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EARLY CROCKET AND MCKILL FAMILIES IN KIRKCUDBRIGHTSHIRE
Introduction
As a descendant of the Crockets and McKills of the villages around Dumfries, I made a trip to view the area in May 2004 believing this was the ancient home grounds of these two families. I was wrong: neither the Crockets nor the McKills appear in the record for the area before the 17th century, as far as it is possible to be certain. So despite McKill being a Galloway name, they appear to have migrated to the area around the same time as the Crockets.
The family history centre in Dumfries (9 Glasgow Street) holds considerable useful material for this kind of expedition, including Victorian maps which show old hamlets and farms that no longer appear on the modern Ordnance Survey maps. In their records together with Internet sources, the following information was found on the two main family names. The introductions are formed from new material gathered in 2004, the remainder from the report submitted by Eva and Duncan Adamson.
It is worth making a small point here about naming conventions. The Dumfries and Galloway Family History Society have a useful leaflet on this matter. A websearch on these terms 'naming conventions family scotland' will bring up a number of sites detailing this useful information.
CROCKET
The name appears variously in early records as Crockatt, Crocket, Crokat, Crockett, Crocket, Crokkit, and sometimes Crochet. The Galloway family name (as this is) is said to be derived from MacRiocaird, meaning son of Rickard (Richard).
Early references in the records begin in 1296 with Huwe Croket and William Crocketa rendering homage. References continue on through the centuries up to the most entertaining seen when John Crokkit in Achinkyle was charged with molesting the minister at Inchcallioch and stealing his timber. There was a wealthy family of the name Crokat in Edbinburgh in the 17th century.
So far as the Dumfries and Galloway Crockets are concerned they seemed to settle in a cluster of villages mainly a few miles north of Dumfries either side of the Nith river, but predominantly to the east so that most were within the parish of Kirmahoe, which encompasses the church at Holywood. Probably some time before they allied with the McKills from the strip of hamlets running south from Dumfries to Caerlaverock, the Crockets began to take up farms and tenancies in that more southerly area.
So far as Terregles (pronounced Treggles) is concerned, there were two or three Crocket families there from the late 1700s, although James Johnstone Crocket might have been born more in the direction of Holywood in Kirkmahoe than Terregles which is in its own parish.
The following notes describe some general research conducted in the area.
1841 Caerlaverock Census - district 1, page 8
Greenhead (in the grounds of Caerlaverock Castle)
Robert Crocket 60 farmer
Agnes ditto 65
Agnes ditto 10
John ditto 8
Margaret Stewart 25 female servant
Next house - Castlewood Cottage (south-west corner of the wood around the Castle)
Margaret Crocket 65 independent
Jane ditto 55 ditto
Janet ditto 50 ditto
District 2, page 3 - Hutton Hall School (the Jacobean Academy at Bankend, a short distance north of the castle)
One of the boarding school pupils is James Crocket aged 14.
District 2, page 11 – Crofthead (to the east of Gretna)
John McKill 60 farmer
(He may well be a relative of Jessie McKill, but we have found nothing else about him apart from his death in 1849. See Caerlaverock OPR.)
1851 Caerlaverock Census - district 1, page 12 - Castlewood Cottage
Robert Crocket 71 retired farmer born Kirkmahoe
Margaret ditto 79 sister ditto
Agnes ditto 77 ditto ditto
Jean ditto 69 ditto ditto
Janet ditto 64 ditto ditto
(all unmarried)
1861 Caerlaverock Census - district 4, page 9 - Castlewood Cottage - 7 rooms
Jane Crocket 80 house proprietor born Kirkmahoe
Janet ditto 74 sister ditto
Agnes ditto 28 niece Terregles
Deaths of Janet and Jean (Jane) Crocket
They were the only two of this family group who lived beyond 1855, when statutory registration started. Jean died 14-7-1867 aged 85, and Janet died 16-8-1877 aged 89. Both died at Castlewood Cottage and both were daughters of John Crocket and Agnes Smith.
Dumfriesshire Valuation Rolls
The valuation roll for 1862/63 is the earliest available in the Dumfries Library. It shows the proprietors and occupiers of Castlewood Cottage as the Misses Crocket.
