William Hunter (bef. 1746 - aft. 1797)

Born before 15 Jan 1746 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland [uncertain]

Husband of Janet (Gray) Hunter — married 27 Dec 1776 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland

Descendants

Died after 1797 after age 50 in Scotland

Problems/Questions Profile manager: T Gibson [send private message]

Biography

William was born in Scotland, likely to Adam Hunter. He married Janet Grey in 1776 in Gordon, Berwickshire.^[1][2] They had at least two sons, Robert in 1790 and Andrew in 1797.

Research Notes

The following is an attempt to figure out William and Janet's children. It is written as I went along and not back-edited to show my thought process.

Children

There are multiple children born to a William Hunter in Gordon around this time, however some are born before William and Janet were married (likely to William Hunter and Elizabeth Nicholson who were married in Gordon in 1771^[3]):

• Helen, 1772^[4]
• Isabel, 1774^[5]

William and Janet were now married in Gordon after this point.

• Adam, 1777^[6]
• James, 1778^[7]
• Agnes, 1782^[8]
• Robert, 1782^[9] (if this is the same family, he may have died 1787^[10] which is why Robert was reused for the child in 1790)
• Betty, 1785^[11]
• William, 1785^[12]

There are two sons to William and Janet:

• Andrew, bap. 1797 in Lauder, Berwickshire^[13]
• Robert, 1790^[14] This is the Robert who married Elizabeth Little because his death record says he is the son of William and Janet.^[15]

These baptisms are the only children born to William Hunter in Gordon from 1770 to 1800, until 1817 which lists the mother^[16]. If there are two William Hunters in Gordon, they both have small families. Andrew is also the only one in Lauder, so this William didn't move there and have more children.

Parents

He may have been the William Hunter who was born to George Hunter in Gordon, 1753.^[17] The only theory I have seen on the internet is that William is George's son. Gibson-Wilhelm-1 02:24, 17 May 2023 (UTC)

There is this William Hunter, also son of one George Hunter, baptised in 1761 in Gordon.^[18]

There are other William Hunters born around ~1750 in Berwick:

1. William, born in 1731 in Gordon to John Hunter^[19]
2. William, born 1746 in Gordon to Adam Hunter^[20]
3. William born in 1752 in Greenlaw (not Gordon), to James and Janet Lawrie^[21]

The below research suggests this William is the son of Adam Hunter.

First Attempt at Children

Attempt at sorting out of the different Williams below. Note that this is assumed using the Scottish naming pattern of naming children after certain family members. The naming order is put in round brackets after the name so you don't have to keep switching back to the Naming Pattern WikiTree Space.

William Hunter who married Elizabeth Nicholson:

• Helen, 1772 (named after maternal grandma)
• Isabel, 1774 (paternal grandma)
• James, 1778 (named after paternal grandpa)
• Betty, 1785 (named after mother)

This would leave the following children to William and Janet Gray:

• Adam, 1777 (paternal grandpa)
• Agnes, 1782 [see Janet's profile for potential parents, this would work if her mother was in fact Agnes Jaffrey] (maternal grandma)
• Robert, 1782, d 1787 [these two baptism dates could be reconsiled with the gap between Adam and Agnes - she wasn't registered or baptised at birth, but as a toddler] (maternal grandpa)
• William, 1785 [potentially] (father)
• Robert, 1790 (re-use of name or another uncle)
• Andrew, 1797 (uncle)

The naming conventions for this family is damaged at Robert (1782)'s birth if Janet's parents are William and Agnes Jaffrey - Robert should've been named William if he was named after the maternal grandfather. There are currently three men in Gordon who had children with the name Janet: Adam, William, and Peter. None of these are Robert. Robert could've been named after someone else, and not the grandfather.

It doesn't quite work for the William and Elizabeth family - Isabel should be Janet, technically, after Janet Lawrie if that's his correct mother. There is a William Hunter born in Dumfriesshire, 1733 to James Hunter and Isabel Marshall.^[22] That would make the pattern make sense.

However Elizabeth Nicholson, if born in Gordon, may be the daughter of Robert Nicholson (no mother named) born in 1744.^[23] That means Robert Hunter born in 1782 and died 1787 may not be William and Janet Gray's son, but Eizabeth Nicholson's, named after her father (maternal grandpa). She might be Robert Hunter and Helen Taylor's^[24] first born child.

