Roderick Gobha Murray (abt. 1793 - 1879)

Born about 1793 in Isle of Lewis, Ross-shire, Scotland

Ancestors

Husband of Margaret (Stewart) Murray — married 10 Nov 1827 in Stornoway, Ross-shire, Scotland, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 7 Oct 1879 at about age 86 in Dell, Milan, Frontenac, Lower Canada

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Biography

Roderick Murray migrated from Scotland to Canada.

Life and Times of Roderick Gobha Murray: A Journey from Scotland to Lower Canada

Roderick Gobha Murray (Ruairidh Alasdair Ghobha) was born about 1793 in Isle of Lewis, Scotland.^[1][2]

PAs a resident of Tolsta (Tholastaidh),^[3] Isle of Lewis, Ross-shire, Scotland, United Kingdom, on 10 Nov 1827, he married Margaret Stewart, resident of Coll, Argyll, Scotland, United Kingdom, at Stornoway, Ross-shire, Scotland, United Kingdom. ^[4]

In the 1851 Scotland Census, he is shown as a “small tenant” living in North Tolsta, Ross and Cromarty, Scotland, born 1799 in the Parish of Stornoway. His wife, Margaret and children are listed.^[5]

“Roderick and Margaret came from Tolsta (Tholastaidh), Isle of Lewis, Scotland in 1851 and settled in Whitton, Lower Canada.^[6][7] They arrived in Canada East in 1851 along with seven children. ^[8]

He died 7 Oct 1878 aged about 79 years, and was buried in Dell, Milan, Frontenac, Lower Canada. ^[9]

Children of Roderick Murray and Margaret Stewart

1. Malcolm Murray, b. abt. 1831, Scotland ^[10]
2. Mary Murray, b. abt. 1831, Scotland, age 20 ^[5]
3. Donald Murray, b. abt. 1833, Scotland, age 18 ^[5]
4. John Roderick Murray, b. abt. 1836, Scotland, age 15 ^[5]
5. Ann Murray, b. abt. 1839, Scotland, age12 ^[5]
6. Cathrin Murray, b. abt. 1844, Scotland, age 7 ^[5]
7. Christina Murray, b. abt. 1857, Scotland, age 4 ^[5]

Historical Context Shaping the Life of Roderick Gobha Murray

Bubonic Plague, the Black Death. One of the worst plagues in history arrived in Europe in 1347, leading to the deaths of 25 to 50 million people within five years. ^[11] The Great Plague of 1645 also decimated Edinburgh, leaving tens of thousands dead ^[12]

Witch Trials. The last execution for witchcraft took place in 1706. Over 1,500 persons, mostly women, were strangled and burned at the stake under the Scottish Witchcraft Act of 1563.

Wars and Unrest. From early times, Scotland was ravaged by wars of independence from England, monarchical succession, religion conflicts, clan feuds, and massacres. The Radical War of 1820, saw the British Government crush a Scottish uprising, executing its leaders.^[13]

Highland Clearances. From 1750 to 1860, in the Highland Clearances, landowners evicted thousands of tenants. The evictions were brutal, and old men and women, pregnant women, and children died from exposure to the elements. The surviving farmers were then transported to crofting communities, where they were forced to work in fishing, quarrying, or kelp industry.

Failure of the Kelp Market. Shore-dwelling crofters, reliant on a meager potato crop, were paid £2 per ton to produce kelp ash from seaweed. ^[14][15][16] However, the kelp market collapsed in 1827, causing mass depopulation. ^[17]

Highland Potato Famine. A potato blight beginning in 1846 caused a decade-long famine, leading to widespread malnutrition and poverty.^[18]

Forced Emigration from the Isle of Lewis. Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson, 1st Baronet, Member of Parliament,^[19] was co-founder of Jardine Matheson & Co., the largest trafficker of opium in China. In 1844, he invested more than £500,000 to purchase the Isle of Lewis and built Lews Castle, near Stornoway, “clearing more than 500 families off the land by arranging their emigration to Canada.” By 1855, he had provided free passage for 1,771 of his tenants.

“…they should be dispersed and absorbed among the general mass of the population [in Canada], as the best means of eradicating those habits of indolence and inertness to which their impoverished condition must in some measure be attributed…” Sir James Matheson, Proprietor of the Lews.^[20]

The Legend of An Gobha Gorm (The Blue Blacksmith)

The Legend of An Gobha Gorm (The Blue Blacksmith) revolves around a man named William Murray, who fled to Lewis in 1608 as a fugitive from justice, and set up shop in Swainbost, Ness. The name is common in the district of Ness, where many are known as "Gobha," indicating blacksmith ancestry. An Alexander Murray was said to be the seventh generation descended from the Gobha Gorm. The blacksmith had a mystical reputation, partly because he was the first in Lewis to use coal, instead of peat, for smithing. He earned his name either from a blue birthmark or a fire accident during his apprenticeship. One adventurous tale recounts a seal-hunting expedition gone awry, where the Gobha Gorm narrowly escaped being cannibalized thanks to a fortuitously caught young gannet. ^[21][22]

Research Notes

1. The Gaelic Name of Roderick Gobha Murray is “Ruairidh Alasdair Ghobha”^[7]
2. “Gobha,” means “blacksmith” in Scottish Gaelic^[23].