In 1877/78 the proprietor and occupier is Miss Janet Crocket.
In 1878/79 the proprietor is Lord Herries, who owned a lot of other property in Caerlaverock, and the occupier was Mrs Crocket. (Presumably Jessie McKill)
Dumfriesshire Sasines
.... no sasine registered in 1877 or 1878 when Castlewood Cottage changed hands. If there had been one it would almost certainly have told us when and from whom the Crockets acquired the house.
MCKILLS
Mackill (or McKeel McKiel, McKeil, McKell, McKill, McKeal) is an old Galloway surname. The surname McKill could originate from Magill /McGill as the G and K have much the same sound and most people were illiterate until the 1800's. The clerk would simply write down what a name sounded like and different clerks could use different spellings for the same personal name.
The McKill name originates from Galloway in the south west of Scotland. McGill/Mcgeil/Macgill and variants first appeared in 1231, according to Black's "Surnames of Scotland”. Early records include these: Patrick M'Kille witnessed resignation of a tenement in Wigtownshire in 1475 and Gilchrist M'Kille witnessed sasine of Cragniche to Archibald, earl of Argyll in 1493. Cuthbert Makkill was concerned in the slaughter of Donald McEwin at the Cors of Balmaclellane in 1529. Hugh M'Kill, the Covenanter martyr, was executed 22nd December 1666. He was son of Mathew M'Kill. Elizon M'Kill is recorded in Craigend in 1676. (This is close to Dumfries and the area where our McKills came from.) Marion Maccill from Causiend was charged in 1684 with being disorderly (ie refusing to 'conform'.)
In the Parish of Kirkmabuck in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright John Thomas McKill was born 3rd August, 1864 at 1 hour 30 mins a.m. at St. John Street, Creetown, father John McKill, Police Constable, mother Mary McKill m.s. Cochran, married 13th February 1861 at Minnigaff, signed John McKill (father) present. Registered 18th August 1864 at Creetown James Martin, Registrar.
There were McKills in the Ayr area at the same time and some later in Argyle. Many emigrated to America in the 18th century. The first McKills to appear on the Old Parish Records in Scotland date from 1632.
EARLY MCKILLS IN THE CAERLAVEROCK AREA
Records for the 17th century, outside of Dumfries burgh, are very patchy, so that one cannot hope to get clear cut genealogical information. Instead we find scattered references here and there. In the case of Caerlaverock McKills, we have found two specific references and one significant omission. The latter is from a detailed list of parishioners in 1620, in which the name McKill does not appear at all. The first McKill reference in Caerlaverock found so far is to Thomas McKill in Bankend, who 'deponed negative' on 6-8-1684 in an inquiry into local Covenanters. In other words, he said he knew nothing about them. (Register of the Privy Council, Vol. IX.)
Then in 1690/91 Thomas McKill, apparently in Tounehead, was listed for the Hearth Tax, having a house with just one hearth, as was usual. (It is quite possible that these two references are to the same man. Elsewhere we have found the place name - Townhead of Bankend.)
Other McKills found in the near neighbourhood
1675 John, a cordiner (shoemaker) in Bridgend (now part of Dumfries) - (Dumfriesshire Testaments)
1679 Robert, 'elder, workman'- Dumfriesshire Testaments
1670s and 80s James, a weaver in Dumfries -Dumfries Weavers' Book
1700 - 39 (miscellaneous sources)
Kirkpatrick Juxta Kirk Session Minutes - page 94
On 7-12-1733 James McKill in Caerlaverock was chosen to be schoolmaster in Kirkpatrick Juxta, having been well recommended. He agreed that he would also be the session clerk, and that he would sign the Confession of Faith.
There are further references to him in the Minutes up till 1737. No record of his leaving, but see below.
South Circuit Justiciary Court
On 15-2-1739 James McKill, schoolmaster in Duncow, aged 29, unmarried, gave evidence about a fracas, presumably at Duncow, in June 1736.
Duncow is in Kirkmahoe parish. We have also found references to a James McKill, who was a schoolmaster in Kirkmahoe in a testament of 1745. It is likely that all references are to the same schoolmaster, but we cannot be certain.)
