob & Melanie:

I wrote recently about some Millie's I found in Scotland I thought might be precursors of Melanie's H.H. Millie. Melanie asked me to explain, and I thought it would be a good exercise to see if it hangs together. I think Bob's line may well be connected as well, so here goes:

We have these facts:

" Henry (aka "Harry") H. Millie (H.H. Millie) was born in Ireland Feb 8, 1863. His brothers were Charles Thomas Millie and Samuel Boucher Millie. We know this from the information I got last year from the National Archives. The three emigrated to Canada in the early 1880's.

" H.H. Millie's brother Samuel Boucher Millie joined the North-West Mounted Police force on September 1, 1899 and was discharged on March 25, 1904. The archive records refer to his next of kin, Miss Lily Hariot Millie of Ballymooney, Gashill, Kings. Co., Ireland. Another record identifies his next of kin as his sister, Margaret McDowell of Upper Edmonton, now a London suburb. Samuel joined the 179th Battalion in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in World War I. This relationship is confirmed in the Archives records, and per note received from Melanie apparently written by H.H.'s daughter Emma. Although reported to have died in Winnipeg during WWI, the archives records suggest he claimed a pension in British Columbia under the name William Thompson.

" H.H. Millie's Charles Millie was found in Battleford, Saskatchewan. It appears that he was a member of the Battleford Home Guard Volunteers in the rebellion of 1885. He was given a land grant for services but took $$ instead. By 1901, when Henry had settled in Carman Manitoba, Charles was working for a rancher in Alberta near Wetaskiwin. In the letter from H. H. Millie in Carman, Manitoba to the Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police it says that his brother Charles had died just previous to September 11, 1902. He died shortly after in Wetaskiwin. This relationship is confirmed in the Archives records, and per note received from Melanie apparently written by H.H.'s daughter Emma.

H. H. Millie also had 4 sisters per information from Melanie, as well as from the archives records of Samuel.
" Margaret Ellen Millie married a McDowell and was living in London, according to Samuel's next of kin record, at the time of WWI, at 16 Angel Road, Upper Edmonton, Enfield, England. A note from Melanie says she died December 5, 1921, aged 68, interred in Tottenham Cemetery. I found these records (LDS British Vital Records, 2nd Edition) which give the husband as Frederick, and two children, an unnamed boy and an unnamed girl, born in Dublin:
MCDOWELL, Birth
Gender: Male
Birth Date: 4 Sep 1875 Birthplace: No 3 South City, Dub, Ire
Recorded in: Dublin, Ireland
Collection: Civil Registration
Father: George Frederick MCDOWELL
Mother: Margaret Ellen MILLIE
Source: FHL Film 255935 Dates: 1875 - 1875
***********************
MCDOWELL, Birth
Gender: Female
Birth Date: 4 Dec 1873 Birthplace: No 3 South City, Dub, Ire
Recorded in: Dublin, Ireland
Collection: Civil Registration
Father: George Frederick MCDOWELL
Mother: Margaret Ellen MILLER
Source: FHL Film 255889 Dates: 1873 - 1875

I couldn't find them in England yet in the 1881 census.
" Lillian Hariot Millie - per note received from Melanie apparently written by H.H.'s daughter Emma, never married
" Henrietta Millie - per note received from Melanie apparently written by H.H.'s daughter Emma, never married; and
" Mary Millie, married Charles Castle.
The parents of H.H. Millie and the others were identified by Melanie as Henry Millie and Mary Dempster. The death certificate for H.H. lists his father as Henry Millie, and his mother as Mary. Note that the death certificate says that the father, Henry Millie was born in Scotland.
I found the following marriage record (in the LDS British Vital records CD's, 2nd edition) for Henry and Mary Dempster, which says Henry's father was Thomas and Mary's was Charles Dempster:
MILLIE, Henry Age: 30
Wife: Mary Jane DEMPSTER Age: 21
Marriage Date: 31 May 1851 Recorded in: St Thomas, Dublin, Ireland
Collection: Civil Registration
Husband's Father: Thomas MILLIE
Wife's Father: Charles DEMPSTER
Source: FHL Film 101326 Dates: 1851 - 1851
(I will call H.H.'s father Henry 1821, his approximate birth date, to minimize further confusion)
According to notes from Melanie, extracts from the Kings County Chronicle report that Henry Millie Died January 7, 1891, in his 71st year at Ballymooney, Geashill, (which was where H.H. was born per his death certificate, and per his obituary in 1917 in Kelowna, B.C.). Henry's wife Mary Jane died May 20, 1899, aged 68.