Sources

1. ↑ Lawson no. Q-134 b. ABT 1800, Tolsta (Tholastaidh), Isle of Lewis, Ross-shire, Scotland, United Kingdom d. 7 Oct 1879. bur. Dell Cem., Hampden Twp, Compton Co., PQ, CN BIOGRAPHY:
2. ↑ "1851 Scotland Census," database
   Parish: Stornoway; ED: 1; Page: 26; Line: 10; Roll: CSSCT1851_19; Year: 1851; Roll: CSSCT1851_19; Household schedule number: 87
   Ancestry Record 1076 #2775601 (accessed 2 October 2023)
   Rodk Murray (52), Small Tenant, head of household in North Tolsta, North Tolsta, Stornoway, Ross and Cromarty. Born in Parish of Stornoway.
3. ↑ https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/locations/1851
4. ↑ “National Records of Scotland.”10/11/1827 MURRAY, RODERICK (Old Parish Registers Marriages 088/20 340. Stornoway/ Page 340 of 431. Accessed March 30, 2022. https://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/images-pdf/OPR088_000_0020_0340Z. Media
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6} "1851 Scotland Census"
   Parish: Stornoway; ED: 1; Page: 26; Line: 10; Roll: CSSCT1851_19; Year: 1851
   Ancestry Record 1076 #2775601 (accessed 28 April 2022)
   Rodk Murray (52), Small Tenant, head of household in North Tolsta, North Tolsta, Stornoway, Ross and Cromarty. Born in Parish of Stornoway.
6. ↑ "Canada Emigrants," North Tolsta Historical Society, North Tolsta, and Isle of Lewis, Scotland, UK http://www.tolsta.info/index.php/canada
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Hebridean Connections https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/people/95169
8. ↑ "U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s"
   Place: Quebec, Canada; Year: 1851; Page Number: 32
   Ancestry Record 7486 #3621222 (accessed 30 April 2022)
9. ↑ Find a Grave (has image).
   Find A Grave: Memorial #84704717 (accessed 28 April 2022)
   Memorial page for Roderick Murray (1793-7 Oct 1879), citing Dell Cemetery, Dell, Estrie Region, Quebec, Canada; Maintained by Peter MacDonald (contributor 48019757).
10. ↑ "1841 Scotland Census"
    Parish: Stornoway; ED: 1; Page: 16; Line: 965; Year: 1841
    Ancestry Record 1004 #589834 (accessed 28 April 2022)
    Malcolm Murray (10) in North Tolsta, Stornoway, Ross and Cromarty. Born in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland.
11. ↑ https://www.history.com/.amp/news/black-death-timeline
12. ↑ https://www.scotsman.com/news/lost-edinburgh-great-plague-1645-1541562?amp
13. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Wilson_(revolutionary)
14. ↑ https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/stories-reports-and-traditions/40710
15. ↑ “The Kelp Industry in the High-Lands and Islands - JSTOR.” Accessed April 3, 2022. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2599122.
16. ↑ Archaeology, Current. “Sifting through the Remains of Scotland's Kelping Industry.”The Past, November 5, 2020. https://the-past.com/feature/sifting-through-the-remains-of-scotlands-kelping-industry/.
17. ↑ “Journal: The History of Scotland's Kelp Industry.” Snapdragon Life. Accessed April 3, 2022. https://www.snapdragonlife.com/news/blog/the-history-of-scotlands-kelp-industry/.
18. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highland_Potato_Famine
19. ↑ Wikipedia: James Matheson| Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson
20. ↑ “Hebridean Connections.” Letter from Sir James Matheson | Hebridean Connections. Accessed April 13, 2022. https://www.hebrideanconnections.com/stories-reports-and-traditions/49142.
21. ↑ Matheson, William. “The Pape Riot and its Sequel in Lewis.” In Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness, vol. XLVIII, 1972-1974. Clann nan Gàidheal ri Guaillean a Chéile. Inverness, Scotland: The Highland Herald Ltd. (1976). pp. 395-434, https://www.ambaile.org.uk/coo/user/assets/155/46300.pdf.
22. ↑ Gordon, Robert, Sir. “Genealogical history of the Earldom of Sutherland from its origin to the year 1630. With a continuation to the year 1651.” Edinburgh: A. Constable, (1813), pp. 256-8, https://archive.org/details/genealogicalhist00gord/page/256/mode/1up?q=Pape
23. ↑ https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/gobha

See also:

• MURRAY CLAN DNA RESEARCH PROJECT, https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/murray/about
• North Tolsta Historical Society, http://www.tolsta.info/index.php/canada