nimmoresearch

My Nimmo Research

Research Narrative

We know that Donald Nimmo's father was Robert Ramsay Nimmo and married whilst living in Harthill. His wife had a child but his wife died possibly in childbirth and his son died within a few months of birth. Unfortunately I have very little detail of the majority of his life in Drumlemble. We also know that his grandfather was also called Robert Ramsay Nimmo who originally came from Stirlingshire, married an Isabelle or Isobella and moved to Airdrie.

I was searching through death records and came across a Robert Ramsay Nimmo died October 1924 of Meningitis at 3 months of age. I believe this to be Robert Ramsay's son by his first marriage for the following reasons :

- Child's father Robert Nimmo, Coal miner

- Age at death 3 months

- Mother shown as deceased and therefore died within 3 months of child's birth before the child's own death

- Usual Residence was Harthill

- The child's name was "Robert Ramsay"

His son by this marriage was a Robert Ramsay Nimmo who died at Calderbank House, Baillieston on 9th October 1924 at which time his mother Ann Johnston Burnett was already dead. Robert and his son were living at this time at no 38 West Craigs Road, Harthill.I subsequently traced the death certificate of Anne Johnston Burnett who died of septicaemia on 2nd August 1924 following a ten day illness. This is consistent with the proposition that she died as a result of the birth of her son in July who died at 3 months in October 1924.The death certificate of Robert Ramsay's born 1871, whom I subsequently found to be Robert Ramsay "the younger"'s father shows that he also he died "West Craigs St Harthill" the same street as this child's usual residence in 1935 although no number is given on the death certificate.I have also traced the only marriage between a Robert Nimmo and Anne Burnett which took place in 1923 at Whitburn. I have not obtained the original document as I already know from her death certificate the names of her parents.I cannot trace the child's birth certificate as GRO do not release birth certificates after 1901.

We know from Donald Nimmo that his paternal grandfather was Robert Ramsay Nimmo and his wife was Isabelle . We also know that he was originally from Stirlingshire some where. Running a search of Nimmo marriages turns up only two records which show marriages between a Robert Nimmo and an Isabelle or Isobella anywhere in Scotland. Both these records are in fact records of the same marriage held in 1897 at Avonbridge United Presbyterian Church which stands on the border between Slamannan and Muiravonside parishes and which was registered in both parishes separately. All details match on both certificates ( place & date of marriage, bride & groom names/usual residences/ages , witness names and occupations etc) but Robert Nimmo's mother, Rachel's maiden name is unclear on one entry and appears to be "Hoover" on the other. The hand writing on both is not clearly legible.The Carson surname is interesting as we are also rumoured to be distantly related to Willie Carson, also of Stirlingshire.

I then searched the 1891 census entries for a Robert Nimmo which matched the age on this marriage certificate within all the parishes of Stirlingshire. Robert was 25 upon in marriage in 1897 therefore he would have been born somewhere between 1871 and 1873. There are only three entries in Stirlingshire which show a Robert Nimmo aged between 18 and 20 in 1891. I have contacted the GRO and asked how complete their records are for this period. They replied advising that the 1881 and 1891 census returns are complete with no missing entries as are the statutory index of births deaths and marriages from 1855 Onwards. However records for births, deaths and marriages prior to 1855 will not be complete as prior to that date there was no statutory requirement to register a death birth or marriage and some events will not have been recorded. One can be ruled as unlikely as he is shown as originally born in Argyllshire where as we know from Donald Nimmo that his grandfather was from Stirlingshire. The other is recorded as a Robert Boyd Nimmo. The only remaining census shows the following details :

Robert Nimmo, aged 19, Labourer Clly born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire Son of

John Nimmo, aged 44, Carter, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire And R R Nimmo, aged 36, born Dollar, Clackmannanshire

Brothers :

John Nimmo, aged 20, Labourer Clly born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire; Alex Nimmo, aged 16, Labourer Clly, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire; James Nimmo, aged 9, Scholar, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire; Henry Nimmo, aged 6, Scholar, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire; Resident Avonbridge, Slamannan

