Person:Mary Robson (19)

Mary Robson was born in about 1826 at Kelso in Roxbughshire. She was the eldest daughter of Sydney Brown and her husband James Robson, a plumber.

By the time of the 1841 census Mary had left home, and was working as a servant at Harrietfield, a farm a couple of miles north of Kelso, but just over the border into the neighbouring county of Berwickshire. Her parents and siblings at the time were living on the street called Horsemarket in the centre of Kelso.

When Mary was in her early twenties, she married a man called Alexander Scott, who was originally from Fowlis Wester in Perthshire, but had moved south to take up the post of Master Gardener at Ladykirk House in Berwickshire, right on the border with England. Alexander and Mary’s marriage was an irregular border marriage, carried out on 5th November 1848 at Lamberton Toll in the parish of Mordington, Berwickshire. Lamberton Toll was a popular marriage location for English couples wishing to marry under the more relaxed Scottish marriage laws, as it was the first building reached in Scotland on the main road north out of Berwick. As Alexander and Mary were both Scottish they must have seen it as being the last building in Scotland before crossing into England.

Mary and Alexander lived for many years in the Gardener’s House on the Ladykirk estate, appearing there in each census from 1851 to 1881. The Gardener’s House was described as having six rooms with windows, so the family was fairly comfortably accommodated for the time. In both the 1851 and 1861 censuses Mary’s younger sister Margaret was living with them.

Mary and Alexander appear to have had eleven children, although their first two children (a boy and a girl) died in infancy - their existence is only known from their fourth child’s birth certificate of 1855, which says that the couple had one daughter still living and one son and one daughter who had died.

Alexander was very involved with the local horticultural society, frequently winning prizes at exhibitions in the nearby town of Coldstream for the flowers, fruits and vegetables hew grew.

Ladykirk House was the home of David and Marianne-Sarah Robertson. The house had belonged to her mother’s family, and David had changed his name from Marjoribanks to Marianne’s mother’s maiden name of Robertson when they married so that she would be allowed to inherit the house. David worked as a stockbroker. In 1857 he was the Whig candidate for Berwickshire at the general election, but he lost to his Conservative rival. Two years later, at the 1859 general election, David successfully won the seat for the Liberal party.

Mary’s eldest daughter married at the Gardener’s House at Ladykirk in 1871, and Mary’s first grandchild was born the following year.

In June 1873 David Robertson was made a lord, becoming Baron Marjoribanks. He was ennobled on 13th June, but six days later he was knocked down by a horse-drawn bus outside his club in Newcastle and died.

Back in Kelso, Mary’s father died in 1879 and her mother died in 1882.

In 1883 Mary’s daughter Margaret died, aged 26.

On 2nd August 1889, Mary’s youngest daughter was married at Ladykirk Gardens. A couple of weeks later, on 19th August 1889, Ladykirk’s owner, Lady Marjoribanks, died. The Ladykirk estate passed to her daughters, who promptly set about letting out the gardens. Notices were placed in local newspapers on 30th August advertising the gardens and various servants’ cottages to let, including the Gardener’s House. Alexander’s name was given as the person who would show the estate to prospective tenants. Mary and Alexander therefore left the Ladykirk estate after living there for over forty years.

In 1890 Mary’s youngest daughter, who had married the previous year, died aged 24.

The 1891 census finds Mary and Alexander living in a two roomed cottage at Norham in Northumberland, England, just over the River Tweed from Ladykirk. Alexander died at Norham on 19th March 1893, aged 73. Three years after Alexander’s death, Mary was granted administration of his estate, which was valued at £200 18s 10d. Why she left it three years after his death before securing administration is unclear.

At the end of her life, Mary moved in with her son Charles, who had settled in Kelso, Roxburghshire - coincidentally where Mary had been born. Therefore, whilst she had spent most of her adult life living at Ladykirk and Norham, she died in the town where she had been born, on 3rd August 1899. She was about 73 years old.

1. ↑ General Register Office for Scotland. 1841 Scotland Census. (Edinburgh)
   753/3/1, 6 Jun 1841.

   Address: Harrietfield, Nenthorn, Berwickshire
   John Rutherford, male, 30 [1806-11], Ag[ricultural] Lab[ourer], born in county
   Elizabeth Rutherford, female, 30 [1806-11], born in county
   John Rutherford, male, 8 [1832/3], born in county
   Janet Rutherford, female, 6 [1834/5], born in county
   George Rutherford, male, 3 [1837/8], born in county
   William Rutherford, male, 1 [1839/40], born in county
   Mary Robson, female, 15 [1821-6], F[emale] S[ervant], not born in county

2. ↑ ^2.0 2.1 General Register Office for Scotland. 1851 Scotland Census. (Edinburgh)
   746/00 001/00 005, 30 Mar 1851.

   Address: Gardeners house of Ladykirk house, Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Alexander Scott, head, married, male, 30 [1820/1], Gardener Master employing 4 men, b. Fowlis Wester, Perthshire
   Mary Scott, wife, married, female, 24 [1826/7], b. Kelso, Roxburghshire
   Margaret Robson, sister in law, unmarried, female, 15 [1835/6], House servant, b. Kelso, Roxburghshire

3. ↑ General Register Office for Scotland. 1861 Scotland Census. (Edinburgh)
   746/00 001/00 024, 7 Apr 1861.

