Saturday, 28 May 2016

The Years in West Calder/Linlithgowshire

Morrin Family in Scotland

This post is about the years spent by various members of the Morrin family in the coal mining areas of West Calder.

MAURICE MORRIN and his 2nd wife, MARY (m.s. McKELLAR) were living in Blackburn, West Calder, in the 1881 census, Fauldhouse, Whitburn in 1891 and, at the time of Maurice's death in 1894, he is listed as living in District of Whitburn, in the county of Linlithgow.  Maurice was listed as a colliery labourer in the 1881 census.  (By 1891, Maurice was a lodginghouse keeper.)

source:  https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Fauldhouse&view=detailv2&&id=8A6CF878962C85B49BAEA307BEE4743E9F79760E&selectedIndex=0&ccid=sRfRLLmj&simid=608031249734566110&thid=OIP.Mb117d12cb9a33f2c0333d210b49efcbfH0&ajaxhist=0

THOMAS THOMSON and SARAH (m.s. MORRIN) lived at Woodmuir Row, West Calder in the 1891 census, by 1901 at Westwood Cottage, Livingston, and by 1902 in Stoneyburn.  The records reflect that the civil parish name is Whitburn and the eccliastical parish of Fauldhouse.  In both the 1891 and 1901 census, Thomas is listed as a coal miner.

PETER GILCHRIST MORRIN and his wife JANE (m.s. HYSLOP) were living in Govan, Glasgow in February 1888 when their son, Peter, was born, but by December 1889, when their son, Maurice, was born, they were living at Sheephousehill, in the District of Fauldhouse.  When Peter's son, Andrew, was born in 1895, they were living in West Calder, West Lothian and Peter's occupation was listed as coal miner.  (By 1901, Peter and the family were back living in Govan, where he lists carter as his occupation.)

SHEEPHOUSE HILL, FAULDHOUSE

source:  http://www.wlfhs.org.uk/picgall.htm

I'm not sure of the date for the above photo but would imagine it is from around the turn of the 20th century.  Perhaps Peter and his wife and children lived along some portion of the street pictured in this photograph.

Stoneyburn, Livingston, Fauldhouse, Whitburn, and Blackburn are all villages or towns in the county of Linlithgowshire.  Fauldhouse is the western most village in this list.  It also appears over time to have been the county of Mid Lothian or Edinburghshire.