This family were resident at no 51 Avonbridge in the parish of Slamannan and had John, a 73 year old retired farmer and his 78 year old wife Janet living as lodgers. I then searched the 1881 census and found the entry for the same family earlier living in the parish of Muiravonside. Note that the 1891 census shows all the children were born in Muiravonside between 1870 - 1886. The 1881 census shows the following details :

Robert Nimmo, aged 9, Scholar, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire Son of

John Nimmo, aged 33, Carter, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire And Rachel Nimmo, aged 36, born Dollar, Clackmannanshire

Brothers:

John Nimmo, aged 10, Labourer Clly born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire and Alex Nimmo, aged 6, Labourer Clly, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire And sister, Janet Nimmo, aged 11, Scholar, born Muiravonside, Stirlingshire Resident Falkirk Rd, Slamannan

Note that Janet, who would have been 21 by 1891 is not mentioned on the later census ( marriage / death / in service ? ) I then looked at the area and found that Isabelle Carson's usual residence in 1897 according to the marriage certificates was found was within a mile of Avonbridge, the usual residence of her husband and just along the road within one mile of Candiehead where her husband was born. Avonbridge is only a few streets today and is the usual residence of the family by 1891. However there was a mine employing around 190 men nearby and the population at that time may have been higher, although still a small village of a few hundred souls at most. I couldn't prove that the Robert who married in 1897 is the same one that was living and mentioned on the 1891 and 1881 census entries. However I thought it likely that they are one and the same for the following items agree between the marriage certificate and the census returns :

- Father's name

- Mother's name

- Own Occupation

- Age

- Born in Stirlingshire

Usual residences as at 1891 and 1897 appear close by if not the same. In addition, Isobella's usual residence, according to the marriage certificates, is within a mile of Avonbridge.

I then searched the 1901 census for Robert based upon his age upon marriage in 1897 and found only one entry in Scotland for a Robert Nimmo of the correct age showing a wife Isobella. This census gave the following information :

Robert Nimmo, aged 29, Baker's Vanman, born Candiehead Stirlingshire

married to Isobella, aged 26, born Limerigg, Stirlingshire

son John, aged 3 born Airdrie; Son Archibald aged 1 born Airdrie; Resident at no 23 Watt Street Airdrie

When I searched for information relating to the birth of Robert, assuming that this entry related to our Robert as he is the only 1901 census entry for a Robert Nimmo, in Airdrie, I found the following birth record :

Robert Ramsay Nimmo born 5th August 1871 at Candiehead, Stirlingshire

Father John Nimmo, Labourer

Mother Rachel Nimmo, maiden surname Ramsay

married 17 Jan 1868 Muiravonside

At this point I could already say the two census returns of 1881 and 1891 related to the same family ( The father's details are the same; Rachel Nimmo and R R Nimmo show the same age & parish of birth ; John, Robert & Alexander are all shown on both census entries with the same age and birth parish and the additional children shown on the 1891 census were all born after the census of 1881. Only Janet who would have been 21 by 1891 is missing from the later census ( possibly due to marriage or death ? ) We can also say that the Robert shown on the 1901 census is the same as that born to Rachel Ramsay & John Nimmo who married 17 Jan 1868. The name, age, and birth place "Candiehead, Muiravonside" tally with the birth record found. The question is then whether the John Nimmo and Rachel Nimmo married 17th January 1868 the same as those on the census returns of 1881 and 1891.

When I check the records of births I found that John Nimmo and Rachel Ramsay are recorded as having the following children :

Janet born 7th May 1869

John born 30th July 1870

Robert Ramsay born 5th August 1871

Alexander born 20th June 1874

This agrees exactly the children shown on the 1881 census return and their respective ages in 1881 and confirms that the family on the 1881 census returns are in fact the same as that shown as living at Candiehead at 1871 when Robert Ramsay was born. However none of the children born after 1881 and shown on the 1891 census can be found in the birth records. These records should be complete according to the GRO in reply to an enquiry I made. However they did point out that the index may be a difficulty if for example the handwriting is illegible or forename/surname missing from the entry. This is good evidence that the census returns relate to John Nimmo and Rachel Ramsay, especially as the 1891 census return for the same family shows "R R Nimmo" and ties in their Son born 1871 in Candiehead with the Robert Ramsay resident in Airdrie in 1901 who is shown as living with his wife Isobella. The marriage certificates I found relating to the marriage of 1897 however, shows Robert's mother as Rachel but her maiden name is far from clear and does not seem to be "Ramsay".

