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Robert McLay and Bridget Bryce married Donegal 1852 according to the birth certificate of his son, Henry, b 1868, Broxburn.  I have the death certificates for Robert and Bridget, but unfortunately the informants had no parents names. Any help would be wonderful.

 

Friday 13th Dec 2013, 05:40PM

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  • Was the marriage in Co. Donegal or in Donegal town? Scottish birth certificates usually give the exact date and location of the parents marriages. Is that not the case with this one?

    If the place of the marriage is Donegal town, and the couple were RC, then the marriage will not be in the statutory records. RC marriages were only recorded from 1864 onwards. In some cases you might still find the marriage from church records. The RC parish for Donegal town is Tawnawilly. Unfortunately their records don?t go back before 1872. (Earlier records have presumably been lost). So if that?s where it took place there may no longer be any record of it. If it?s any consolation, RC marriage records for that time don?t have a lot of detail. You would not normally get much more than the couples names and their 2 witnesses. No parents names and no townlands (addresses).

    I can see from the civil indexes that there were some McClay families around Donegal town so that may be the right area to search.

    Ahoghill Antrim

    Friday 13th Dec 2013, 06:04PM
  • Thank you for replying so promptly.  I have 3 birth certificates for children of this couple.  1852, Donegal, Sept 1852, Donegal and August 1855!  The surname changes - McClay/ McLay.  Very confusing.  Robert McLay b abt 1837, Donegal according to census records and Bridget Bryce, 1839, Donegal.  

    Friday 13th Dec 2013, 07:01PM
  • Hi have been researching my wife's family Robert and Bridget Mclay were the first Mclays in our family, they had children: Ann b1856,Fanny b 1862, Andrew b 1864, Edward b 1873, Henry b 1868 and Charles b 1866.

    Charles married Elizabeth Boyle in 1898 their children were:Mary b 1899, Robert b 1900, Bridget b 1902, Elizabeth b 1903 (my mother in law), Theresa b 1905, Charles b ?, Hannah b 1909, and John b 1912/died 1912.

    We have more info about the Boyles and descendants of the Mclays.

    Hope this helps

    Ian

    Wednesday 26th Mar 2014, 12:21PM
  • Hi i'm related to this family, bridget bryce is the sister of my great,great grandfather thomas bryce born abt 1841 in ireland, their parents were charles bryce born abt 1801 in ireland and died abt 1867 in ireland, their mother was fanny lamon (lammen, lamen ) born abt 1801 in ireland and died abt 1865 in co.donegal. i don't know where they were born in co.donegal and it is on the 1881 scotland census where the family lived at niddry rows, kirkliston, linlithgowshire that it tells you that both robert mclay and bridget bryce were born in donegal, ireland their surname is written as mcclay,on the 1871 scotland census they are living at holygate, uphall, linlithgowshire and bridget bryce's surname is written as binger and robert mclay's surname is written as mchay the children are written down as mclay,  On the  1861 scotland census the family are living at 4 great  russel street in bathgate and their surname is written as mckay and thomas bryce is a lodging with them. robert mclay died on the 7 march 1887 sge 51 at stirling district asylum in larbert. On the 1891 scotland census bridget is living at east end uphall, linlithgowshire and is at the same address in the 1901 census, all the census's except the 1881 census puts their place of birth as ireland.

    Thomas bryce was born abt 1841 in ireland and there is no county written down to say where exactly he was born, he married mary hamilton on the 26 may 1867 at wilsontown, carnwath, lanarkshire, their daughter ellen bryce born 14 aug 1875 in kirkliston, linlithgowshire married my great grandfather  michael mcintyre on the 23 now 1893 at the church of the immaculate conception in bathgate, west lothian, scotland and she died on the  13 jan 1944 at 17 livery street, bathgate, west lothian, their son michael mcintyre my grand father was born in 1903 at crosscroes muiravonside, stirlingshire,scotland and married my grandmother ann mcmanus and their daughter ann was my mother born in bathgate, ii have a copy of thomas bryce's marriage certificate to mary hamilton and it gives their parents names on that the writting is quite difficult to read in parts and the part where it gives charles bryce's occupation is quite blurry but it looks like it says lammen properties or proprietors. I hope this is of some help to you, 

    annie

     

     

     

     

     

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    Wednesday 30th Apr 2014, 06:01PM
  • My father was Robert J.  McClay, his parents were Robert McLay and Cecelia McQuade, grandparents were Edward McLay and Elizabeth Duffy from 3 George Terrace, Blackburn Bathgate Scotland (1920s). I believe that Edward’s parents were Robert & Bridget Bryce McLay?? Not absolutely sure.

    Sunday 20th Oct 2019, 01:44AM

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