Jay, I have been dabbling in it for many years although only got seriously into it after I moved to Ayrshire as my father's mother's grandparents had lived in Prestwick and Monkton before moving to Glasgow in 1861. I found her grandfather to be a fascinating character and followed his life as closely as I could - he had a number of jobs and at one time was the librarian at Monkton and was mentioned in just about every page of the Monkton Library records from 1839 till 1857. He is mentioned in Strawhorn's history of Prestwick, (not by name), as the first dealer in kail and potatoes in Ayrshire in the Monkton 1851 census. Her grandmothers side of the family were even more interesting as they were Freemen of Prestwick - according to local tradition the Freedoms were granted by Bruce after Bannockburn for services rendered - in any event the Charter was renewed in the 1600s by King James. The records in the local archives proved a goldmine and I have lost count of the fascinating bits and pieces I found about this side of the family over many years of research.
The local graveyards have been well preserved in the past and it is a strange feeling to nip in and place your hands on a gravestone below which the occupants, (my ancestors), who were born in the 1700s now reside.


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