I have searched for all records of a marriage between John Nimmo and any spouse in the whole of Scotland in the period 1800 - 1901 and of the 157 marriages in this period, the only marriage between a John Nimmo and a Rachel of any surname is that of the marriage on 17 Jan 1868 between John Nimmo and Rachel Ramsay. I likewise searched for all birth records which show a father of the surname Nimmo and there are none which relate to a John Nimmo and any wife with the maiden name Hoover out of the 240 records found for the period 1840 - 1901. The Rachel on the census returns was born c 1844-1846 and if she is the Rachel Ramsay married 1868, she would have been aged between 22 and 24 years at her marriage to John. John is shown as aged 33 in 1881 and 44 in 1891 therefore must have been born c 1847. He would have been aged 21 in 1868. It's not impossible but unlikely that this was Rachel's second marriage. However her mother may have married a Hoover between her birth and 1868 and her daughter may have adopted her step father's surname. This would mean that her children would probably think her maiden name was Hoover where as she would always give it as Ramsay. I then traced the death certificate of Robert Ramsay born 5th August 1871 to John Nimmo and Rachel Ramsay and found that it confirmed that he had been married to Isobella Carson on 15th July 1897.

This confirmed that the marriage certificate and census returns did in fact all relate to Robert Ramsay "the elder" and his family. It also proves beyond doubt that the marriage certificate is incorrect in giving his mother's maiden name as what appears to be "Hoover". By 1935 he was a caretaker of a public park. It also shows that he died on 1st September 1935 at West Craigs St Harthill which tallies with the address of the child Robert Ramsay, his grandson who died in 1924. He died of cancer of the pancreas & liver.

I then tried to trace John Nimmo who was born 1846 - 1848 ( his possible birth year based on the age on the 1881 and 1891 census returns ) . The only John Nimmo born within this range in Scotland was born on 17th October 1847 to Alexander Nimmo and Mary Robertson who married in Muiravonside on 4th April 1834. This is confirmed by both searches of the GRO records and the International Genealogy Register held by the Church of the latter day saints. I then found reference to his parents in a genealogical message board and checked the other children of this marriage which all agree the details in the tree from the genealogical message board. I am very grateful to Claude Nimmo who forwarded details of the American branch of the Nimmos. This allowed me to combine the two trees adding two additional children found in the GRO database which were not originally included in Claude'' tree. I checked all the other children of the couple as shown on Claude's tree and confirmed that these details were correct by reference to the GRO index.

I then searched the census returns for 1881 - 1901 looking for the other children of Alexander & Mary Robertson . This gave me information on their location and descendants at those dates.

I had circumstantial evidence that Alexander Nimmo who married Mary Robertson was the son of a Mary Brown from a genealogical message board. I had also traced one family which showed a mother and father of these names which included a son Alexander born 1800. I traced this Alexander on the 1881 census but had no proof that linked him to the Alexander who married Mary Robertson 1834. I then traced all deaths in Scotland from 1855 - 1900 for an Alexander Nimmo and looked for a death in this period which showed an age matching year of birth 1800 and found a record for a death in Muiravonside of an Alexander of the right age for year of death that corresponded to year of birth 1800. When I obtained the document I found showed Alexander was the widower of Mary Robertson and the son of Alexander Nimmo and Mary Brown. This document proved that the Alexander born 1800, a retired dealer by 1881, who died 1885 was the son of Alexander Nimmo and Mary Brown. I then traced all Alexander and Mary's children from the International Genealogical Index the first of whom was born in 1796.