Second Attempt at Children

If the above was true, then the children would be as followed (assuming no children are missing):

William Hunter (now son of James Hunter and Isabel Marshall) and Elizabeth Nicholson (dau. of Robert Nicolson):

• Helen, 1772 (maternal grandma)
• Isabel, 1774 (paternal grandma)
• James, 1777 (paternal grandpa)
• Robert, 1782 (maternal grandpa)

William Hunter (son of Adam Hunter?) and Janet Gray (dau. of William Gray and Agnes Jaffrey):

• Adam, 1777 (paternal grandpa)
• Agnes, 1782 (maternal grandma)
• William, 1785 (maternal grandpa)
• Robert, 1790 (father or someone else)
• Andrew, 1797 (uncle)

Considering William (1785) is likely named after Janet's father William, they seem to have chosen the name Robert to avoid having three Williams in one family.

Sources

1. ↑ Marriage: "Scotland Marriages, 1561-1910", database
   FamilySearch Record: XTLC-SJB (accessed 17 May 2023)
   William Hunter marriage to Janet Gray on 27 Dec 1776 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
2. ↑ Marriage: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Banns and Marriages", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/76; Frame: 1117
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Janet Gray marriage to William Hunter on or after 27 Dec 1776 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
3. ↑ Marriage: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Banns and Marriages", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/43; Frame: 1086
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 9 June 2023)
   William Hunter marriage to Elizabeth Nicolson on or after 15 Jun 1771 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
4. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/47
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Helen Hunter born or baptised on 17 May 1772, daughter of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
5. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/60
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Isabel Hunter born or baptised on 4 Sep 1774, daughter of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
6. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/81
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Adam Hunter born or baptised on 7 Dec 1777, son of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
7. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/87
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   James Hunter born or baptised on 27 Dec 1778, son of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
8. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/104
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Agnes Hunter born or baptised on 6 Jan 1782, daughter of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
9. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
   National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/105
   ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
   Robert Hunter born or baptised on 10 Mar 1782, son of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
10. ↑ Death or Burial: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Deaths and Burials", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/149
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
    Robert Hunter death or burial on 5 Jul 1787 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
11. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/128
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
    Betty Hunter born or baptised on 29 Apr 1785, daughter of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
12. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/128
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
    William Hunter born or baptised on 29 Apr 1785, son of William Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
13. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 748; Ref: 20/208; Frame: 354
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
    Andrew Hunter born or baptised on 16 Sep 1797, son of William Hunter & Janet Gray, in Lauder, Berwickshire, Scotland.
14. ↑ Baptism of son Robert Hunter: "Scotland Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950", database
    FamilySearch Record: XYW6-94Z (accessed 17 May 2023)
    William Hunter's son Robert Hunter baptism on 13 Jun 1790 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
15. ↑ ScotlandsPeople, death. Robert Hunter, married. Died age 78, son of William Hunter and Janet nee Gray. July 23, 1870. Media
16. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 40/314; Frame: 1357
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 17 May 2023)
    James Hunter born or baptised on 18 May 1817, son of William Hunter & Margaret White, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
17. ↑ Baptism: "Scotland Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950", database
    FamilySearch Record: XTB3-F9K (accessed 17 May 2023)
    William Hunter baptism on 19 Feb 1753, son of George Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
18. ↑ Baptism of son William Hunter: "Scotland Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950", database
    FamilySearch Record: XTB3-6H4 (accessed 17 May 2023)
    George Hunter's son William Hunter baptism on 21 Jun 1761 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
19. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 30/62
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 15 November 2023)
    William Hunter born or baptised on 7 Nov 1731, son of John Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
20. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 30/187
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 15 November 2023)
    William Hunter born or baptised on 15 Jan 1746, son of Adam Hunter, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
21. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 743; Ref: 10/59; Frame: 71
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 9 June 2023)
    William Hunter born or baptised on 19 Nov 1752, son of James Hunter & Janet Lawrie, in Greenlaw, Berwickshire, Scotland.
22. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 826; Ref: 10/35; Frame: 39
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 15 November 2023)
    William Hunter born or baptised on 25 Feb 1733, son of James Hunter & Isabel Marshell, in Glencairn, Dumfriesshire, Scotland.
23. ↑ Birth or Baptism: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Births and Baptisms", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 30/176
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 15 November 2023)
    Elizabeth Nicolson born or baptised on 7 Jun 1744, daughter of Robert Nicolson, in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.
24. ↑ Marriage: "Church of Scotland: Old Parish Registers - Banns and Marriages", database
    National Records of Scotland, Parish Number: 742; Ref: 30/164; Frame: 846
    ScotlandsPeople (accessed 15 November 2023)
    Robert Nicolson marriage to Helen Taylor on or after 22 May 1742 in Gordon, Berwickshire, Scotland.