Peasants to Puddles - My Family History

Peasants to Puddles
My Family History - By Nicky Rowberry

The Saidlers

Thomas Saidler (or Saddler) was the "reputed" father of my 2 x great grandmother Jane/Jean Saddler who was born in 1844 in Crawfordjohn, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Her baptism entry reads that she is Jean, the natural daughter of Jean Colthart and Thomas Saddler (Saidler).

Baptism record for Jane or Jean Saddler

Since Thomas never married Jean, I have very little to go on to identify him, but fortunately there weren't too many Thomas Saddlers in Scotland at the time. The most likely one based on age and proximity was Thomas Saddler or Saidler born 1824 in Wiston. I've not found any evidence that he kept in touch with his illegitimate daughter Jane, but I hope he did. A recent DNA test has confirmed that I am related to at least one other descendant of this Thomas Saidler, confirming he was indeed the father of my Jane.

Jane Saddler married William Johnstone in 1869. You can read more about the Johnstones here. I believe (but cannot be sure) that the photo below is of Jane Saddler with her daughter Grace Johnstone - it's definitely Grace, but I can't be 100% sure it's Jane.

Grace Taylor McKersie Johnstone (born 1877) and possibly her mother Jane Saddler

Thomas Saidler was the illegitimate son of another Thomas Saidler and Grizel Watson. The Kirk Sessions from 1824 include a rebuke of the couple for "fornication". It looks like Grizel was a servant at the farm.

Kirk Sessions 1824 Wiston & Robertson

Thomas Saidler senior subsquently married Elizabeth Weir and had a large family on a farm at Greenhills in Wiston, Lanarkshire. Although Thomas junior was illegitimate, his father seems to have acknowledged him and he was raised by the family. The 1841 census shows him living with his father and stepmother and younger half siblings at Greenhill in Wiston.

Jane Saddler's "reputed" father Thomas Saddler or Saidler went on to marry Christina Moffat and have a family of 7 children, who would all have been half-siblings of my Jane. I've no idea whether the two halves of the family stayed in touch, or whether the other children even knew about Jane. The beautiful sampler (below) was stitched by one of Jane's half-sisters - Elizabeth Saidler. Elizabeth lists her parents and all her siblings in order of birth by their initials, but she does not include Jane. Many thanks to John Paton for sharing the image of this sampler.

Sampler stitched in 1877 by Elizabeth Saidler. Image courtesy of John Paton

The Saidler family suffered greatly in WW1, losing 3 of their sons. You can read their stories by clicking the links at the bottom of the page.

The family tree below summarises what I know about the Saidler family. It is hopefully reasonably accurate, but if you spot any errors, or any relatives, please feel free to E-mail me

Please click on one of the red links on the tree to move to a different page.

Saidler Family Tree

Saidler Family Tree Part 2

Wood and Brown Family Tree

If any of the above is of further interest, please feel free to contact me at: n.rowberry@btinternet.com

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Peasants to Puddles - My Family History. By Nicky Rowberry