My preliminary investigation of the Alexander who married Mary Brown ( Alexander "the elder" ) throws up a list of 24 candidates assuming that Alexander "the elder"was aged somewhere between 16 and 60 at the birth of his first child in 1796, bearing in mind that his children of this marriage span a 18 year period. Interestingly there are only two of this list who were born in Muiravonside on 13th November 1768 and the other 20th January 1771. From the limited information we have on Alexander "The Elder" we might assume he was no younger than 15 and no older than 70 at 1796 when his first child was born. This would mean that he must have been born 1726 - 1781. As he was married before 1796 and we assumed that he was no younger than 15 upon marriage, we can expect him to have married between 1741 and 1796. Assuming that he would not have lived over 100 years, we can expect to find his death certificate between 1814 (the birth of his oldest child) and 1881 ( based on the latest possible date of birth ). I first looked for a marriage for all Alexanders and found none in the 11 hits which referred to Mary Brown. I then tried Alex Nimmo but found no hits. I didn't find any hits for an Alexander or Alex born within 1726-1781. All these searches were made in the GRO records which are only complete from 1855 onwards. There are no old parish death records prior to 1855 on the GRO site. Only if Alexander "the elder" lived at least to the age of 74, his death would be recorded in these records. This is based on the possible birth range 1726 - 1781 combined with the fact that the earliest records being searched are from 1855 onwards. Searching this limited period 1855 - 1881 returns only one Alexander who died at the age and year which places his birth year within the range of being born between 1726 and 1781. That Alexander died in Muiravonside in 1858 aged 90 and therefore born 1767 - 69. His death was from "old Age" and was reported by his son Alexander. This is consistent with the fact that we know Alexander "the elder" had a son also Alexander "the younger". The death certificate gives the place of death as "Loan, Muiravonside" where as the 1881 census entry for Alexander "the Younger" shows his residence as "Loan new houses, Muiravonside". It therefore appears to that this may be the death certificate of Alexander "the elder" who died in 1858 at or near the same residence that his son lived in as at 1881 and died at in 1885. Unfortunately, the sections for parent's names is blank. There is a record in the International Genealogy Index for a marriage between 1767 and 1796, nor death in the period 1814 to 1854 ( the period from the birth of his youngest recorded child to immediately prior to that of the GRO database death records.) Interestingly there is some similarity between the word entered below Alexander Nimmo which may be a signature to the mother's maiden name which appears on the 1897 marraige certificate. However, both are not quite legible.

I have traced an Alexander Nimmo born in Muiravonside on 13th November 1768 out of a possible 24 candidates from the birth records for the period 1736 - 1780. He was born to parents George Nimmo and Mary Dougal in Muiravonside. He is the only record which matches the Alexander born 1767-1769 other than an Alexander who was born 14th December 1768 son of Archibald Nimmo & Margaret Jamieson, in Glasgow. It seems likely that this Alexander is the same one that died in 1858.He had a child Alexander, and lived to before his death in "loan, Muiravonside" , a retired widower portioner aged 90. The 1841 - 1871 census returns are not yet available on line. If our Alexander "The Elder" is the same as he who died in 1858, his youngest child born 1814 would have been aged 27 years of age at the census of 1841. This makes it unlikely that the census of 1841 will reveal much as by then, you would expect all of Alexander Nimmo's children to have left their mother and father's home. You could search for any Alexander Nimmo aged between 72 and 74 in 1841 and the result will show the Alexander who died in 1858 and details of anyone who was living with him at that time. You would normally see an aged parent resident in an offspring's home or shown as a lodger in census returns. This can sometimes indicate a relationship, if for example it showed the head of the family was the correct name and age to be one of the known children of our Alexander "the elder" All we know at present is that the Alexander who was born 1767-1769, lived at Loan, Muiravonside and who had a least son Alexander, died in 1858. He is the only candidate from the death records from 1855 onwards.

We know our Alexander "the elder" lived to at least 1814 and was death by 1885 ( his son's death certificate shows his father deceased at that time ). Our Alexander "The elder" was not born before 1714 at the earliest and no later than 1781. Alexander born 1767-1769 is the only candidate found which matches both the 67 year window for birth year and the 61 year window of year of death. However only records after 1855 are complete.

