Great-granny and in-laws getting first aid certificates in 1911

Another Southern Reporter newspaper report that I found, searching for Dodds and Abbey Gate, revealed that my ancestors were handy in a first aid situation! Unfortunately the report is very dark and smudged at the start, but it looks like it involved the Red Cross Society Ambulance Class, with a Dr Calvert giving lessons to ladies in Melrose. Apparently 99% of the class had passed, and there followed a long list of ladies getting St Andrew’s First Aid Certificates. These included Miss M. Dodds, Abbey Gate; Miss A. Dodds, Abbey Gate; and Mrs Dodds, Weirhill Place. The first two would be sisters May Darling Dodds (b. 1881) and Agnes Gray Dodds (b. 1888). The third would be their sister-in-law, Margaret Hall (b. 1878), wife of plumber John Dodds, and my great-grandmother. Here is a photo of Margaret and John together, probably from a few years later, during World War One.

I should probably transcribe the list of ladies’ names who were awarded certificates. It’s quite lengthy, and could be of interest to other people with Melrose ancestry. The list appeared in the Southern Reporter of 1911 May 25.

An ancestor drowned in a West Yorkshire canal

I knew from family stories that a Yorkshire ancestor had drowned in a canal. A few years ago we traced more details in local newspapers, which I’ll reproduce below in full:

Ossett Observer, 1903 May 30

A Canal Workman Drowned

A sad drowning fatality occurred at the Broad Cut lower locks, Horbury Junction on Monday morning. A canal labourer named Seth Senior, 39 years of age, lost his life by falling from a boat into the water. The deceased, who resided at the house ajoining the Broad Cut top lock, was a married man, and his wife is said to have been an invalid for some time. A native of Thornhill, the deceased had been a bellringer at the Parish Church there for many years.

Mr. P.P. Maitland, coroner, conducted an inquest relative to the death, at the Horbury Junction Wesleyan Schoolroom on Tuesday afternoon. Mr. Arthur Burton was chosen foreman of the jury.

Evidence of identification was given by Mrs. Margaret Senior, widow, mother of the deceased, who resided with him and his wife and family at the lock-house. Witness stated that the deceased was employed by the Calder and Hebble Navigation Company as a general labourer, his duty being to keep the river banks in a proper state of repair etc. He was strong and healthy, and of a cheerful disposition. About ten minutes to seven o’clock on the previous (Monday) morning, deceased left home apparently in his usual health and spirits, to go to his boat, which was moored in the river at Broad Cut near the lower locks.The next that witness saw of him was when he was brought home dead about a couple of hours afterwards. Deceased was not a man of suicidal tendency.

William Henry Price, canal labourer, residing at Millbank Lock, Thornhill said that about seven o’clock on Monday morning, he went to Broad Cut to unmoor his boat, and while there saw the deceased “swilling his deck” with water. After making a casual remark to the deceased, which the latter acknowledged, witness proceeded with his boat down the stream, and got to work. A short time afterwards, some of witness’s workmates called his attention to deceased’s boat, which was floating down the river with no-one in charge. The boat was pulled up, and deceased being nowhere in sight, witness turned back with his own boat, and began to search for him. A boat-hook, which deceased had evidently been using, was found stuck in the wooden supports of the river bank, not far from the spot where witness last saw the deceased swilling the boat. Dragging operations were commenced, and about half-past eight o’clock deceased’s lifeless body was removed from the river, in a depth of about 11 feet of water. Witness was of opinion that the deceased was in his boat, pushing it off the moorings, when his hook stuck in the “fell boards” and in attempting to pull it out again the deceased lost his balance, thus falling into the water. It was not stated whether deceased could swim or not. Mrs. Mary Oates, widow, of Broad Cut lower locks, deposed to laying out the body, which, she said, was free from marks of violence.

The jury returned a verdict that the deceased was accidentally drowned by falling from his boat into the river, while at work.