According to the letter dated January 1, 1920 from Aunt Margaret Ellen McDowell (H.H.'s sister) to her niece Emma Millie McGarrity (Melanie's grandmother), the Millie's settled in Scotland. Emma Millie McGarrity's grandfather's grandfather (ie: Henry Millie's grandfather) had 4 sons, John, Tom, Andrew and Robert. The letter says that all 4 went to Ireland. Tom Millie was Henry Millie's father according to this letter. This marriage record above is consistent with this information. I was previously unable to find a Millie family in Scotland, or anywhere else which included 4 sons named John, Tom, Andrew and Robert, let alone one which would fit the requisite time frame. With the new LDS British Vital Records collections however I found the following family in Fife with the right collection of sons. Better still, the unusual name of the mother make it virtually certain, for me anyway, that the son Thomas, born 1796, is went to Ireland, as presumably did the other sons as described in Ms. McDowell's letter. The following lists the 6 sons of Henry Millie (yes, yet another one) and Magdalene Rumgay (note the name):
1. MILLIE, John Bir 1791 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdalene Rumgay
2. MILLIE, Andrew Chr 1793 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdaline Rumgay
3. MILLIE, David Chr 1794 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdaline Rumgay
4. MILLIE, Henry Chr 1794 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdaline Rumgay
5. MILLIE, Thomas Chr 1796 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdaline Rumgay
6. MILLIE, Robert Chr 1798 Scot Fife Ceres
Fa: Henry Millie, Mo: Magdalene Rumgay

I found the marriage of this Henry and Magdalene on the LDS FamilySearch website:
Marriage:

Magdalene RUMGAY; Sex: F; Spouse: Henry MILLIE; Marriage: Abt. 1790; Banderran, Ceres, Fife, Scotland; Film # 457767

I also found the following birth record of Magdalene-I presume it is her, how many can there be?:
Magdalan RUMGAY; Sex: F; Christening: 1 September 1765, Cameron, Fife; Parents: Andrew RUMGAY, Mary Mackie. Reference: Batch # C114122, 1695-1819, Call # 1040151, Printout # 6900431.

The real proof that Thomas of this family went to Ireland lies in the marriage record below:
LATIMER, William
Wife: Magdalene Rumgay MILLIE
Marriage Date: 23 Oct 1847 Recorded in: St Peter, Dublin, Ireland
Collection: Civil Registration
Husband's Father: James LATIMER
Wife's Father: Thomas MILLIE
Source: FHL Film 101286 Dates: 1847 - 1847
Magdalene Rumgay Millie of Dublin Ireland, daughter of Thomas Millie, MUST be the granddaughter of Henry Millie and Magdalene Rumgay of Fife. There surely can't be another Thomas Millie, of the same generation, who would name his daughter Magdalene Rumgay. Since we know that Thomas, father of Henry 1821, and grandfather of H.H Millie was born in Scotland, and moved to Ireland, and had brothers named Andrew, John and Robert, and there are so few Millie's generally, let alone in Ireland, he must be the same person as the father of Magdalene Rumgay Millie of Dublin, and she is an aunt of H.H. Millie and his siblings. Also note that like Henry 1821, she was married in Dublin, and only 4 years before Henry 1821.
Next, who did Thomas marry? Who was Henry 1821's mother? Well, the LDS website has a marriage record for a Thomas Millie and Mary McWattie, 9 December 1818, Dundee, Angus, Scotland (batch # M112824, Source Call # 0993401, Printout call # 6902959). Is this the correct Thomas? Here we go back to the letter Margaret McDowell wrote in 1920 to her niece, Emma Millie. The transcribed copy Melanie sent says:
There was a slip of paper enclosed in this letter from Aunt Maggie McDowell and this is the info as follows:
"PRIVATE and don't tell acquaintances, does no good. My father's Grandfather committed suicide from loss of an awful large sum in speculation and I believe he was a Millie, French, but I may be mistaken, he may have been McQuatty."
So yes, Thomas married Mary McWattie in Dundee. Margaret McDowell's father was Henry 1821, and his grandfathers would have been Henry Millie (married to Magdalene Rumgay) and Mary McWattie's father. This reference proves that this is the correct spouse for Thomas.

