www.clanlivingstone.info

For some time, I have known that members of my Scottish McLea family were employed as blacksmiths. My "smithing" relatives include Peter McLea who was the father of the immigrant James Brown McLea, Peter's father John McLea, and Peter's grandfather, Peter or Patrick McKay. As there are so few records of John, I've been looking around for some time to see if I might find him in obscure records of the non-Birth/Marriage/Death variety. One of these was the Glasgow directories, which had useful information. Another I tried were English apprenticeship records, although this was not helpful for John or his father-in-law Peter, or anyone else I'd known of. Where else to look? Well, it turns out there is a volume of history of the professional organization or guild of smiths in Glasgow, Scotland. Known as the Hammermen, they are chronicled in History of the Hammermen of Glasgow by Lumsden and Aitken, published in 1912. This volume has more than you'd ever want to know about the Hammermen, and I kept it around (and kept renewing it) on the hope I'd read it and get a better appreciation for them. The Hammermen are a long-standing Guild in Glasgow. (Note that they include much more than the Blacksmiths, too: Goldsmiths, Locksmiths, Plumbers, Engineers, Merchants, you name it.) So, my family, of many Blacksmiths, should be listed on the List of Members. In this book, it begins in 1616, and ends in 1911, shortly before publication. Perfect for including them all (although it is probably incomplete, notwithstanding additions since 1911). Of course, they are not listed.

Hi Kyle, Better to check it out and leave no stone unturned, particularly info that might pertain to Glasgow area McLeas. Have you checked out the Glasgow and West of Scotland Historical Society site. Perhaps one of their researchers has insight as to McLeas and Browns at Calton in the 1850's and elsewhere in GLasgow. I noticed that there was a James Brown that maried Janet Jamieson and lived at "Abbey GReen Farm" near Lesmehagan about 20 miles from GLasgow. He had a daughter Janet that married a MacKenzie apparently, but don't know anything further about this Brown family. The Brown name is very common in Scotland and in and around Glasgow to be sure. You mentioned that Peter and Janet were married about 1850. Did you locate their marriage record in a Glasgow marriage register? I have had a lot of luck finding relatives in Scottish parish marriage registers. Almost all of them actually from different locations in Scotland. But even here some records are obviously missing. regards Donald (Livingstone) Clink

Hi Kyle, Better to check it out and leave no stone unturned, particularly info that might pertain to Glasgow area McLeas. Have you checked out the Glasgow and West of Scotland Historical Society site. Perhaps one of their researchers has insight as to McLeas and Browns at Calton in the 1850's and elsewhere in GLasgow. I noticed that there was a James Brown that maried Janet Jamieson and lived at "Abbey GReen Farm" near Lesmehagan about 20 miles from GLasgow. He had a daughter Janet that married a MacKenzie apparently, but don't know anything further about this Brown family. The Brown name is very common in Scotland and in and around Glasgow to be sure. You mentioned that Peter and Janet were married about 1850. Did you locate their marriage record in a Glasgow marriage register? I have had a lot of luck finding relatives in Scottish parish marriage registers. Almost all of them actually from different locations in Scotland. But even here some records are obviously missing. regards Donald (Livingstone) Clink

Dear Donald, I was a member of GWSFHS for a year, but didn't get so much out of my membership. Their newsletters were interesting, but I had no contact with anyone else researching my lines, or McLeas at all.

Hi Kyle, Have you checked out the Lanarkshire Historical Society? Glasgow is full of your McLea kin. Must be a relative there somewhere with information on Peter's family. regards Donald

I have not looked there, Donald.