Seth Senior was my great-great grandfather. He had a daughter born posthumously, who was named Sethina after him. It was interesting to learn that he was a bellringer, given how much my husband did this, both as a youngster in Somerset, and when he moved to St Andrews to go to university, ringing at Dundee and other bell towers around Scotland.

A further detail about Seth Senior appeared in a separate report of his death in the Wakefield Express: apparently he had only one eye. That makes him one of two great-great grandfathers of mine who had only one eye. The other was Cork-born John Tate, who was frequently imprisoned in Dublin where he lived, with the prison registers variously recording him as missing the right eye, and sometimes the left eye.

Unearthing a stone relic near Melrose in 1864

Southern Reporter, 1864 February 4

MELROSE. A RELIC

On Monday afternoon, while Mr Alex. Dodds, Abbey Gate, was superintending the draining operations which are now going on upon the fair-ground at Bowden Moor, he discovered a piece of carved sandstone which had been thrown up by the workmen, and which he has now in his possession. It has evidently been the groin of an arch, with the carving in wonderful preservation, and probably belonged either to the Abbey of Melrose, or the one of Red Abbeystead at Newstead. From the situation in which it was found, it is supposed that it may have been embedded in the soil since the era of the Reformation, or even an earlier date.

Again this involved my great-great-great grandfather Alexander Dodds (1816-1877), church officer or beadle for Melrose, as well as burgh officer and baron officer.

An ancestor losing a collie dog in 1896

I stumbled across this newspaper advert the other day:

Southern Reporter, 1896 November 19

LOST, Black and White Collie Dog; string on neck. Communicate with Hall, Gattonside Mains, Melrose.

This would have almost certainly belonged to my great-great grandfather Thomas Cavers Hall (1850-1917) who farmed at Gattonside Mains. It’s possible Thomas had only moved to Gattonside shortly before this, but I need to research that more.

I only found this advert because it appeared immediately below an advert for a lost dog that belonged to a Cavers man:

LOST, Collie Bitch; black, white and tan; answers to the name of “Jed.” Apply, Walter Cavers, Kersknowe, Selkirk

Frustratingly I’m not quite sure who this Walter was. He appears in the 1891 Bowden census, farmer of Kersknowe, aged 69 born Hawick. He’s still there in 1901, aged 79, recorded as born Cavers. Going back to 1861 he looks like the 39-year old shepherd at Hyndlee Ravenburn, born Cavers. In all these years he is living with servant Margaret Elliot. That age and a possible birth at Cavers parish point to him being the 1821-christened son of James Cavers and Jean Watson. But I can’t be sure, and haven’t been able to trace a Scottish death for Walter that should confirm his parents’ names.

If Walter was the son of James Cavers and Jean Watson then he would have been a first cousin of the mother of Thomas Cavers Hall, the man whose advert for a lost dog appeared in the paper below his. Both men would be descended from Francis Cavers (1763-1810).

Ancestor buried with full military honours at Melrose in 1895

Another report discovered in the Southern Reporter. This time concerning the funeral of my gg-grandfather Alexander Burnett Dodds (1836-1895). I knew he was Colour-Sergeant for the local volunteer detachment, and have his medals, but had no idea that his funeral was so impressive. He was buried at the Weirhill cemetery. I’ve previously blogged about the sorry state of the family gravestone there. To read more about his life see his obituary, also from the Southern Reporter.