1740 Onwards (Miscellaneous sources)
Thomas 1749-50 in Bankend - Nithsdale Estate Rental
Robert 3-3-1756 in Caerlaverock, a member of the Caerlaverock Kirk Session -(TE 19-74)
Thomas 9-8-1766 - in Crofthead of Bankend - witnessed an infeftment - Dumfriesshire Sasines
In Dumfries John McKill was deacon of the tailors in the early 1740s. John'**s son Matthew was also a tailor, as was James McKill.
Early McKills in Caerlaverock OPR (The register starts in the 1740s)
Baptisms
10-7-1768 James in Townhead & Agnes Waugh - son John
27-2-1774 John in Crofthead & Janet C....... - daughter Jean (probably Janet Craik)
There is a gap in the register after that up to 1780.
18-3-1810 - Thomas in Kelton, shoemaker - son Robert
3-5-1812 ditto ditto John
6-13-1814 ditto ditto Joseph
Marriages
27-7-1758 Robert McKill and Janet Jamison (?Dumfries)
(The Jamisons were a Bankend family. Janet may have been in Dumfries as a servant.)
Burials
26-8-1769 Robert, schoolmaster, Ruthwell, aged 23
19-9-1769 Jean ?Coulter (may be Carruthers), aged 53, wife of Thomas McKill in Crofthead
14-9-1770 John, son of Thomas in Townhead
20-4-1772 James, wright (joiner) in Townhead
15-10-1772 John in Bankend, aged 74
26-10-1772 Agnes in Bankend, aged 67.
There is a gap in the register from 1816 to 1826.
Caerlaverock OPR 1826 to 1854
James Crokat of Terregles and Janet Martine (!) in Caerlaverock married 26 July 1830.
Janet Craik in Bankend died 18-5-1830 aged 86. (She was in Crofthead in 1774 (See OPR) and in Crofthead on the gravestone below.)
Thomas McKill in Lantonmoss died 4-6-1836 aged 78.
Janet McKill in Crofthead died 28-12-1839 aged 63.
John McKill in Bankend died 5-1-1849 aged 70. (He was in Crofthead in the 1841 census)
Jane McKill in Bankend died 11-3-1849 aged 75.
McKill Gravestone in Caerlaverock
“In memory of John McKill late farmer in Crofthead who died 3rd November 1823 aged 79 years. Also Janet Craik his wife who did 18th May 1830 aged 86 years. Also Janet McKill their daughter who died 28th December 1839 aged 63 years. Also John McKill their son who died 5th January 1849 aged 70 years”
It looks as if these could be the ancestors of Jessie Crocket, but it cannot be proved. The last John is probably the man in the 1841 census.
Comment
It seems clear that Crofthead and Townhead were part of Bankend, and therefore most of the McKills above were likely to be members of the same family.
....First and foremost the McKill family lived in the same area - Bankend - for something like 200 years, perhaps longer. There seem to have been very few McKill families in the parish at any one time, so that it is highly probable that all Caerlaverock McKills in our findings stem from the same family. They were not a prominent family and were neither taken to court nor took others to court for debts. But at least one Caerlaverock McKill became a school teacher in the mid 18th century. Another was a member of the Kirk Session, in other words, a church elder.
At first McGills as well as McKills were checked thinking that the names might be easily confused, but in fact the two spellings always related to quite separate families. At no time did was the name of an individual spelt once one way and once another.
No doubt there are other references hidden among the thousands of documents to be found in the National Archives of Scotland and other archive centres. There is only one promising, readily available source, however, which we have not used. After the 1715 Jacobite rebellion, the Nithsdale estates were forfeited. The forfeited estate papers are in the National Archives of Scotland, and cover, it is believed, a period of about ten years. For the most part these papers relate to rents, so presumably your ancestral family would appear. Other Nithsdale estate papers are, it is understood, at Hull University.
I am indebted to Eva and Duncan Adamson of Dumfries for this research.
LOCAL HISTORY & FAMILY RESEARCH
Duncan Adamson
39 Roberts Crescent, Dumfries
DG2 7RS
Phone & Fax 01387 252930
Report dated 23-6-2003, notes added 15-5-2004