Again searching the LDS site, we find a record for the christening of Henry Millie, 10 October 1819, Dundee, Angus, Scotland; father-Thomas Millie, mother-Mary McWattie (batch # C112827, Source Call # 0993425, Printout call # 6900646)

So Melanie, I think we have you back to Scotland:
1. Henry Millie married Magdalene Rumgay in Fife Scotland in 1790.
2. Thomas, born 1796 in Ceres, Fife, Scotland, married Mary McWattie, 9 December 1818, Dundee, Angus, Scotland.
3. Henry Millie born 10 October 1819, Dundee, Angus, Scotland, married Mary Dempster 1851 in Dublin
4. Henry Herbert Millie (H.H. Millie) born February 1863 in Ireland, emigrated to Canada early 1880's, married Caroline Sarah Mills, abt. Feb. 1900 in Manitoba
5. Emma Lily Millie born abt March 6, 1901, married Joseph Patrick McGarrity, 1919
6. Lawrence Patrick Dempster McGarrity, born 1924, married Jean Anderson
7. Melanie McGarrity

I think this is pretty accurate based upon these published records. If you are energetic, you should order the microfilms from the LDS and copy the records yourself, ideally taking a print or the original registers. Not only will this document the facts, but the original registers may have additional information not picked up on the LDS indexes.

The next question is what happened to the other brothers of Thomas who went to Ireland, who were their children and grandchildren, and did Thomas have any other children besides Henry 1821 and Magdalene.

Bob's Henry Thomas Beale Millie (H.T.B.) was born September 14, 1862, in Kilkenny, Ireland, and emigrated to Canada around the time of H.H. and his brothers. H.T.B.'s parents were Robert Millie and Elizabeth Beale. (Although born in Ireland, I have always held out to Bob that he is Scottish in origin: Millie's all come from Scotland, and the south of England (perhaps French before that, but that is all beyond me), and H.T.B. was Presbyterian, basically a Scottish Protestant religion.) Was this Robert another son of Thomas, and a brother of Henry 1821 and Magdalene? Or was he a son of one of Thomas' brothers, Andrew, John or Robert, and a first cousin of Henry 1821 and Magdalene? I think given the scarcity of Millie's generally, and in Ireland in particular, these Irish Millie's of Scottish descent must be connected, and H.T.B. and H.H. were cousins, sharing common grandparents in either Thomas Millie and his wife ??, or in Henry Millie and Magdalene Rumgay. The common names, Henry, Henrietta, Robert and Thomas are all there (H.T.B also had a sister Henrietta). All were Presbyterian, indicating Scotch origin, and all came from the counties around Dublin.
If I were a betting man, that's where I would put my money.

Best regards
David

Thomas married Mary MCWATTIE on 09 Dec 1818 in Dundee, Angus, Scotland. Mary (daughter of David MCWATTIE and Margaret KID) was born about 1800 in Dundee, Angus, Scotland. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

NOTE 1./ THE SURNAME MILLIE

The research of the Millie Surname for my ancestors stops with Robert R. Millie. His name was obtained from the Ontario Marriage Registration of Henry Thomas Beale Millie and Grace Edith Melmer. The lost ancestors seem to be in the maze of Ireland's sons. ADDENDUM 10-12-02 : On the Marriage Registration of Henrietta Amelia Millie and Robert Scott, the parents are listed, showing that the individual previously known only as Robert R. Millie, was in fact Robert Rumgay Millie. This consequently opened the door to our Millie roots leading back from Ireland to that of Scottish origins. The single generation spent in Ireland, explains the uncommomality of the surname within her confines. Scotland however has many Rumgays, and several clans of Millies that may never be connected, in several different parishes, but to a high degree in Fife, and around central Scotland. There are several indications that our Millie surname or a derivative spelling, will lead back to France at about the time of the Hugenot Revolution.

The surname Millie is a derivative of several different spellings. Millicent, Millier, Millay, Milly, de Milly, d'Milly, Milia, Mealy and others. Andrew J. Millie of NSW Australia, has done extensive research on the relationships of these variants. An example of his findings follows: ....... " de MILLY and MILCENT are definitely 100% guaranteed to be the same families. A lot of Nobility dropped their noble surnames during the Wars of Religion and were known by different names. de Milly/Milcent is just one example of this" ..........

The derivatives surnames of Millie has it's origins in France and the family was Huguenot, '...a name given to the French Calvinist Protestants of the 16th and 17th centuries...largely inspired by Martin Luther...During the 17th century the Huguenots saw their power and privileges progressively undermined by the strongly Catholic kings Louis XIII and Louis XIV...In 1685 the Edict of Nantes was revoked, and thousands of Protestants chose to migrate from France rather than accept Catholicism.' Many, fled to England and Scotland.

