The Nine Children of Henry and Mary (McLean) Naysmith - Part 1: Alexander

Checking through the many Naysmith family trees that are now available online, it's clear that there have been some errors in research, and these have been perpetuated by others copying information presuming it to be accurate.  Also, with overwhelming lack of originality in the choice of first names (and repetition of names within the same generation)  dates, names and photos have easily become mixed or merged.  My aim is to clarify information so that you can update your own tree with accurate information.   

All details will be referenced with evidence, or any speculation will be clearly acknowledged. Please feel free to advise of any other evidence or records that could support or improve any information given below.  If these are your ancestors and you have any photos or information to share, that would be wonderful. 

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There's two sources of evidence that Henry and Mary Naysmith (Duchess of Argyle, 1842) had nine children who lived at least until their parents' death. 

Henry's death certificate (see this blog post) clearly states that, at the time of his death (10th December 1880) he had 9 living issue: 5 males and 4 females (ages not given). This information was probably given by wife Mary or one of those 9 living issue, so its accuracy can presumed to be reliable. Henry's given age at his death (62) suggests his year of birth as 1818 - give or take a year, although his age on the Duchess of Argyle passenger list is 34, which would give 1808 as his year of birth. This could be an error in the transcription and the original would need to be seen for confirmation. The 1841 Census  gives Henry's age as 20, but ages were generally rounded down to the nearest multiple of 5 for anyone over 15. This suggests the 1818 year of birth is credible. I can find no other evidence of any year of birth. In fact, I can find no evidence of his birth at all - although there are parish records of three other births to his parents James and Isabella (Steel) - with many variants of spelling. 

Mary Naysmith (born McLean) died on 18th October 1892 (aged 78), and in her obituary, it also refers to 9 adult children - 5 sons and 4 daughters. This information can be expected to be reliable as it matches Henry's and would have also been given by the family. Mary's  age recorded at her death fits in with her age on the Duchess of Argyle passenger list, giving her year of birth as 1814 - give or take a year. The 1841 Census gives Mary's age at 21, but may have rounded down as Henry's probably was.  

 

So, who were these nine living issue of Henry Naysmith and Mary Mclean? 

1. Alexander Naysmith 

- born Scotland 1841 (from Find a Grave) 

- married Caroline Lowe (born Everest) 1877 (NZBDM 1877/2452)

- died 12 May, 1901 

Alexander Naysmith was Henry and Mary's first-born child and the only one of their children to be born in Scotland.  I can find no parish record  or any other official record of Alexander's birth or baptism. Alexander appears in the 1841 census which indicates he was born in Renfrewshire, and from this it can be deduced that he was possibly born as early as August 1840. 

 The next confirmation of Alexander's existence is his name  and age on the passenger list of the Duchess of Argyle: Alexander Naysmith, age 1, indicating his year of birth was c.1841. Alexander's death on 12th May, 1901, is recorded in NZ Births, Deaths and Marriages (NZBDM 1901/7630). From cemetery details at findagrave.com  his age at death is given as 60, which confirms about 1841 as his year of birth.  Alexander's obituary (Wanganui Herald) gives the information that he was an old gold miner at Ballarat and the West Coast. This is the only evidence I can find that he went to Australia. 

Alexander married Caroline Lowe (born Everest) in 1877. (NZBDM 1877/2452) when he would have been about 34 years old. 

Caroline came to NZ aged 17, on the ship Oliver Laing.  This information is from her obituary published in the New Zealand Times and probably supplied by her family, so it can be presumed to be accurate. From the ship's passenger list, it can be seen that she must have travelled on her own - or without her parents. Note that there is also a Mr and Mrs Thomas Lowe with 2 sons and a daughter on the same voyage. 

Alexander was Caroline's second husband, her first being Thomas William Lowe in 1862 (NZBDM 62/391). It can be presumed that he died, but there is no record of it in NZBDM. I wonder if her first husband was one of the sons of Mr and Mrs Thomas Lowe on Oliver Laing?  There are online records available for several females called Caroline Everest of a similar age, and I have no evidence to confirm if any of them are this Caroline's. Yet. 

Caroline died on 29th  May,1908 (NZBDM 1908/3843) and is buried at Greytown. From her burial records, her age was recorded as 65 years, and  her year of  birth year at 1843, in England. 

Details from the Greytown Cemetery Records

From Billion Graves 

From Billion Graves 

Like many other early colonial arrivals, including his father Henry,  Alexander appears to have been a labourer or physical worker all his life.   

Alexander and Caroline had 3 children together:

Mary Elizabeth Naysmith was Alexander and Caroline's firstborn, born Greytown1878 (NZBDM 1878/4385). Known as Lizzie (See death notice below).  She married John Watt Mcleod in 1901 (NZBDM 1901/153 - note her surname transcribed as Waysmith in NZBDM marriage record). John was at various times a saw mill employee, a driver and a carter (from electoral rolls) in  Ngaruawahia  and Auckland. He died on 5th September, 1949, and Mary Elizabeth died on 5th December, 1954 (NZBDM 1954/34897). They are both  buried in Waikumete Cemetery.   

