Scottish Genealogy Society

28/02/2026

28/02/2026

We are looking for some tips for the “Tips for Members” section of our journal, Destinations. What tips do you have for people doing ? It could be anything - methodology, record sets, organisation...

28/02/2026

Our premises at Overhaugh Street will reopen on Tuesday 3rd March and will be open Tuesdays and Thursdays each week.

We look forward to seeing you at Overhaugh Street in 2026 and helping you with your family history research!

28/02/2026

🧱 Stuck on a genealogy brick wall? Let’s help you break through!

We are offering three lucky attendees the chance to have a Certified Nova Scotia Genealogist work with them to solve their toughest research mystery.

How to enter:
• Go to http://nsgenconference.ca - register for the Nova Scotia Genealogy Virtual Conference by March 18 at noon (ADT). You’ll receive a confirmation email with a link to the Brick Wall Busters submission form.
• Tell us about your "brick wall" mystery when you sign up.

Ready to get unstuck?

👉 Register now at nsgenconference.ca
Join us May 2–3, 2026, for a weekend of discovery. Whether you're a GANS member ($39) or joining us for the first time ($69), we’d love to see you there!

28/02/2026

BillionGraves is announcing some big news this week at RootsTech, the world's largest genealogy conference.

Here it is: If you have previously taken gravestone photos with a regular camera or phone camera (without the BillionGraves app), you can now upload them to the BillionGraves website, and you no longer have to transcribe them yourself! That's right, it will be done for you!

So if you have gravestone photos stored on your computer or phone from past vacations or family history trips, upload them at BillionGraves.com so they can be preserved and shared with others.

It's still best to use the BillionGraves app since it will automatically add the GPS coordinates for each gravesite, but uploading the photos you took without the app to the BillionGraves website is the next best thing.

Want more information? Go to:
https://support.billiongraves.com/support/solutions/articles/35000308540-how-do-i-add-headstone-photos-taken-outside-of-the-app-

28/02/2026

March talk - see poster for details. Look forward to see everyone. Note earlier start time of 6.45 pm

28/02/2026

Ancestor Occupation Spotlight: Hawker

Have you found a hawker in your family tree?

A hawker was a travelling seller. Someone who went from door to door or village to village selling goods. In 19th century Scotland, hawkers might sell:

Fish
Cloth & ribbons
Pots and pans
Bibles
Tea
Small household goods

They were especially common in rural areas, as not every village had permanent shops.

Some hawkers carried their goods on their backs. Others used handcarts. A few had horse and cart. It was hard work, they covered miles in all weather, relying on reputation and regular customers.

You may also see them recorded as:

Pedlar
Chapman
Itinerant dealer

Genealogy Tip:
If your ancestor was a hawker, don’t expect to find them in the same place every census. Their mobility can make them trickier to trace, butwe all love a challenge!? I recently came across a man and a wife who were hawkers they were known to move about staying overnight in the barns of local farmers.

Have you discovered a hawker in your tree? What were they selling?

Image Flower Hawkers c1930 (WikiCommons)

28/02/2026

📣 Hidden in Plain Sight: Women’s Stories Walking Tour 👣✨

Join Whips Tours in partnership with the Cockburn Association** for a special walking tour uncovering the overlooked stories of women who shaped Edinburgh’s historic environment.

🗓 Dates: 8, 15 & 22 March
⏰ Time: 10am
📍 Edinburgh Old Town

Over approximately 90 minutes, this engaging walk explores five key sites and reveals:
👑 A queen who funded her own church
🏛️ A medieval businesswoman behind the city’s last pre-Reformation chapel
🏘️ The women of the Canongate
🌿 Campaigners who helped save a Georgian square
📜 The pioneering women of the Cockburn Association from 1919 to today

Discover the women whose influence is hidden in plain sight across the city’s streets and buildings.

Places are limited — book early and see Edinburgh from a fresh perspective. 💬

https://www.whipstours.com/services-store/p/hidden-in-plain-sight-womens-stories-a-walking-tour-in-partnership-with-the-cockburn-association

28/02/2026

28/02/2026

William Maxwell, 5th Earl of Nithsdale: Jacobite supporter and his escape from the Tower of London

William was born in 1676 at the family home of Terregles Castle (demolished) near Dumfries. He was the only son of Robert Maxwell, 4th Earl of Nithsdale and Lady Lucy Douglas. His father died in 1682 at the age of 53/54, probably of natural causes, whilst William was still a child. His mother, Lady Lucy Douglas raised him, ensuring that he was brought up as a Catholic. He received an education in the Roman Catholic faith and remained loyal to the exiled House of Stuart.

In 1697 when William reacher the age of 21, he became the 5th Earl of Nithsdale. He secretly visited the Jacobite court at Saint-Germain to give his allegience to the exiled James VII+II. It was at the Jacobite court that he met Lady Winifried Herbert, his future wife and life saver. The couple married in 1699 and settled in his family seat at Terregles Castle.

Life was far from quiet for the couple being a prominent Catholic in the Lowlands of Scotland which was predominantly Covenanter land. Maxwell was subjected to Presbyterian assaults on his estates and was under suspicion of harbouring Jesuits. Although William was discreet with his support of the Jacobite cause, he was long suspected of being a Jacobite sympathiser.

In 1712, he resigned his estate to his son, also named William, he reserved a life rent to himself. Although he was hesitant to do so, he proclaimed James VIII+III (Old Pretende), son of James VII+II at Dumfries and Jedburgh during the Jacobite Rising of 1715. He later joined the main Jacobite forces at Hexham under Thomas Forster.

After a few days of fighting at the Battle of Preston, Thomas Forster surrendered to the Government troops on 14th November 1715. Maxwell, along with other Jacobite leaders, was sent to London to await trial. Maxwell was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death on 9th February 1716.

His daring and devoted wife, Lady Winifried Maxwell, Countess of Nithsdale had other ideas. Upon hearing the news of her captured husband being sent to London, she set off from their family home at Terregles. She tried desperately for her husband to be pardoned, but this was all done in vain. The countess wasn't giving up though, she came up with a meticulous plan to rescue William.

With the help of two other Jacobite ladies she put the plan into action on the 23rd February 1716, the night before the ex*****on. The countess was admitted to William's room, the countess had her maid pass on the extra clothing which she had been wearing to William. Miraculously William Maxwell went unnoticed as he snuck past his guards. He fled to France whilst his wife went back to Scotland to ensure the transfer of the estate to their son.

William was later joined by his wife in France when all their business in Scotland had been completed. They later went to Rome to join the Government in Exile of the Old Pretender. William Maxwell died in Rome on 2nd or 20th March 1744, sources differ, not long before the Jacobite Rising of 1745 started.

The couple had two children, the mentioned William who died in 1776 and Lady Anne Maxwell who died before the 5th Earl of Nithsdale in 1735. His wife also died in Rome, 5 years later, in 1749.

Picture: Terregles House which was built on the site of Terregles Castle around 1788, Terregles House was demolished in 1964. www.castlesofscotland.co.uk

27/02/2026

Yesterday, the Royal Victorian Order held an Evensong in the King's Chapel of the Savoy in the presence of the Grand Master HRH The Princess Royal. The service was conducted by the Order Chaplain, Canon Thomas Woodhouse. The Lord Lyon was privileged to attend.