Alexander Baird Sr (1765 - 1833)

Born 12 May 1765 in Old Monkland, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Ancestors

Husband of Jean Moffat — married 2 Aug 1794 in Old Monkland, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Descendants

Died 23 Dec 1833 at age 68 in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom

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Biography

Alexander Baird was born in 1765 at the Woodhead farm in Old Monkland ^[1]

Alexander was well educated and in 1785 he became the sub-tenant of Woodhead and entered into a lease of the lands for 19 years. ^[1] Alexander married Jean Moffat on 2 Aug 1764 in Old Monkland. ^[2]

Alexander died 23 Dec 1833 in Coatbridge. He is buried in the Old Monkland Cemetery. ^[3]

Research Notes

A very nicely written summary of the family's firm starts with this information and includes additional detail that one might find useful in further research of this family. "Alexander Baird was a tenant farmer in Old Monkland who in the early 19th century expanded his interests into operating coal mines, aided by his sons. In 1828, they obtained some land at Gartsherrie, near Coatbridge, for the purpose of building a pig iron manufacturing works. In 1830, five of the sons, William, Alexander, James, Douglas and George formally created the partnership William Baird & Company, under the nominal leadership of William Baird, the eldest son. Henceforth this partnership ran the Baird's industrial concerns. The same year Gartsherrie Ironworks' first blast furnace commenced production. Employing adept and occasionally ruthless business practices in addition to many of the most innovative iron smelting procedures, Gartsherrie soon became the biggest ironworks in Scotland and a world leader during the middle decades of the 19th century. William Baird & Co expanded throughout the century, operating ironworks, coal mines, iron mines, ore terminals both in Scotland and elsewhere..." ^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Macgeorge, Andrew. The Bairds of Gartsherrie: With Notices of Their Origin and History. Glasgow: [Privately printed], 1875. (National Library of Scotland . History of Scottish families digital series), available as online digital resource https://digital.nls.uk/histories-of-scottish-families/archive/95673915 (accessed 4 Aug 2023) p. 27.
2. ↑ "Scotland Marriages, 1561-1910", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XTT7-PY5 : 11 February 2020)(accessed 28 Sept 2023), Alexander Baird, 1794.
3. ↑ "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVPS-6Y14 : 20 October 2022), Alexander Baird, ; Burial, Coatbridge, , North Lanarkshire, Scotland, Old Monkland Cemetery; citing record ID 135204718, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
4. ↑ "North Lanarkshire Archives - List of Collections" (https://culturenl.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/North-Lanarkshire-Archives-List-of-Collections.pdf)(accessed 28 Sept 2023); U8 Records of William Baird & Co Ltd, iron founders, Gartsherrie; page 64.