Criteria Percentage of search Percentage of search of incomplete records of complete records

Birth 1714 - 1781 100% 0%

Death 1814 - 1885 56% 44%

The only other factors to consider is the similarity in location of Alexander "the elder"'s son in 1881 at "New Loan Houses" and the place of death of Alexander born 1767-1769 who died at "Loan, Muiravonside" some 27 years earlier. The death certificate shows of Alexander born 1767-1769 shows Alexander as a Portioner Widower where as Alexander "The younger"'s death certificate gives his father as Alexander Nimmo "Portioner (Deceased)". Whilst this sounds promising, a "portioner" is a proprietor of a small piece of land, resulting from the division of an original larger property. Alternatively described as "one who possesses part of a property which had been originally divided among co-heirs." Likely this was common description. I checked the 1885 death record for Alexander "the younger" who we know in 1881 was living at "New Loan Houses" and found that his death certificate shows "Loan, Muiravonside" as does the death certificate of 1858 of the Alexander born 1767-1769, died 1858. I think it probable that these Alexander born 1767-1769 is in fact the same person as Alexander "The elder" but we will never be able to prove this is the case unless other earlier documents come to light or a gravestone inscription is found which matches the two up. If the Alexander chistened 13th November 1768 and who died aged 90 in 1858 is the same person as Alexander "the elder", 'portitioner' survived by Alexander, one of his sons, living at Loan Muiravonside as did his son Alexander "the younger" who died there in 1885 aged 85 years of age, then we can trace the line back further.

Alexander, son of George Nimmo and Mary Dougall, had the following siblings

Helen Christened 5th April 1767; John born 28th April or 10th May 1772, Christened on 10th or 13th May or 30th June 1772*; Christian (female) christened on 2nd October 1774; James christened on 9th June 1776

Their father George Nimmo must have been born between 1707 and 1751 assuming he was between 16 and 60 upon the birth of his first child in 1767 bearing in mind that the children were born over an 11 year period. He would have married between 1723 and 1767 assuming that all his known children were born within wedlock. Searching the IGI database for a George born within the period 1707 - 1751 reveals only one George born on 1 Oct 1727 in Carriden, West Lothian, to George Nimmo and Elizabeth (Or Bessie) LYALL. George and Elizabeth had the following children :

Marjorie born on 22 Sep 1711; Robert born 4th July 1714; William born on 8th December 1716; Thomas born 15 May 1722, christened on 23 May 1722 died on 19 March 1800, buried on 21st March 1800.George born on 1 Oct 1727; All were born in Carriden, West Lothian.

This is the only birth record traced for a George Nimmo within the possible birth range, however this makes him 40 years of age on the birth of his first child by Mary Dougall in 1767. Note that it is interesting that if Alexander who died 1858 is in fact Alexander "The elder" , there is some longevity in the family - Alexander "The younger" lived to 85 years; his father lived to 90 years and his uncle Thomas lived to 78 years. It would be interesting to know if this longevity was linked in some way to a particular lifestyle or prosperity. All this depends on whether or not we have sucessfully identified the correct Alexander, without further evidence, that link is at best probable. If Alexander "The elder" was the son of George Nimmo and Mary Dougall, then we can go back a further two generations and add a further ten individuals to the tree which then dates back to a George Nimmo born between 1651 and 1695 ( more likely 1665 - 1675 ) probably in Carriden West Lothian.

I know that there was a Nimmo family in the Carriden area in the 18th Century and that some of their descendants moved to the Edinburgh area. "My own Nimmo ancestors seem to have lived in Edinburgh from about 1700 (the first Nimmo married there is Thomas Nimmo in 1735). Thomas was the son of Robert Nimmo, but the only two Robert Nimmos listed as born in the Old Parish Records for around 1680-1715 seem to come from Carriden and Bo'ness. So I'd say that we're all from the same Nimmo family!

It is Nimmo "Folklore" according to the stories I have read that the Nimmos first appeared in the Stirling area vassals of some local gentry and from there spread into the Central belt towards Edinburgh at first then towards Glasgow. The only notable Nimmos I can find are a Miss Charlotte Nimmo of Edinburgh an acquentience of Robert Burns and a William Nimmo of Stirlingshire, renowned local historian and notary. There is material referring to a "great engineer" Alexander Nimmo born in Stirlingshire. As it stands, we have eight generations including the present day dating back to an Alexander born 1726 - 1781 ( more likely 1766 - 1776) .

I have now obtained confirmation of the bakery at which Robert Ramsay Nimmo "The Elder" worked in Airdrie in the late 19th / early 20th century. There was a railway line though Airdrie which had a track branch off it to the Wheatholm Bakery on Craig Street and within a couple of streets of modern day Watt Street there is a Wheatholm street in Airdrie today. It is probable that this is the bakery that he worked at.