Southern Reporter, 1895 October 3
MILITARY FUNERAL
On Friday afternoon Colour-Sergeant Alexander Burnet Dodds, the oldest member of the Melrose Volunteer detachment, was buried in Melrose Cemetery with full military honours. There was a large turnout of Volunteers in full-dress uniform, while along the route to the cemetery the streets were lined with spectators. The hearse, containing the coffin, on which was placed a Union Jack and deceased’s helmet and side arms, was preceded by a firing party of nineteen Volunteers with arms reversed, and the Battalion Band from Hawick. The cortege, which was followed by the Melrose Volunteer Detachment and a very large number of mourners, proceeded from Abbey Gate by way of Abbey Street, Market Place, and High Street to the Cemetery, while the band played the “Dead March in Saul.” On arriving at the entrance to the cemetery, the procession halted, and the coffin was carried shoulder high to the grave. The service there was conducted by the Rev. R.J. Thompson, assistant to the Rev. Dr Herdman, and the firing party fired three volleys. The Volunteers were under the command of Captain Small, and the other officers present in uniform were Major Broad, Captain J. Hope (adjutant of the Border Rifles), and Captain and Quartermaster Monro. The whole proceedings were of an impressive character.

Ancestors recording meteorological observations in 19th century

Thanks to the British Newspaper Archive digitising many decades of Southern Reporter issues, I’ve just found lots of references to ancestors in the Borders. And they include some very unexpected ones, like those described in this blog post, where two generations of Dodds ancestors at Abbey Gate in Melrose were recording the weather conditions, with the results printed in the newspaper.

The first references come from meteorological observations made by Alexander Dodds (1816-1877). As well as being church officer, or beadle, for Melrose parish, he was burgh officer and baron officer, and took a wage directly from the Duke of Buccleuch. His weather observations were reported as below:

Southern Reporter, 1873 January 9

RAINFALL AT MELROSE

The following return of the rainfall for the past year, compared with that of the previous year, is furnished by Mr Alexander Dodds, Abbey Gate. The elevation of Melrose above the sea level is 280 feet, and distance from the sea thirty miles. The register is as follows:-

1871

• January 1.54 inches
• February 3.49
• March 1.80
• April 3.98
• May 1.02
• June 4.81
• July 3.91
• August 2.38
• September 2.84
• October 2.97
• November 2.59
• December 3.30

1872

• January 4.17 inches
• February 4.19
• March 4.26
• April 3.40
• May 3.76
• June 3.70
• July 5.15
• August 9.20
• September 5.64
• October 5.56
• November 5.45
• December 4.43

Total in 1871 34.66 inches. Total in 1872 58.91 inches.

The number of dry days in 1872 was 148, with 112 dry nights.

His son Alexander Burnett Dodds (1836-1895) continued the meteorological observations, as a later newspaper report revealed:

Southern Reporter, 1895 January 24

TEMPERATURE AND RAINFALL FOR 1894

During the past year the temperature at Melrose, as registered by Mr Dodds, Abbey Gate, showed the maximum to be 82.6 in the month of June, while the minimum was .6 in January. During the preceding twenty-one years, the maximum temperature registered was 93 degrees on 5th July 1872; the minimum being 10 degrees below zero on 17th January, 1881. The rainfall for 1894 shows that the greatest fall in twenty-four hours was registered in August, being 1.88 inches, while there were 196 days in the year on which rain fell. During the years 1872-93, the heaviest fall of rain in twenty-four hours was 259 [2.59?] inches and occurred on 7th August, 1872; while the greatest number of wet days was 296 in 1872, the fewest being 180 in 1893. The total depth of rainfall in 1894 was 38.44 inches, as compared with the heaviest fall of 58.91 in 1872, and the least of 25.67 in 1893. The rain guage is 5 inches in diameter; 6 inches from the ground; 280 feet above the sea level; and 30 miles distant from the sea.

Obituary of Thomas Cavers Hall (1850-1917)

Here’s another obituary of an ancestor, this time another great-great grandfather.

Southern Reporter, October 4 1917

DEATH OF A WELL-KNOWN FARMER.- We regret to learn of the death, following an accident, of Mr Thomas C Hall, for over 20 years tenant of the farm of Gattonside Mains. On Thursday last Mr Hall had just left the farm-house to drive over to Melrose, and when not far from the steading he was pitched on to the road and rendered unconscious. He died on the following Saturday. Mr Hall was a successful farmer, and was well-known at the various sale rings.