WILLIAM NEILSON, Retired Sailor, Palnackie.

The following entry was made in the Buittle Parochial Board, Registration of Applications Register, in the year 1906.

William Neilson was a native of Buittle Parish, and his ancestors can easily be traced back to the middle of the 18^th Century.

His great grandfather was a John Neilson who was married to Barbara Coltart. Three of their children are recorded in the Old Parish Records, viz.;

Almorness and Orchardton combine to make an agricultural estate in the south of the parish, long held by the Maxwell and Douglas families (see the article on Orchardton Tower for further info).

1754 is the first mention of the surname Neilson in the OPR's , but the name Coltart was connected to Almorness at an earlier period when a Margaret Coltart, of Almorness, was married in 1739. This may well have been her sister, or an aunt. There is no record of John Neilson's death but Barbara's is recorded in the OPR's. She died on the 14^th June, 1807, aged 82 years, and a widow. Her home was recorded as being at Glen, which was on the Almorness estate, and was probably at South Glen Farm or How Glen Cottages.

Their middle child, James, was William Coltart's grandfather. Born on the Almorness estate in 1756, he married Agnes McKnaught. Their marriage is not recorded in Buittle, but they appear to have settled on the estate and have three children shown in the OPR's.

Blackbellie or Blackbelly, is the old name for the farm now known as Douganhill. McKnaught or McKnight, is a long established name in the parish, but I have not found trace of Agnes's birth in the records. I suspect she was not from this parish, which would explain why there is no record of the marriage here.

Their eldest recorded son, John Neilson, was William Coltart's father. His marriage is recorded. On 23^rd April 1819, at approx. 25 years of age, with a family address still given as Glen, he married Mary Candlish from Palnackie. In militia and census records a James Candlish, her father, living in the village, is recorded then as being a Blacksmith. He was 75 years of age in 1851. His marriage is recorded; on 3^rd May 1798 James McCandlish from Gelston, (but a native of Kirkcudbright) married Elizabeth Graham from Glengegrie (Gaigrie), and the following children are shown:

Mary was their eldest child, and some three years younger than John. At some stage the family dropped the 'Mc' part of their name, and became known as Candlish only.

William Neilson, our subject here, was born on 28^th November 1822, at Palnackie. He was the eldest of a large family:

Mary (#1) died in 1830 and John (#1) in 1832. It was a common practice to name a subsequent child after another who had died in infancy.

The 1851 census shows John Candlish, and the Neilson brothers John and James to all be Mariners, and many of the men from the village were so employed. The following paragraph is extracted from the article "The Water of Orr, Its Sailors and Shipping", which is reproduced in full elsewhere on these pages:

Captains Thomas and John Candlish were William Neilson's cousins. When William was being brought up therefore, he was part of a sailing family within a small, thriving, sailing community, and by the time of the 1841 census, at the age of 18 years, his absence from the village indicates that he has already began his sailing career.

On 24^th August 1847, William Neilson married Sarah Dunn. Nothing is known of her family, except that she was born in Kelso, Roxburghshire. There is some dubiety about her age. She was shown as being 28 years old in 1851, giving here a date of birth about 1823. The Parish Board entry in 1906 lists her as being 76 years of age, giving her a date of birth about 1830. If the latter date is correct, she was only about 16 or 17 when she married - perhaps she was just a little economical with the truth!

The Old Parish Records show the birth of 4 children to William and Sarah, viz.;

There may well have been others, as the OPR's ceased to be maintained in 1854. The Schooner 'Ben Gullion' is also mentioned in the abovementioned article on the sailors of the Urr:-

Neither of the deaths of William or Sarah Neilson are recorded in the Old Church Yard at Buittle, although I assume they both rest there. Their son James, and his family, have a headstone:-

If anyone who reads this is a descendent of William and Sarah Neilson, I would love to hear from them. Also, if anyone has any more information about anyone mentioned above, or of their descendents, and in particular photographs or relevant family history, please contact me at either the address shown on my "HOME" page or by e-mail buittle@countrybooks.co.uk

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Last modified: May 10, 2003