NOTE 2./ FIFE, SCOTLAND : FIFE in The 1830's

POPULATION.
In 1755, the population was 2540
1793 2320
1811 2407
1821 2840
1831 2762
Number of families in the parish, 606
chiefly employed in agriculture 183
trade, manufactures, or handicraft 281

Since 1831, there has been a great increase in the number of the people ; and, from the accounts of their establishments, which were lately given in by the several manufacturers in the parish, we are authorized to say, that the population must now be about 3000 at least. In 1793, 138 looms are said to have been employed in the parish. From 700 to 900 of the inhabitants are now employed in weaving and winding. From 170 to 200 are employed regularly in the mills; and, with the exception of about 30, who are employed in the lime-works, the greater part which remains of the working population is agricultural. The town of Cupar is so near to Ceres, that there are few shopkeepers or venders of any commodities in the latter place.

CHARACTER and HABITS of the PEOPLE:.-The people are universally industrious, and in general they cultivate the sister virtues of temperance and frugality. Considerable attention to neatness and cleanliness also may be discovered among them. Dr Arnot, author of the former account, mentions, that among the women, the cloak and bonnet had become substitutes for the plaid; and among the men, that the bonnet was supplanted by the hat. It is singular enough, that the plaid and bonnet should now be both regaining their former estimation. There exists also among the people a considerable deal of information, and a general desire for knowledge. A subscription and circulating library was commenced by them in 1828. It consists now of 500 volumes, in which there is varied as well as much useful reading. There are 100 subscribers to this library.
During the last three years, there were 3 illegitimate births in the parish.

MANUFACTURES:-Since the date of the last Statistical Account three spinning mills have been built in the parish, and a bleachfield establishment has been erected at Duraden. In 1827, two mills were built on the grounds of Easter Pitscottie. The machinery is propelled partly by water, and partly by steam. The steam, in general, is only required in summer, occasionally when the water is light. The mills belong to Messrs William and James Yool, manufacturers, Ceres.
There is accommodation for the families of the workers in the buildings at these mills ; and they contain altogether upwards of 150 individuals. There is a teacher and a small library attached to the mills. The other spinning-mill, which belongs to Mr David Yool, was erected at Tarvit in 1799. The machinery at this mill goes partly by water, and partly by steam; and the power is applied also to the turning of a saw-mill. The three spinning-mills are occupied in preparing and spinning flax, tow, and yarns. The raw material is obtained from Dundee and the yarns are sent partly to the Dundee market, and partly to manufacturers in Fife. 150 men, women, and young people are employed. The bleachfield establishment was erected in 1825 by some manufacturers in Ceres. It has received the name of St Ann's Bleaching Company, from a well of that name in the vicinity. The number of hands employed varies from 35 to 40. The supply of brown raw material for it, is chiefly obtained from the mills already mentioned. Previous to the erection of this bleachfield, little was manufactured by the weavers in Ceres except " Brown Silesias;" now the yarns are all cleaned and bleached, and the people are employed in weaving dowlas and sheeting. From 700 to 900 are engaged in this employment ; and from L. 50,000 to L. 60,000 Sterling worth of dowlas and sheeting are annually manufactured in the parish. To any one who reads this statement of the manufacture, it will be evident that the various works are most profitably arranged. The mills supply the bleacbfield, and the bleachfield supplies the weavers : and while there is a saving in this manner, as to the carriage of the various articles, there is also an encouragement to the manufacture of the place. There is every likelihood that the manufacture of this flourishing place will, in a few years, become more extended ; and there are, at present, some proposals of erecting another mill on a very extensive plan..

PAROCHIAL ECONOMY
MARKETS;- There is a weekly market in Cupar, the county town, distant only two miles and a half. But this widely extended parish has an easy access to markets in several places . and some of the farmers find it convenient to send their produce to Largo, some to St Andrews, and a very few to Dundee. There are two annual markets or fairs held in the village of Ceres, one on the 24th June, and the other on the 20th day of October; and both of them are most numerously resorted to, as excellent wool, and corn, and horse, and cattle-markets.

