Karen wrote: > I just happened to be nosing around the internet and came back to > genuki's pages for the parish of Botriphnie. Nice to hear these come in useful! > I looked at the entry from the Statistical Account and it lists > W. Masson as the reverend of the parish in 1841. > Perhaps that is a clue??? I think it's probably just a coincidence. I don't know the Rev. Masson's history, but it is more than likely that he came from somewhere outside the parish, and obeyed a "call" to come and minister to it, so I don't think he would have been there long enough to give his name to any dwelling. In any case, the Manse and Masson Lodge are in different parts of the parish. However, I took a look at the (Old or Original) Statistical Account, which was written about 50 years earlier than the New Statistical Account you refer to. In this, the then Minister (Mr Angus) states that there are no fewer than 12 masons (meaning tradesmen) in the parish: "The latter are not much employed within the parish; but they find work in the southern counties, and reside here in the winter." So perhaps there was some sort of masons' colony - although whether this would have involved funny handshakes and rolled-up trouser-legs it is difficult to say. By 1851, the number of masons has dwindled to just 3, scattered around the parish. Gavin Bell

Hi everyone, Some of my sources have indicated that my Innes line lived in the parish of Botriphnie at least since 1770's or so, however, I have not been able to find any parish birth/marriage records before 1810 or so. Those of you who are familiar with the history of the area: is there a clue as to why this is the case? Thanks, Karen Gavin Bell <g.bell@which.net> wrote: Karen wrote: > I just happened to be nosing around the internet and came back to > genuki's pages for the parish of Botriphnie. Nice to hear these come in useful! > I looked at the entry from the Statistical Account and it lists > W. Masson as the reverend of the parish in 1841. > Perhaps that is a clue??? I think it's probably just a coincidence. I don't know the Rev. Masson's history, but it is more than likely that he came from somewhere outside the parish, and obeyed a "call" to come and minister to it, so I don't think he would have been there long enough to give his name to any dwelling. In any case, the Manse and Masson Lodge are in different parts of the parish. However, I took a look at the (Old or Original) Statistical Account, which was written about 50 years earlier than the New Statistical Account you refer to. In this, the then Minister (Mr Angus) states that there are no fewer than 12 masons (meaning tradesmen) in the parish: "The latter are not much employed within the parish; but they find work in the southern counties, and reside here in the winter." So perhaps there was some sort of masons' colony - although whether this would have involved funny handshakes and rolled-up trouser-legs it is difficult to say. By 1851, the number of masons has dwindled to just 3, scattered around the parish. Gavin Bell ==== MORAY Mailing List ==== If you need to unsub for your holidays, change your email address, or report anything to the admin of the list - all this information can be found at http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/intl/SCT/MORAY.html ============================== Search the US Census Collection. Over 140 million records added in the last 12 months. Largest online collection in the world. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13965/rd.ashx