The Mitchelson Story
The International Genealogical Index and the Scottish Church Records show that some 36% of Mitchelson births occurred in Fife, 22% in the Lothians, 14% in Angus, 14% in Dumfries-Kirkcudbright, 9% in Roxburgh, and the remaining 5% in other counties. [These rough percentages are calculated merely to give a general idea of the distribution of Mitchelson births throughout Scotland and are not to be relied on.]
The first Mitchelson births are found in the latter decades of the 16th century in Fife, Angus and West Lothian. The first recorded birth in Dumfries is in the year 1612. Mitchelson fathers having children in the Parish of Dumfries, starting in the years shown, include Robert Mitchelson (1612), John Mitchelson (1613), Thomas Mitchelson (1621), Richard Mitchelson (1648), James Mitchelson (1671), Alexander Mitchelson (1727) Archibald Mitchelson (1728), William Mitchelson (1736), Francis Mitchelson (1740), and Charles Mitchelson (1759).
It is interesting to note that the Mitchelson name also appears in a cluster of adjacent Parishes in Kirkcudbrightshire, namely, New Abbey (1692), Troqueer (1697), Kirkgunzeon (1705), Colvend (1717), Lochrutton (1765) and Urr (1773).
Sorting out these Mitchelson families is not an easy task as the available information is fragmentary at best and in the earlier years, the spouse's name is not shown. We know our ancestor, John Mitchelson, was a farmer at Kirkgunzeon and that in the year 1812 he married a Mary Thorat from Kirkbean Parish. The names John and Mary gave to their children afford some clues - Jacob and Janet for the Mitchelson grandparents and Agnes and John for the Thorat grandparents. In fact, we know that Mary's parents were John Thorat and Agnes Locke of Kirkbean Village. Finding Jacob and Janet Mitchelson has not proved so easy a task and research is ongoing.
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© 1998 by Irene Mitchell, all rights reserved. Please do not reproduce or republish my pages, text or images without my express permission. imitchel@uniserve.com
1999-01-05