   Address: Ladykirk Gardens, Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   6 rooms with one or more windows
   1 child in this household attending school
   Alexander Scott, head, married, male, 41 [1819/20], Master gardener, b. Fowlis Wester, Perthshire
   Mary Scott, wife, married, female, 34 [1826/7], Gardener’s wife, b. Kelso, Roxburghshire
   Sidney Scott, daughter, female, 8 [1852/3], Scholar, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   William Scott, son, male, 6 [1854/5], Gardener’s son, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Margaret Scott, daughter, female, 4 [1856/7], Gardener’s dau[ghte]r, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Mary Ann Scott, daughter, female, 2 [1858/9], Gardeners’ dau[ghte]r, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   James R. Scott, son, male, 1m [1861], Gardener’s son, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Margaret Robson, sister in law, unmarried, female, 25 [1835/6], Dressmaker, b. Kelso, Roxburghshire

4. ↑ General Register Office for Scotland. 1871 Scotland Census. (Edinburgh)
   746/00 001/00 005, 2 Apr 1871.

   Address: Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   3 children in household in education
   6 rooms with one or more windows
   Alexander Scott, head, married, male, 51 [1819/20], Master gardener, b. Fowlis Wester, Perthshire
   Mary Scott, wife, married, female, 44 [1826/7], Gardeners wife, b. Kelso, Roxburghshire
   William Scott, son, unmarried, male, 16 [1854/5], Apprentice gardener, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Margaret Scott, daughter, unmarried, female, 14 [1856/7], Gardeners daughter, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Maryan Scott, daughter, unmarried, female, 12 [1858/9], Scholar, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   James Scott, son, unmarried, male, 10 [1860/1], Scholar, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Charles Scott, son, unmarried, male, 8 [1862/3], Scholar, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Elisabeth Scott, daughter, unmarried, female, 5 [1865/6], Gardeners dau[ghter], b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   John Scott, son, unmarried, male, 4 [1866/7], Gardeners son, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Robert Scott, son, unmarried, male, 11m [1870], Gardeners son, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire

5. ↑ General Register Office for Scotland. 1881 Scotland Census. (Edinburgh)
   746/00 001/00 018, 3 Apr 1881.

   Address: Private House, Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   6 rooms with one or more windows
   Alexander Scott, head, married, male, 61 [1819/20], Gardener (domestic serv[ant]), b. Fowlis Wester, Perthshire
   Mary Scott, wife, married, female, 53 [1827/8], Gardener wife, b. Kelso, Roxburghshire
   Margaret Scott, daughter, unmarried, female, 24 [1856/7], Gardener dau[ghte]r, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   John Scott, son, male, 13 [1867/8], Gardener apprentice, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire
   Robert Scott, son, male, 10 [1870/1], Scholar, b. Ladykirk, Berwickshire

6. ↑ England. 1891 Census Schedules for England and Wales, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. (
   Kew, Richmond, Greater London TW9 4DU, United Kingdom:
   The National Archives (abbreviated TNA), formerly the UK General Register Office.)
   Class RG12; Piece 4269; Folio 112; Page 5, 5 Apr 1891.

   Address: Norham, Northumberland
   2 rooms occupied
   Alexander Scott, head, married, male, 71 [1819/20], Retired gardener, b. Scotland
   Mary Scott, wife, married, female, 64 [1826/7], b. Scotland

7. ↑ Deaths register, in General Register Office for Scotland. Civil Registration.

   1899. DEATHS in the Parish of Kelso in the County of Roxburgh
   No.39
   Name: Mary Scott, widow of Alexander Scott, gardener
   Died: 1889 August Third, 8h45min AM, 15 Miller Yard, Kelso
   Sex: F[emale]
   Age: 74 years [1824/5]
   Father: James Robson, Plumber (Deceased)
   Mother: Sydney Robson MS Milrose (Deceased)
   Cause: Cancer Facial and abdominal as Cert[ified] by Thomas Rutherford M.B.C.M.
   Informant: Charles Scott, son, present
   Registered: 1899 August 3rd at Kelso, Adam Riddell, Assist[ant] Registrar

   Mary’s death certificate gives her parents as James Robson, Plumber (Deceased) and Sydney Robson, maiden surname Milrose. No such couple has been found. However, there was a plumber called James Robson who married Sydney Brown in Kelso in 1825. This couple appear in the censuses with various children born in Kelso. Whilst Mary never appears in the censuses with this couple, there is a Margaret Robson who appears with the couple aged 5 in 1841, then appears at Ladykirk as Mary’s sister (technically as Alexander’s sister-in-law) in 1851 and 1861. Therefore, we conclude that the informant for Mary’s death simply made a mistake on Sydney’s maiden name. Sydney's sister Rabina had married a man called George Melrose, which may explain the origin of the incorrect name.

8. ↑ No birth or baptism record has been found for Mary, but it is worth noting that when her parents married in September 1825 they were recorded as having been married by the minister of the Antiburgher meeting, one of Kelso’s non-conformist churches. No baptism registers from this church appear to have survived from this period.