MEANS OF COMMUNICATION;-A turnpike road runs from east to west through the whole length of the parish. There is also a road which runs from north to south, through the breadth of the parish. In summer, a daily-coach runs through Ceres, and joins the steamboat which leaves Largo for Edinburgh. A messenger, paid by the inhabitants of Ceres, carries letters or papers daily to Cupar, the post-town. There are regular carriers from Ceres to all the neighbouring towns.

ECCLESIASTICAL STATE:- Ceres parish is a rectory, which, before the Reformation, belonged to the Provostry of Kirkhheugh, a religious house at St Andrews. A considerable part of the east end of the parish formerly belonged to the parish of St Andrews, and about the year 1620, was annexed to Ceres, quoad sacra tantum, (as it was long thought;) but the present incumbent discovered that there was no such reservation, and it is now annexed, quoad sacra et civilia. Ceres originally belonged to St Andrews presbytery. In the old church of Ceres, there was an aisle on the south, which belonged to the family of Craighall, and which, before the Reformation, was a chapel dedicated to St Ninian. The schoolmaster of Ceres uniformly receives a presentation to the Chaplainry. There used to be a salary of L. 3 Scots paid to him; but the houses in Cupar from which this salary was paid cannot now be discovered. The present church was built in 1806. It stands on a height, where formerly stood the old church and chapel : it was situated on the outskirts of the old town, but since the new town or Bridge-end was built, it may be said to be in the centre of the village. It is seated for 1100, but actually holds 1300, and the seats are very advantageously disposed both for bearers and speaker. These seats all belong to the heritors of the parish, and there is no rent charged for the use of them. Seats are appropriated for the proprietors and farmers, and the remainder are free and open to the people, and, except on very bad days, they are well filled. There are two meetings in the church, winter and summer. The average number of communicants is 1000. The right of patronage, by a grant from the Crown, was vested in the Crawford family.
There are also two meeting-houses in the village of Ceres, one for the Associate Congregation of Antiburgher Seceders, which was built in 1744, the other for the Presbytery of Relief. To each of these are attached a settled clergyman and regular congregation. A brotherly feeling and Christian spirit pervades the greater number of the members of these three congregations and you will occasionally find them in each others place of worship.
There are about 86 families in this parish attached to the Relief Church, and about the same number to the Secession.

NOTE 3./ HISTORICAL reference: The Year Was 1829

The year was 1829, and in Scotland, there was a catastrophic flood. According to a paper online at the website of Fettes College, Edinburgh, Scotland, the Muckle Spate (large flood) of 1829, began on August 3, 1829 in northeast Scotland and was "the most severe catastrophic flood in modern UK history." It extended across a large area of Scotland, from Inverness to Montrose, and devastated homes and agriculture in the affected areas. The Edinburgh Advertiser from August 11, 1829 provides detailed coverage of some of the affected areas, including the excerpt below:

The Dee was first observed to increase about four o'clock on Monday afternoon, and it continued to rise until about eleven o'clock on Tuesday forenoon, when it remained stationary for a few hours; after which, it began to recede with considerable rapidity. In some places, it attained an elevation of eleven feet above its ordinary level. . . The low grounds in the vicinity of the river were completely inundated, and so great, in some parts of its course, was the space over which it extended, that it presented the appearance rather of a lake than a river. . . Vast quantities of hay, straw, timber, &c. have been swept away; and so great was the force of the torrent, that many fields were stript of their soil, and covered with sand and stones. A good many cattle and sheep may have been drowned; but as it is customary, in the upper parts of the country to leave numerous flocks scattered over the hills, it will be impossible, for some time to ascertain with accuracy the numbers that have perished. Fortunately, notwithstanding the imminent to which many people were exposed from the suddenness of the inundation, no loss of human life has arisen from the overflowing of the Dee. Several cottages have, at Ballaster and other places, been carried away; and so completely were others surrounded with water, that a stranger could scarce have told on which side of the river they stood. A good many people were rescued, by means of boats, from being drowned in their own houses, and were obliged to resign their furniture, &c. to destruction. With the exception of the bridge near Aberdeen, and that at Potarch, all the bridges over the Dee have either been swept away, or sustained more or less injury. . . .

Robert married Elizabeth Margaret BEALE in 1840 in Kildare Diocese, Kildare, Ireland. Elizabeth was born about 1819 in Kildare Diocese, Kildare, Ireland; died before 05 Aug 1886; was buried in Leinster=Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laios, Meath, Offaly and others. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Unknown DONALDSON. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: James DAVIDSON. James was born about 1795; died about 1866. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]