Mary Elizabeth (Lizzie) born Naysmith and John Watt McLeod.
Photo supplied by Sylvia (Mcleod) Wray. 

 Mary Elizabeth Naysmith and John Watt McLeod had at least four children: 

- John Everest born 1902 (NZBDM 1902/2365) died 1903, aged 12 months (NZBDM 1903/3021). Family Search gives place of birth as Martinborough, but sadly,  I can find no other reference to him anywhere - including family trees. How sad that no one knows of baby John Everest, and what sadness must Lizzie and John have carried as they waited another year for their next child. 

 

- Thomas Arthur Mcleod born1904 in Martinborough (NZBDM 1904/7253) married Reta Doreen Roseman in 1930 (NZBDM 1930/7975). Rita was born in Auckland 2nd December1907 (NZBDM 1907/1548 - note name is written as Rita). Thomas Arthur was a draughtsman and in 1942 was living in Mt Eden (NZ Ballot Lists 1940-45.) He died 9th July 1981 and is buried at Purewa Cemetery. (Find a Grave.) Rita died 11th July 1969 and is also buried at Purewa. (NZBDM 47638), (Find a Grave). 

 

- Alexander Cyril Mcleod was born in Martinborough on 14th September 1905 (NZBDM 1905/18453). He married Florence Anderson in 1939 (NZBDM 1939/11246). Alexander Cyril died in 1979 (NZBDM 1979/27825). I have found no record for the birth or death of Florence, or any further information about either of them. 

 

- George McLeod born 1918 - a bit of a delay after Alexander Cyril's birth in 1905. Interestingly, in NZBDM births, George McLeod - son of Mary Elizabeth and John McLeod - has a registration number of NZBDM 1930/3975. This must be a transcription error - especially as it is outside the 100 year delay of birth records. George died in 1991, and his death registration (NZBDM 1991/42757) confirms his date of birth as 15 May 1918.  In a family tree search (ancestry.com) I found him in several trees, but in all of them he was an addition to someone else's tree rather than a direct descendant, and in most Naysmith trees, he showed no spouse or descendants. Descendants would probably still be living, so that could explain that point.   In one tree I found him married in 1943 to Dorothy Muriel Hankins, born 1918 (NZBDM 1919/14033), but there's an 80-year gap on NZBDM marriage details online, so I can't prove it and can find no other evidence in Papers Past. There were two private children listed under George and Dorothy Muriel's names. Dorothy Muriel died in 1996 (NZBDM 1996/57295). I can find no burial records for them. 

Alexander and Caroline's second child, and only son, David Alexander "Alex" Naysmith was born in Woodside, Greytown,1880 (NZBDM 1880/8084). He appears to have never married, and died on 17th July 1945, aged 64 (from cemetery records). He is buried in Waikumete Cemetery. 

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 168, 18 July 1945, Page 1

Alexander and Caroline's third child was Amy Catherine Naysmith born Greytown 1883 (NZBDM 1883/1960 - note name is spelled Amy Katherine on NZBDM). She married George Joseph Walker in 1915. He was a carrier / carter based in Auckland (electoral rolls).  George Joseph died on 30th November 1955  age 55. Amy Catherine died 29th March 1960, aged 76. They are both buried in Waikumete cemetery. (Find a Grave).  

Amy Catherine Naysmith and George Joseph Walker had at least 2 children. 

 Ivan George Walker was born 12th August 1915 (NZBDM 1915/12189) and died 22nd May 1983 (NZBDM 1983/44604).  He was a carrier. He married Evelyn Mabel (Unknown surname) who was born 20th July 1922 and died in 2014 (NZBDM  2014/19602). They are buried in Catholic  section of Waikumete Cemetery. 

Waikumete Cemetery - Source: flickr 

Unnamed baby - stillborn 1918 (NZBDM 1918/21659) Buried at Waikumete (Find a Grave)     No gender is given, and some family trees don't give an option for "unknown" so you may have to choose one and add a note if you want to include baby Walker in your tree.  Sad to have been forgotten for all these years - but never by its parents, I imagine. Baby is not buried in in the same plot as its parents. . 

So, there are some details on the births, deaths and marriages of  the oldest of Henry and Mary Naysmith (born McLean)'s first-born child, Alexander.  

Use these to update your family tree or to confirm the information you may already have.  If any of these are your ancestors, it would be great to have you join us on the Naysmiths of New Zealand Facebook page. We don't seem to have discovered any of Alexander and Caroline's descendants yet. Please feel free to let me know (through the comments or email options) if  there are any errors or omissions.