James McKeich

Notes:

James married Bessie Fannie Harricks on 20 Apr 1899 in Victoria, Australia. Bessie was born on 14 Jul 1868 in Victoria, Australia; died on 1 Feb 1961 in Victoria, Australia. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Married:
Married in "Onagh" Ararat, Victoria

1. Linda McKeich was born on 30 Jan 1900; died on 10 May 1963.
2. Nellie McKeich was born about 1902; and died.
3. Archibald McKeich was born on 7 Jan 1904; died on 2 Aug 1957.
4. Mary McKeich was born on 5 Feb 1906; died on 6 Apr 2002 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

Other Events:

• Occupation: Postillion of Stirling, Investor, Carter, Slaughterman in Victoria, farmer of Yanakie

Notes:

James was a postillion living in Stirling when he married Mary Bets (Bates).

James left Scotland on 16 September 1850 on board the ship "Madawaska" out of Liverpool. He arrived in Melbourne on 17 December 1850.

James is reputed to have made 10,000 pounds by investing in mines was able to purchase houses and property in Melbourne and Beaufort and paid for his wife and her mother Mary to come to Victoria. He invested some of his money in a firm called Buckley and Nunn. He later sold these shares to the firm which later became the well known Australian Department store "David Jones".

James and his partner Henry Davis purchased the lease on the Yanakie Station in 1862.They traded in horses and sent shiploads to Invercargill. The first of these was supposed to have been lost at sea with the same fate happening to the next shipment. There is some doubt about this however.

After hearing of the loss of the second shipment James died of an "Aneurysm of the Arch of the Aorta" on 14 January 1864.

James is buried in an unmarked grave in the small cemetery at Yanakie.

James married Mary Betts on 2 Nov 1849 in Barony, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland, UK. Mary was born on 2 Oct 1831 in Polmont, Stirlingshire, Scotland, UK; died on 10 Feb 1868 in South Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Alias: Bates

Notes:

Mary married Henry Davis and had 2 children called Charles Henry and William Ernest

Notes:

Married:
Marriage also recorded on 20 OCT 1849in Stirling

Other Events:

• Occupation: Cartwright of Kilchrist

Archibald married Mary McLean on 2 Jan 1812 in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK. Mary (daughter of Allan McLean and Mary Henderson) was born on 16 Aug 1782 in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK; died before 1855 in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Mary's parents were Allan Maclean and Mary McKendrick of Aros, near Campbeltown
Allan was a farmer.

Notes:

Married:
The 1841 Census showed that Archibald was still the Cartwright at Kilchrist but lived at Dalivaddy. He was aged 65 years

Dalivaddy was a small locality a few kilometres west of Drumlemble on the Kintyre Peninsula and only a few kilometres from Kilchrist.

The following members of his family were also recorded in the 1841 census:
Archibald McKeich Male 65 years cartwright
Mary McKeich Female 58 years
Alexander McKeich Male 28 years
Mary McKeich Female 18 years
John McKeich Male 15 years
Margaret McKeich Female 12 years

All the above were born in Argyllshire.

The Alexander McKeich recorded above was the son of Archibald and his second wife Elizabeth McCoag

Mary McKeich was married under the name Keith to John McNeill of Trodigal, a neighbouring farm to Dalivaddy where Mary lived.

It is recorded in the book "Distilleries of Campbeltown" by David Stirk that Archibald and his son Alexander had an illicit whisky distillery at Knocknaha, a few hundred metres down the road from Kilchrist. Archibald's second wife, Mary Mclean was also listed as having involvement in the illicit distillery. This was not unexpected since women were a major source of employment to keep the distilleries functioning. As it is recorded in the above book, women were regarded as being "good for nothing else".

Birth places of Archibald's children indicate that Archibald was working at the Cartwright's Shop at Kilchrist from at least the time of his marriage to his first wife Elizabeth McCoag in September 1802.

Alexander married Susan Beith about 1776. Susan and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Married:
Alexander was a shepherd of Carradale on the Kintyre peninsula. The name has also been recorded as "McKeech and "McKeith". Family tradition records that Alexander may have been a descendant of one of the two brothers who escaped from the Battle of Culloden in 1754 and settled on the Kintyre Peninsula, firstly at Carridale and then at Arnicle near Glen Barr. The two brothers were Jacobites who fought for Bonnie Prince Charlie. Their surname was Keith. It is believed that one brother escaped to France and the other arrived on the Kintyre Peninsula and assumed the name of McKeich. While living at Carradale, Alexander was accused of running an illicit Whisky distillery. The story goes that he was so incensed at this accusation that he moved his family from Carradale to Arnicle where many of his children were born.

Susan Beith had had her name recorded as" Bieth" and "Beeth". Her first name has been recorded as Susanna.

Alexander and Susan may have had another child, Dougald. He is the ancestor of Ann Collins of Australia. Ann suspects that this is the case. Her family has also heard about the rumours surrounding the escapees. Ann's ancestors changed their name back to Keith when they emigrated to Australia in 1863

Notes:

Buried:
In memory of ALLAN McLEAN, late farmer at Arofs who died 27 November 1828 aged 90 years also his spouse MARY HENDERSON who died 13 June 1824 aged 67 years also NEILL their son who died 14 August 1824 aged 43 years

Allan married Mary Henderson on 30 Nov 1775 in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK. Mary was born about 1756 in Scotland, UK; died on 13 Jun 1824 in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK; was buried in Campbeltown, Argyll, Scotland, UK. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Alias: McKendrick, Hendry, Henry

Notes:

Buried:
In memory of ALLAN McLEAN, late farmer at Arofs who died 27 November 1828 aged 90 years also his spouse MARY HENDERSON who died 13 June 1824 aged 67 years also NEILL their son who died 14 August 1824 aged 43 years