Agnes Shaw Young

Anne O'Leary contacted me via this blog to say that she was related to Agnes Shaw. She had some papers that had been inherited from her grandmother, a daughter of Agnes Shaw. One of these papers was a note probably written by Agnes Shaw, possibly over a period of several years. This note lists the birth and death dates of her siblings, including herself. The list begins with the name Joseph Shaw, Stand 1846, which most likely refers to the date that her father and mother set up home at Stand Farm. The list is very useful as it gives birth dates for siblings that were born before statutory registration.

Over the years I have changed the order of some of the siblings, in particular 'grandpa' James Shaw, (where I started). It now appears that he was born on 17 December 1847 while the 'original' Agnes Shaw was born on 8 November 1846. She died, aged 8, on 4 December 1854. Her namesake, Agnes Shaw Young was the seventh child of thirteen and she was born 21 January 1856.

After her father Joseph Shaw died, Agnes probably became a housekeeper to William Young in East Kilbride. His wife had died a few years earlier, leaving a family of six children.

Amongst the papers that Anne O'Leary inherited is a letter to her mother Agnes Waugh Shaw at Carrickstone on 26 November 1884 following her marriage to William at Carrickstone on 31 October 1884. In her letter she asks about (her sisters?) Jeanie and Janet and their babies. A visit to James ('grandpa' James Shaw?) is also mentioned. One curious comment in the letter is a reference to 'tomorrow' (27 November 1884) being their 'fast day'.

Information from the 1881 Census would suggest that Agnes Shaw had married into a family of chemists or 'gum makers', possibly run by three brothers. One of these lists his business as employing '27 men and a boy'.

Agnes Shaw went on to have six children of her own with William Young. One of them, Margaret Whitecross Young was born at Ramoan. Anne O'Leary believes that she was one of the family members present during the visit of Fr. Donald Shaw.